The second session of ILEAD USA 2016 is coming up July 11-14.  This is the technology session for the teams when they challenge themselves with technology classes and present the first view of their proposed solutions to community problems during a poster session. This is a great time to take a look at last year’s teams’ products!  Read about the Adult Literacy Training Team (ALT).

Adult Literacy Training Team (ALT)

–submitted by Elaine Stefanko
Information Services
Osterhout Free Library

ILEAD USA 2015 ALT team members: Joanne Austin (left), Rick Miller, Elaine Stefanko, and Ed Lupico. Seated is Bonnie Powers.

The ILEAD 2015 ALT (Adult Literacy Training)  team members were Joanne Austin from the  North Branch Library of the Osterhout Free Library, Rick Miller and Elaine Stefanko of the,Osterhout Free Library in Wilkes-Barre and Edward Lupico from the State Correctional Institution at Houtzdale. The team mentor was Bonnie Powers who is the Content Services Librarian at Shadek-Fackenthal Library, Franklin & Marshall College.

The team easily  identified adult literacy as their community need.  The ALT team discovered that 13% of adult Pennsylvanians lack basic literacy skills.  No free, easily-accessible service was available in their communities to help adults improve their basic literacy skills. In the case of correctional institutions, demographics showed low educational achievement and literacy skills across a large proportion of inmates.

The hardest part of the ILEAD project, for us, was that 2 initial members of the project dropped out before the project began.  The team had to scramble to quickly find another member of the team in a short time.  ILEAD is a big commitment of time so make sure you are  ready for it when you apply.

The team developed 6 literacy toolkits that can be used by  literacy volunteers to then conduct one-on-one sessions with the individuals that need literacy help.  The backpack toolkit contains carefully selected resources such as easy readers, an I-Pad with easy readers downloaded on it and literacy  websites bookmarked, and books that teach the Laubach Way to Reading.  A portable screen and small projector that can be used for group tutor training was purchased.   Literacy volunteers can use the entire toolkit or pick parts of it.

This toolkit can be used  by all types of libraries.  We have used  it in public and prison libraries.  For more information contact Elaine Stefanko at estefanko@luzernelibraries.org.

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Learn more about last year’s teams and the current teams on the ILEAD USA pages of POWER Library.