York County Literacy Council

TO EMPOWER ADULTS AND FAMILIES WITH FUNCTIONAL LITERACY SKILLS, IN ENGLISH, THAT ENABLE THEM TO PARTICIPATE PRODUCTIVELY IN THE HOME, IN THE WORKPLACE AND IN THE COMMUNITY.

ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE PROGRAM: THE ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE (ESL) PROGRAM SERVES INCREASINGLY DIVERSE MEMBERS OF THE YORK COMMUNITY. THE PROGRAM OFFERS CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION, IN PERSON AND HYFLEX/HYBRID, IN BOTH YORK AND HANOVER, WITH PRE-LITERACY, BEGINNER, INTERMEDIATE, AND ADVANCED LEVELS AS WELL AS ENGLISH LANGUAGE CIVIS AND ONE-TO-ONE TUTORING. THE FOCUS OF THE ESL PROGRAM IS TO IMPROVE BASIC CONVERSATION SKILLS INCLUDING SPEAKING, LISTENING, READING, AND WRITING SKILLS. THIS YEAR THERE WERE 949 PARTICIPANTS INVOLVED IN THIS PROGRAM DURING THE 2022-2023 FISCAL YEAR.

FAMILY LITERACY PROGRAM: IN PARTNERSHIP WITH CENTRAL YORK SCHOOL DISTRICT, PREPARATONS WERE UNDERWAY FOR YCLC TO PROVIDE "ENGLISH FOR PARENTS AND HOMEWORK HELPERS" IN THE SUMMER 2020. ALL PLANS WERE PUT ON HOLD UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE DUE TO HEALTH CONCERNS. LITERACY IN THE WORKPLACE: YCLC IS THE ONLY TESTING FACILITY IN YORK COUNTY CERTIFIED TO GIVE THE "HISET" ONE OF TWO HIGH SCHOOL EQUIVALENCY TESTS RECOGNIZED BY THE STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA. YCLC ALSO PROVIDES EMPLOYERS WITH LITERACY IN THE WORKPLACE, TAILORING A CURRICULA SPECIFIC TO THE BUSINESS COMMUNITIES' NEEDS. DIGITAL LEARNING CENTER: OFFERS BEGINNING AND INTERMEDIATE LEVEL DIGITAL LITERACY CLASSES AND DIGITAL LITERACY LAB HOURS FOR INDIVIDUALIZED SUPPORT.

ADULT READING PROGRAM: THE ADULT READING PROGRAM (AR)HELPS ENGLISH-SPEAKING ADULTS TO IMPROVE THEIR READING, WRITING, SPELLING, MATHEMATICS, AND OTHER BASIC LITERACY SKILLS. LEARNERS ARE ASSIGNED A SKILL-LEVEL APPROPRIATE CLASS FOR WEEKLY INSTRUCTION INCLUDING HIGH SCHOOL EQUIVALENCY CLASSES WHICH PREPARE LEARNERS TO TAKE THE HIGH SCHOOL EQUIVALENCY TEST - GED OR HISET (SUBTEST: MATH, READING-LANGUAGE, WRITING-LANGUAGE, SCIENCE & SOCIAL STUDIES). LEARNERS MAY BE MATCHED WITH A TRAINDED TUTOR FOR ONE-TO-ONE OR SMALL GROUP INSTRUCTION AND/OR ASSIGNED TO THE COMPUTERIZED DIGITAL LEARNING CENTER FEATURING LITERACY SOFTWARE AND LONG DISTANCE LEARNING TOOLS GEARED TO ADULT LEARNING AND WORKSHOPS ON FINANCIAL, WORKPLACE, COMPUTER AND HEALTH LITERACY ARE ALSO OFFERED. 250 ADULTS PARTICPATED IN THE ADULT READING PROGRAM DURING THE 2022-2023 FISCAL YEAR.

NEXT STEP PROGRAM: THE NEXT STEP PROGRAM (NSP) ASSISTS YCLC LEARNERS WITH JOB READINESS, CONTINUING EDUCATION, PREPATORY INSTRUCTION AND LIFE ENRICHING GOALS. NSP SERVICES INCLUDE ASSISTANCE WITH JOB SEARCH, RESUME BUILDING, SOFT SKILLS, AND INTERVIEWING. NSP LEARNERS RECEIVE UPDATES ON JOB FAIRS AND EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES, AND MAY RECEIVE ASSISTANCE WITH THE PROCESS OF CONTINUING EDUCATION SUCH AS APPLYING TO COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITIES, TRADE SCHOOLS, OR CERTIFICATE PROGRAMS, UNDERSTANDING FINANCIAL AID, AND RESEARCHING SCHOLARSHIPS TO PAY FOR THEIR EDUCATION. NEW THROUGH THE NSP, A DIGITAL LITERACY ASSOCIATE ASSISTS LEARNERS WITH BASIC COMPUTER LITERACY AND SKILL BUILDING, SOFTWARE, AND LONG-DISTANCE LEARNING TOOLS GEARED TO ADJULT LEARNING. 42 PARTICIPANTS WERE INVOLVED IN THIS PROGRAM DURING THE 2022-2023 FISCAL YEAR.