So much time indoors and in front of screens over the past year makes it more important than ever to develop habits that are posture-friendly! Here are some tips on how to maintain an ergonomic workspace.
Thanks to your support, our 19th Annual Breakfast was a success!!! We reached our funding goal of $155,000. Read on to find out more about your donations at work.
Welcome Note
AmeriCorps member Audrey Bradshaw with ESOL 1 packets ready to give to students
Spring is here! Not only are the flowers flourishing, our classes are too. We are excited to announce that even with adding two new ESOL classes to our roster, we are at full capacity. Our students, staff, and volunteers have had to make some tough adjustments over the past year. But instead of letting it get us down, we've found ways to learn and grow, whether that be adopting a new hybrid learning model or creating user-friendly and multi-level ESOL guides to everything from Zoom meetings to how to keep your Chromebook in tip-top shape (which, by the way, did we mention one of our goals is to have a Chromebook available to every one of our students who needs it?).

Winter quarter yielded some fantastic results from our students. From writing biographies about family members to creating timelines for their future goals, students continue to wow us with their ability to navigate this challenging new (entirely) online world in order to showcase their identity and hopes for the future.

And what are our students studying this quarter?

GED classes:
  • Social Studies, specifically international migration with a focus on Central America. 
  • The GED lab is working on math.

Citizenship Classes:
  • The citizenship class is studying the parts of government and the difficult sections of the N-400 (the citizenship application), as well as reading and writing. They are also currently learning about the constitutional amendments and how this is a part of the complicated history of the United States.

Computer Classes:
  • Computer classes are working on basic computer care and maintenance, email, on-line tutorials and Google Slides presentations.

ESOL Classes:
  • Most of the ESOL classes are studying health, with the final project focused on writing. ESOL 4/5 will have a particular focus on mental health. Ready to Work level 1/2 is focusing on health and food safety at work. RTW 3/4 is studying customer service and money handling. 

We are looking forward to another great quarter and as always are thankful for everything you do to support our students!
 Cat Howell
 Co-ED, Educational Director
Shira Rosen 
Co-ED, Managing Director   
Ready to Work Program & New Staff Spotlight
Please welcome our new Ready to Work South instructor, Cari Hastings! Read on to find out why this is the perfect job for her, and how she's partnering with her students to make sure that they feel confident in amplifying their voices.
Why are you excited to work for Literacy Source?
 
When Literacy Source contacted me [about this role], I was subbing, and it was exhausting. I wanted to be in my own classroom. As I got to know LS more and what they do, I started getting really excited about the job because the position EXACTLY what I want to do with my life. To top it off, the RTW program is exactly my niche because it’s not just teaching English, it’s teaching practical skills to get my students further and help them reach their goals. I feel like I got really lucky, but at the same time, I have to humbly say that I have two masters degrees [in Global Development & Justice and TESOL), so I felt like: "Okay, this is what you’ve been training for."
 
What drew you to the Ready to Work program?
 
Working with workforce skills: I’m a very practical person, I use a lot of realia in my class, so it works with my pedagogy. This is practical. I keep trying to use things that they will have to go out and do. So, for example, when we practice leaving a message, we practice leaving a message to get their Covid vaccine. Real practical skills are important. 

What is your (virtual) classroom look like this quarter? What are you hoping to focus on?

Virtual is hard, but we’re all in it together. We’re all learning. For me, it’s still new and I’m learning a lot every week. We're focusing on phone conversations & customer service. In my previous job, I was an insurance specialist in a pharmacy so I was on the phone all the time with insurance companies and I had to have excellent customer service to get what I wanted. So I’m trying to pass on some of those polite phrases and ways to speak to my students. It might be simple things like: “How may I help you?” To learn how to say those things politely: to have good phone etiquette and good customer service.

Why do you think this work is important?
 
It’s important because it gets them into their job, furthers them in their job, or gets them into school. It’s very practical. As those communities are able to grow and further themselves, it’s going to help our community as a whole. As we lift each other up, we all get lifted up. This is for the good of the whole Seattle area.

I also think this role is important as far as getting to know them and helping them to tell their story. Especially in our world today where we have such drastic different sides of the conversation….we have BLM and Stop Asian Hate saying: “This is going on in the world and you need to pay attention to this”, and then you have the opposite side blowing up. We are learning how to speak up and do this in the right way by learning English so that different sides of the conversation can listen to each other and hear what they have to say.

Thanks, Cari, for giving us a glimpse into your classroom!
Volunteer Spotlight: Julie Howe
We are excited to resume recognizing our amazing volunteers in this edition of the E-News with a bi-monthly volunteer spotlight. This month we are featuring Julie Howe, a long-time Conversation Class volunteer. Each week Julie joins a dedicated cohort of volunteers to support students with their English listening and speaking skills. Volunteering since 2016, Julie has donated an incredible 232 hours and has become an integral part of team!

Here's what the Conversation Class Instructor, Cynthia, says about Julie this term: "Julie has done an amazing job with our beginner group over the past quarter. They are so much more confident in class. They speak up and volunteer to read aloud. And they’re doing their homework assignments (even though it’s optional)."

Thank you, Julie, for all your dedication and ongoing commitment to Literacy Source students. Clearly you are helping to make a difference!

Where are you originally from? If you’re not from Seattle what brought you here?
 
I'm originally from Austin, Texas. I moved to Seattle in 1999 from Germany. My husband is German, and I lived in Germany for 6 years before moving to Seattle. We picked Seattle because we thought we'd both like living here... and we do!
 
Please tell us a bit about yourself: something about your life so far; what your plans are for the future...
 
To find out more about Julie, click here!
GiveBIG to Literacy Source!
Today is the LAST DAY to support Literacy Source through GiveBIG, our statewide charity drive!

We are so close (92% of the way there), so your donation could make the difference! Our $3000 goal this year is for staff tech costs. With virtual and hybrid programming becoming the new norm, it’s more important than ever that we meet this goal to supply our staff with the technology necessary to further help our students!

Please join us today and GiveBIG.
Breakfast Success: Thanks to You!
This month, we want to shout from the rooftops the biggest...

THANK YOU!

...to all the wonderful support you all showed us during our 19th Annual Breakfast Fundraiser. Thanks to you, we reached our goal of 155K!
Literacy Source is on the traditional lands of the Duwamish people, and we pay our respect to elders both past and present. To support the revival of Duwamish culture and the vitality of the Duwamish Tribe, please consider signing this petition to federally recognize them, or consider making a donation to Real Rent Duwamish.