<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1" http-equiv=Content-Type>
<META content="MSHTML 5.00.2919.6307" name=GENERATOR></HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=#ffffff>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>David,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Thank you very much for the comments below. I
also would like to see others take action on these very important issues related
to the growth of our learners and the survival of our adult literacy
programs. Let's hear the rest of the story from the rest of the listserv
and the providers, I say. We do elect our local officials. If we
come to them with a spirit of collaboration, they will hear our voice - they
willingly listened here in our state capitol. I realize this may not be
true everywhere else, but it worked for us here.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>As far as my minimal contact with Senator Daschle's
office staff is concerned, I can't take complete credit for that one.
Credit is also due to yet another caring partner. As the letter I wrote
was being drafted, I found out that Executive Director Peter Waite of LLA was
headed to Washington DC the next week. He was even *meeting* with
Daschle's staff. So Peter can also take credit for whatever influence he
had on the NIFL Board appointments.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>It's great to hear that a little bit of focus
can help. I believe that a concentrated effort can do even more --
And that comment comes from someone as far away as the Midwest *is* from "the
action". Regional involvement is an important way to begin as it has been
for Iowa and Sioux Falls, SD. As a cheerleader of those who want change,
I encourage subscribers to try it and know that it really can
happen.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Nancy Hansen</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><A
href="mailto:sfliteracy@mcleodusa.net">sfliteracy@mcleodusa.net</A></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Sioux Falls Area Literacy Council</FONT></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A href="mailto:DJRosen@theworld.com" title=DJRosen@theworld.com>David J.
Rosen</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A
href="mailto:nla@lists.literacytent.org"
title=nla@lists.literacytent.org>nla@lists.literacytent.org</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, May 01, 2002 8:34
AM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> [NLA] Discussion: States' Action
on Ballot readability and NIFL Board</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>Nancy,<BR><BR>Your message (below) brings heartening news.
<BR><BR>Congratulations to South Dakota and Iowa adult learners and
practitioners for leading the nation in making their state ballots easier to
read. Are other state student-led or practitioner-led adult literacy
coalitions working on this issue, meeting with their Secretaries of State?
This is a good time to find them open to new ideas about ballot changes.
And this is an excellent opportunity for adult learner
leadership.<BR><BR>Nancy, good going with Senator Daschle! Your work is a good
example of action by Massachusetts and South Dakota practitioners which
resulted in an important change for the future of the NIFL Board -- that after
one year there will be three new positions for adult ed practitioners and
learners. When colleagues from different states contact their Senators and
Representatives -- when several key legislators are hearing about the same
issue from their own constituencies -- change can happen.<BR><BR>That's what
the NLA list is all about -- a way to help inform and organize adult literacy
advocates for positive change in our field. But the NLA list is only effective
if those who read these messages take action, as Archie and Nancy have done.
<BR><BR>If you have taken action for adult literacy education , let us
know.<BR><BR>David J. Rosen<BR>NLA List Moderator<BR><A
class=moz-txt-link-abbreviated
href="mailto:DJRosen@theworld.com">DJRosen@theworld.com</A><BR><BR>Sioux Falls
Area Literacy Council wrote:<BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE cite="mid:004201c1f0b6$cced4360$1408e9c0@nancy" type="cite">
<META content="MSHTML 5.00.2919.6307" name=GENERATOR>
<STYLE></STYLE>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>To Archie & other NLA
subscribers:</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>THANK you for this message, Archie. I am
really proud of you as a former New Reader for giving us all clear
ideas about ways New Readers really can change their lives by learning to
read. This email gave us very poignant examples of "How" it
happens!</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Education truly does make a difference for
individuals. Sometimes it's hard to 'see the forest for the trees' as
the old expression goes. The New Reader who said #9 -- "Look at a book
with a blank page. That is how a new reader feels." -- portrayed for
all of us who are avid readers the vision of what it could be like
for us, if we saw no words pictures painted on those
pages.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I may <U>not </U>be from Iowa and I'm not even
priviledged to be among the rank of New Readers, but your Iowa New Reader
Coalition and the discussion that your group allowed our South Dakota
representatives to share last Fall, made a difference in our state,
too. It helped me as a small town practitioner to set a direction
and assist our small program's learners to feel success and
accomplishment in their actions. A comment regarding the following
paragraph:</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><< III. <B>Voting</B>. The new
readers made an appointment with the Iowa Secretary of State, and met with
him for nearly 2 hours, sharing their experiences when trying to vote or to
get information about voting. The Secretary met with the new readers
at the Fall, 2001 conference, and the participants spent the day looking
over ballots and sharing their thoughts on those ballots. A summary of
that activity was forwarded to the Secretary. >></FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Here's what happened for *us* after we left
your conference:</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><STRONG>Instructions simplified on S.D. ballots
following Board of Elections Hearing Nov
28th.</STRONG> </FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>When we returned to S.D. we decided to follow
Iowa readers' lead. Our conversation with our So. Dakota Secretary of
State was made easier because YOUR Secretary of State opened the DOOR for
us, Archie! And we Went Right In! A meeting was held in our
state capitol. Our four hours of input was heard. We gave
suggestions that ended up as items voted on at a Hearing of the Board of
Elections within the month! Those suggestions, plus *other*
meaningful ideas that bounced off the walls in that room on the voices of
auditors who came from counties statewide and sat in the audience that
day, were adopted -- a wintry day in So. Dakota while a snow blizzard left
the landscape icy and white. New Readers' voices were heard and
recognized that day -- validated, if you will.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I would like to encourage other practitioners
to offer the guidance to their learners to open doors because it's hard
sometimes to do it all alone as a learner. Will we impower our
learners? Will we give them the opportunity to be able to vote?
Will we model leadership? Will we help them take First Steps in their
growth?</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>A Minnehaha County city election has been held
here. (A state election is ahead.) The new reader committee who took
on this challenge tell me that the ballot instructions were easier for them
to read at the polls when they voted. An added bonus? We
are developing a working relationship with our local County Auditor.
</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>She called me last Friday. She
wanted to make sure we knew that the county auditor's office staff are
"still working on the directions even though they aren't <U>perfect</U>
yet." (They had left out one of the changes and she thought we may
feel that the auditor hadn't listened to our input, she told me. Well,
I surely did not think that and told her so. The conversation said to
me that we have a two-way street of input going on here.) </FONT><FONT
face=Arial size=2>Everyone should have the chance to have such a
relationship with their elected officials. Sample ballots and a Ballot
Question Explanation provided by our auditor are being mailed within the
week to every learner in our program as an enclosure to our "Tutor
News" newsletter. I picked them up today.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>While I'm AT it -- I'd like to add one other
comment to:</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><B>How We Can Improve Literacy in the United
States</B><BR>Remember the conversation here on the NLA about what in the
world are we going to do about the current administration's appointments to
the NIFL Board of Directors when the focus has obviously veered away from
adult literacy? Well, here's a wonderful update for you, NLA
subscribers. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Back up a little. My reaction to the news
that spread across the NLA was to quietly write my own letter to our Council
friend and state Senator, Senator Tom Daschle. Today the Council
phone rang and it was Senator Daschle's staff in Washington
DC. Jill Marshall called to tell me that Senator Daschle wanted us to
know that, thanks to the aggressive interest of Senator Kennedy, three NIFL
Board terms will be limited to a year's length. AND one of those seats
will be filled by an Adult Learner! </FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Jill and I agreed that it was merely a start --
not the most ideal answer, but at least this *other* door has opened for
representation of those who walk the walk, talk the talk. Tomorrow, as
Jill suggested, I am going to the NIFL site to identify who is taking
nominations because I have a desire to give my input on this very important
nomination. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I have already called the man who has just sent
us this message, challenging us to invigorate OUR learners to talk about and
take action to improve literacy and adult education in our country.
<STRONG>I will be nominating Archie Willard, </STRONG>with his blessing, for
this very important role. Who will <U>you</U> identify as the
learner in your part of the country who should be considered?
</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Perhaps there will be so many names "fall from
the skies" that there will be other advisory positions opened to the input
of the adult who once could not read -- much less write a fluent, meaningful
email which should set the barn a'fire 'cross the U.S.A. (Sorry.
The Old Midwesterner in me just forgot for a moment that there's more than a
bonfire to be burned here, but a path to literacy to be
forged!)</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Nancy Hansen</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Sioux Falls Area Literacy Council</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><A
href="mailto:sfliteracy@mcleodusa.net">sfliteracy@mcleodusa.net</A>
</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>1000 N. West Ave., Ste. 240</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Sioux Falls, SD 57104</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>(605) 332-BOOK</FONT></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="BORDER-LEFT: rgb(0,0,0) 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none">-----
Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND-ATTACHMENT: scroll; BACKGROUND-COLOR: rgb(228,228,228); BACKGROUND-IMAGE: none; BACKGROUND-REPEAT: repeat; FONT: 10pt arial; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none; x-background-x-position: 0%; x-background-y-position: 0%"><B>From:</B><A
href="mailto:millard@goldfieldaccess.net"
title=millard@goldfieldaccess.net> Archie Willard</A> </DIV>
<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none"><B>To:</B><A
href="mailto:nla@lists.literacytent.org" title=nla@lists.literacytent.org>
_NLA LISTSERV</A> </DIV>
<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none"><B>Sent:</B>
Saturday, April 27, 2002 6:07 PM</DIV>
<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; font-stretch: normal; font-size-adjust: none"><B>Subject:</B>
[NLA] New Readers of Iowa Coalition</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV><B>NEW READERS OF IOWA COALITION</B><BR><B>How We Can
Improve Literacy in the United States</B><BR><B>April, 2002</B>
<P>The New Readers of Iowa Coalition met April 2, 2002. At this
meeting we discussed our history. <BR>Iowa has had a strong New Readers
program for many years. The reading instructional program began in
earnest in 1986, adult educators were taught methods for helping adults
learn to read, and the program began to grow. In 1990 the first New
Readers Congress was held in Des Moines, and that meeting has now become a
tradition. For 12 straight years the new readers have come together
to learn from each other, to support each other, and to make their voices
heard. Following are some of the ways they have spoken. </P>
<P>1. <B>Leadership development</B>. New readers have attended and
presented sessions on leadership. They have demonstrated those
skills by making presentations, going to schools to speak, traveling to
other states to attend conferences and meetings, and even working to
develop the national adult reading organization (VALUE). </P>
<P>II. <B>Reading Activities</B>. New readers have gone to local
elementary schools, and have spoken to the children, and read with
them. Several times new readers have presented a session at the Iowa
Reading Conference, on the topic: What it is like for that child in the
back of the room. </P>
<P>III. <B>Voting</B>. The new readers made an appointment with the
Iowa Secretary of State, and met with him for nearly 2 hours, sharing
their experiences when trying to vote or to get information about
voting. The Secretary met with the new readers at the Fall, 2001
conference, and the participants spent the day looking over ballots and
sharing their thoughts on those ballots. A summary of that activity
was forwarded to the Secretary. </P>
<P>IV. <B>Self-Confidence</B>. Almost all the Iowa new readers
report a great increase in self-confidence. One of the shyer new
readers has taken over the summer care for her autistic grandson.
She says she never would have had the courage to do that without the new
readers group. </P>
<P>V. <B>Better Jobs</B>. Several new readers have shared that they
were able to get higher paying jobs after gaining increased reading
skill. Others felt more secure in their present jobs, and were
better able to do what was asked of them. </P>
<P>VI. <B>Behavior</B>. Some new readers reported improvement in
personal behavior. Because of the lack of skill, occasional "bad
behavior" made life more difficult for the new readers. The new
confidence they developed as their reading skills increased made life more
enjoyable for them and for those with whom they live and work. </P>
<P><B>Other thoughts and comments from New Readers.</B></P>
<P>1. Sometimes people look at me funny when they find out I
can't read. I don't like that. </P>
<P>2. In many places they won't hire you without a high school
diploma. I can do the work, I just can't get the job. </P>
<P>3. Employers "Don't want you" if you can't read. They
seem to be scared of you, like it was catching. </P>
<P>4. If the children have trouble in school, it is important
to look at the whole family! </P>
<P>5. Smaller student/teacher ratio makes learning
easier. The teachers have time to help you. </P>
<P>6. Schools are graduating students who can't read.
Then they are adults who still can't read. It is like, now it isn't
<BR> the school's problem any more. </P>
<P>7. It is really hard to take that first step, to say you
can't read and go in for help. It really shouldn't
<BR> be something shameful. </P>
<P>8. It is hard to know how to find help, where to go. </P>
<P>9. Look at a book with a blank page. That is how a
new reader feels. </P>
<P>10. If adults don't know how to read, they can't help their children
with schoolwork. They don't want <BR>
their children to go through life like they did. </P>
<P>11. It takes a long time to learn. </P>
<P><B>What can WE do to help?</B></P>
<P>1. Go to school and read. This is for
both good readers and those who are not so good. Teachers
<BR> can correct the adults,
too. That shows the children that it is ok to be corrected. </P>
<P>2. Share personal stories with children and in
adult groups as well. And also share with parents of children
<BR> with special learning
needs. </P>
<P>3. Get active in literacy meetings, and with
the state literacy council. </P>
<P>4. Groups of new readers could and should
travel across the state sharing their stories. They should go to
other states <BR> as well.
They should go everywhere people will listen to them. </P>
<P>5. They need to reach out to others. This
is very hard, and sometimes embarrassing. </P>
<P>6. Try to get appointed to local advisory
councils and boards. Commit to participating if you join. </P>
<P>7. Give back. Volunteer where you
can. Let people know you and see that you have talents, too. </P>
<P>VALUE is the national voice for New Readers. This should be
funded at the federal level and by the state directors. The group
needs backing and support. Without it, the group will be less
effective. New Readers need this national voice. </P>
<P>Archie Willard <BR>Adult Learner <BR> <BR> <BR>
<BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> </P>
<P>-- <BR>Archie Willard <BR><A class=moz-txt-link-abbreviated
href="mailto:millard@goldfieldaccess.net">millard@goldfieldaccess.net</A>
<BR>FAX - 515-448-3213 <BR>URL - <A
href="http://www.readiowa.org/archiew.html">http://www.readiowa.org/archiew.html</A>
<BR> </P></BLOCKQUOTE></BLOCKQUOTE><BR></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>