At Literacy DuPage, our mission is to end illiteracy for adults.
We are proud of our progress toward that goal.
And yet, we know we cannot fully achieve this mission alone.
That’s why we are so excited about our new partnership with the College of DuPage (COD). Together, Literacy DuPage and COD will have greater reach, greater impact, and greater success.
“By sharing staff and resources, the partnership will improve student-learning outcomes while lowering overall costs to taxpayers,” said Therese McMahon, Executive Director of Literacy DuPage.
You might be surprised to learn just how great is the need to improve adult literacy in our area. About 100,000 DuPage County residents lack essential literacy skills. Today, Literacy DuPage is equipped to serve about 500 of those adults each year. By joining forces with COD, we can not just increase but multiply that number.
Here’s how the partnership will work.
Literacy DuPage runs on a lean budget, a tiny staff (just two full-time and a handful of part-time employees), and an army of volunteers. We work hard to find learners, recruit and train tutors, match the two, and then support their ongoing efforts to break the language barrier. Administering this program takes resources and skills that are second nature for COD, which is the largest public community college in Illinois, serving approximately 25,000 students each term.
We’re looking forward to the benefits of COD’s assistance with:
- Program and course development
- Student registration
- Student services
- Marketing and outreach
- Office space and administration (our staff will move to the COD campus this summer)
Through this partnership, Literacy DuPage learners will continue to receive free, personalized tutoring, but with access to even more resources and possibilities. Therese looks forward to offering learners “a pathway for them to enroll in adult education and other courses and supports offered through the college.”
We have something to offer COD, as well. We’ll share our curriculum, teaching resources, and deep tutoring experience with the college’s literacy educators. Additionally, our tutors will be able to support COD’s Adult Education students in and out of the classroom.
This relationship isn’t new. It’s growing.
This is not the first time Literacy DuPage and COD have joined forces. Las year, we collaborated in the college’s Writing in the Community class, which is free and open to the public. We also work with the college’s international students.
We are ecstatic to expand this relationship, and incredibly optimistic about our partnership’s potential to reach more learners, volunteers, and donors.
Are you excited by these possibilities, too? Learn how you can volunteer or donate to Literacy DuPage. You can also follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/LitDuPage/ or join our mailing list for updates, inspiration, and information.