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Orange County Literacy
I work best when I am challenged, and I like to have several objectives before me at once. I also thrive on projects that necessitate creativity and feedback. Most of all, I like a shared goal, so people are a huge part of my world. My place at the Orange County Literacy Council has become an outlet for me. I have plunged into its activity and contributed my skills that are adding to the motion toward progress for adult learners. I am learning and loving service to people who have probably breathed the same air as I in the community, and I just did not know it until this year. My gratitude goes out to the One who ultimately put me in contact with such people.
In all my childhood years in Chapel Hill, I never speculated that I would come back home after college in Virginia and work right downtown on Franklin Street! Nevertheless, I believe that God has somehow ordered my life so that I currently have a role at the local Literacy Council. I am learning important social, promotional, and administrative skills from my co-workers, plus I have a great deal of responsibility to the community.
As computer-assisted learning coordinator, I engage in such projects as organizing classes for groups and tutoring several individuals one-on-one. Although I am piloting classes at the Hargraves Center and workshops for parenting groups, the people I serve primarily are adults with significant literacy needs who live in Chapel Hill public housing or at the Orange County Correctional Center. Part of my work is to stand in the "digital divide" that separates adults from skills that can give them job opportunities and personal satisfaction. I give adults the opportunity to relate to some of the amazing technological advances of our present day, while improving their academic aptitude at the same time.
Interestingly enough, I have also begun to connect with some of the most vibrant circles of people in town, as I am developing a presence for computer technology in education. I am now realizing just how much I need the people with whom I work for ideas, networking, enthusiasm, and hope. We feed off each other's energy. I come alongside other social agencies for referrals and ask residents and housing community administrators for participation and feedback. All of this support is crucial for my objectives and for those of the community at large
Consequently, I am an advocate for many community programs like Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and others that challenge me to understand and aid individuals with special needs. I feel that I am on the same team as those people who share the fervor for their mission as the Literacy Council does for its 100% literacy goal for Orange County.
My working world is all about people. I teach literacy through use of the computer because I feel I am teaching valuable skills. However, the computer is just a tool. Yet it offers me a way to work with adult learners who have impacted my life significantly. Perhaps there is something of the Divine working through all things. One of my clients who is delightfully dedicated to our learning sessions says that her friends tell her, "The computer is brain-washing you!" I think not. Rather, I think that these friends are simply intimidated by the reading and writing skills that my client is cultivating. With or without the use of the computer, perhaps they will one day be more curious about a future of learning.
To you who have taken time to read this article, thanks. You have already begun to participate in my world of people and their on-going education. I trust you have learned something about my workplace and something about the impact of people in my life. If you desire to delve into some tutoring relationships too, consider calling the local Literacy Council to volunteer. I would love to know you and have you join the mission!
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