Hello we're wrapping up summer! Stats, new to the team, and fall programming
The Collierville Literacy Council has completed our first summer after a year of online learning only. The CLC reopened on May 23.

Our ESOL Immersive summer intensive experience included classes, pronunciation, and culture support for beginner and intermediate English learners.

Teresa (not pictured) said that she was able to speak English now when she was ordering food and around town.

Statistics:
  • 15 students
  • 14 countries represented
  • 10% lived in Collierville
  • 10% lived in Germantown
  • 52% had completed undergraduate
  • 3% had post-doctorate education
  • Top Languages
  1. Spanish
  2. Arabic
  3. Mandarin/Portuguese

Our Reading Intervention program is new to the CLC. We appreciate our volunteers who helped us begin this program! Our students are completing their summer, and we will reassess for improvement. Kelli said of her son Wilson: "Wilson is excited about his tutoring time and is making strides because of it. He's showing some improvement with fluency and doesn't get stressed as easily when he encounters a word he doesn't know because he's gaining skills to help him with the decoding. He's been picking out more challenging books at the library recently and has done better than I expected with reading them."

Statistics:
  • 9 students
  • 55% live in Collierville
2020-2021 statistics:
  • 89 students (vs. 141 in previous fiscal year when we were open)
  • 37% live in Collierville (vs. 26% previous fiscal year)
  • 87% of students meet the threshold for federal poverty guidelines
  • 39 ESOL students from 15 countries
  • 28% Black, 26% white, 21% Asian, 19% Hispanic
Leyla C. (left) said that the experience was exceptional and that Ms. Riley (center) was very kind. Students agreed to a masking policy, and received a certificate of completion after a presentation to their class.
Davis (left) and Hung practiced ordering food at the drive-through, and then enjoyed lunch together
Betty (right) and Emily learn vowel teams together
Please welcome to our team this month:
Please welcome our new Board Member, Mario Hogue. Mario brings a passion for literacy and heart for service to our team.
Please welcome our new Reading Intervention Program Manager, Yaquetta Crockett. Yaquetta brings a wealth of experience and knowledge in reading intervention and teaching to our community.
Are you interested in joining our team?
Evening Office Support (M-Th, 3 pm - 8 pm; $10-$12 an hour)
Part-Time Daytime Adult ESOL Teacher (20 hours a week; $18-$20 an hour)
Part-Time Evening Adult ESOL Teacher (10 hours a week; $18-$20 an hour)

Please email Penny Aronson with a resume and cover letter.
Events and Fundraisers: Get involved with the CLC!

Goat Yoga
This Saturday, July 31, come stretch and do gentle yoga moves while baby goats play! Walkapony Goat Ranch will bring 6-8-week-old goats to join in yoga, in the shady area of Collierville Middle School. There are two 60-minute sessions beginning at 9 am, with 45 minutes of stretching and 15 minutes to take photos with the baby goats. $20 registration donation. Register today!

Amazing Duck Race
Rubber ducky, you're the one...Support our literacy programs with the Amazing Duck Race! You can “adopt” a duck for only $5 to join the fun! (We challenge you to get 4 tickets for $20…or more!) You don’t need to be present to win - the amazing duck race at the YMCA of Collierville will be posted on Facebook live Sunday, August 11th at 5 pm.
1st prize: $250
2nd prize: $150
3rd prize: $75
For every $5, you receive a numbered ticket that matches a number on the duck! The deadline to participate is August 9th (or whenever our ducks are all adopted - limited quantity!)

Sign-up as an individual or register as a team/business online to purchase a bunch as a group (or ask a CLC board member for tickets, or call (901) 854-0288 to pick up tickets at our office by the square.) Get your tickets today!
Fall ESOL Classes are enrolling now
We have a robust class schedule this fall for ESOL students, from learning first words through advanced writing. Classes are 13 weeks, structured, and from a professional ESOL teacher. Our ESOL webpage is also translated into Spanish and Arabic. For additional questions, please contact Liz Newsom.

For more information and to register, please visit www.colliervilleliteracy.org/esol-courses-title

Reading Intervention assessments continue
Our summer Reading Intervention students are completing their summer schedule now. We will be assessing 4th-8th graders for intervention in August, with the semester to begin in September.
Upcoming Family Literacy month programming
This summer, we've focused on summer reading on our social media and website.

August: Digital Literacy Month
Look for the Digital A-Z on our social media!

September: Civic/Voting Literacy Month
We will help support our community with a voter registration drive and information on what it means to vote and how government works.

October: Media Literacy Month
Reading and thinking about news critically

November: Family Literacy Month
Making Literacy a family affair!

December: Spiritual Literacy Month
Celebrating our diverse community!

Visit us on social media for related events, programming and information. Our family literacy programming is open to our students and community at-large.
We loved seeing our community at ESOL Fire Safety Day! Thank you to Collierville Fire & Rescue for sharing their tools and tips to be safe at home and work.
Playdate with a Book
Are you looking for a fun way to connect with your kids as summer break winds down? Stop by the Collierville Literacy Council office at 167 Washington Street and pick up a “Play Date with a Book” package. For a minimum $5 donation, you’ll receive a book to enjoy together and a coupon for a free Chik-Fil-A sandwich.