Agency Details:

Topeka Literacy Council

The Topeka Literacy Council is not-for-profit organization of volunteers who help adults learn to read and write effectively for the benefit of their economic advancement and self-esteem.

Description:
The Topeka Literacy Council is committed to practicing the motto "Each One Teach One" by providing free and confidential one-to-one tutoring to adults, both native and non-native English speakers, who want to improve their literacy skills.

The Topeka Literacy Council (TLC) recruits and trains volunteers to tutor adults in reading, writing and other basic literacy skills on a one-to-one basis. Potential clients (students) are interviewed and their reading skills are evaluated and then they are matched with trained tutors. Tutoring is free. There is a charge for books for the students. However, no student is denied the books that they need due to their inability to pay. Books are provided free of charge to students who can't afford to purchase books. They are asked to make a donation if they can afford to do so. Tutors are asked to purchase their tutor books. However, a lending library is available to tutors and students who wish to borrow books.

Tutors for the Topeka Literacy Council are trained in a 12 hour workshop. Two workshops are held each year: one in the spring and one in the fall. Other workshops are scheduled as needed or on behalf of particular groups. There is a $15 fee for materials for the workshop. This fee can be waived for certain individuals (inquire with our office). Those individuals who complete the workshop are certified as ProLiteracy America tutors and can then be matched with a student. There are only two requirements to be a tutor: the ability to read and the ability to write. Beyond that, a high degree of patience is helpful.

Tutors and students are matched based on their schedules, preferences and the student's needs. The tutor and student mutually set their own meeting schedules and meeting location. Two tutoring rooms are available in the council office for use during office hours or at other times by special arrangement.

Funding of the Topeka Literacy Council is through member dues, individual donations and bequests, corporate donations and foundation grants. All tutors, students and any interested individuals are eligible for voluntary membership.

Governance and leadership for the TLC is provided by a volunteer Board of Directors.

History:
The Topeka Literacy Council was founded in 1967 as a project of Church Women United of Topeka. It was incorporated as a not-for-profit organization with the state of Kansas in 1980. The Topeka Literacy Council is a dues-paying member of the national literacy organization ProLiteracy America, which is based in Syracuse, New York. ProLiteracy America was formed by the merger of Laubach Literacy Action (LLA) and Literacy Volunteers of America (LVA).

Contact person: Kevin Koen, Chair, Board Of Directors & Acting Office Manager, (phone), (email)

Address:

1119 SW 10th Street, STE 6 Topeka, KS 66604 (See a map)

Web Site: None specified

Directions:

The Topeka Literacy Council office is located on the lower level of the Doorstep building. The building is on the southeast corner of 10th and Buchanan. This is three blocks east of the Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library and. . . (more)   Nearest Bus Stop: 10th and Buchanan, 1 minute minute walk

Last updated on August 25, 2009