Addressing Adult

LiteracyIn Muncie + Delaware

County

Marissa Rose, The Community Reading Project

We have a problem.

Four County dead-zone

Area Population:

Delaware: 116,852Blackford: 12,298 Jay: 21,121Randolph: 25,172 Total: 175,443

Source: http://www.census.gov/quickfacts/table/PST045215/18035

17,544 - 24,562 ● Population within dead-zone

reading at lowest levels ● Nearly half are in Delaware

County

Source: https://nces.ed.gov/naal/kf_demographics.asp

Census data: % high school graduate or higher

Source: Census Explorer (http://tinyurl.com/hf23epv)

72% Children of parents with low literacy skills have a 72 percent chance of being at the lowest reading levels themselves. Source: https://proliteracy.org/Resources/Adult-Literacy-Facts#sthash.ra901XKI.dpuf

More Statistics

70% Percentage of prison inmates who read at the lowest literacy

levels.

232 billionHealth care

costs linked to low literacy.

225 billion

Non-productivity costs

(corrections, unemployment, etc.) linked to

low literacySource: https://proliteracy.org/Resources/Adult-Literacy-Facts#sthash.ra901XKI.dpuf

The Community Reading ProjectMission

Improve the quality of life for adults in Delaware County by improving their reading skills.

Vision

That every adult in Delaware County will become empowered, engaged, and will experience better outcomes in their interactions with the world as a result of reading fluently.

Program Goals - Year 1 1. Research existing program availability (needs

assessment) 2. Develop 3 Reading Info Desks at heavy-traffic locations

within designated, high-need areas (census tract data) 3. Develop strategy for long-term funding 4. Train 6-12 volunteer tutors to facilitate Reading Info

Desks and perform one-on-one tutoring 5. Develop a library of adult literacy and instructional

resources, reading material, and supplemental teaching materials for program participants and instructions

6. Develop and revise (as needed) the processes of intake and data collection

Measuring Success1.For one-on-one tutoring, difference in pre- and

post-test

2.For Reading Info Desks, percentage that say they “mostly” or “completely” achieved their reading goals during session

3.Number of referrals made to other community resources, especially education resources

4.Number of volunteers trained

5.Engagement with materials (Reader Library, YouTube, etc)

Collaboration is key

What’s neededVolunteers--tutors and otherwise

Funding

Awareness

Questions & Contact Marissa Rose director@communityreadingproject.org 765-734-7519

www.communityreadingproject.org facebook.com/delcocommunityreading