Literacy Achieves (founded as Vickery Meadow Learning Center)

We understand the difficulty many English Language Learners have in finding the time, transportation, childcare or money needed in order to attend classes. We seek to remove these common barriers through:
Convenient Scheduling and Locations: We provide day and evening classes so students may enroll in the class which best suits their work/family needs. Our sites are located in the neighborhoods where our students live, eliminating transportation difficulties and allowing us to foster a strong sense of community in the neighborhoods.
Meeting the Needs of Parents with Young Children: Our daytime classes provide concurrent programming for adults and children creating a valuable synergy which allows parents to model the importance of learning to their young children.
Programs are Free of Charge, yet Accountability Driven: Efficient use of over 350 volunteer teachers allows us to provide Instruction at no charge. Regular, on-time attendance is required in order to stay in the program.

STRATEGY: English Instruction for Adults
We offer up to eight levels of English classes from basic to advanced. Classes are co-taught by trained volunteers. We use the nationally recognized “Side by Side" series as our core curriculum. Students attend two-hour classes, either in the day or evening, Monday -Thursday for up to 200 hours of classroom instruction per school year.

STRATEGY: Early Childhood Education
We provide a quality program for the young children (4 mo-5 yrs) of students attending the daytime adult classes. The program is designed to meet our students’ unique needs with a child-centered, literacy-rich environment and uses an Emergent Curriculum which is beneficial for English language learners because it builds on prior knowledge.

STRATEGY: Improve students’ life-skills and cultural knowledge
Student Services Program enhances student life skills with computer labs, family mentoring programs, nutrition and financial classes, legal fairs and parent workshops.

Organization Strengths
Convenient Scheduling & Locations - By providing day and evening classes, students can enroll in the program that best suits their needs. Our sites are located in the neighborhoods where our students live.
Meeting the Needs of Parents with Young Children – Our day classes provide concurrent programming for adults and children creating a valuable synergy which enhances learning for the entire family.
Programs are Free of Charge, yet Accountability Driven - Instruction is provided at no charge. Regular attendance is required in order to stay in the program.
Structured Program Approach – Our unique program design includes a formal enrollment process, daily classes and multiple class levels.
Effective Use of Over 350 Weekly Volunteer Teachers - Compassionate volunteer teachers give students much needed encouragement. Students are exposed to a variety of teaching styles through the teachers, which increases their exposure to the complexities of the English language.

Measurable Results for 2017-2018
Student Attendance: 85% (944) of 1,116 enrolled adult students received at least 12+ hours of instruction.

ESL Proficiency Test: 58% (395) of 685 students with a pre- and post-test increased literacy skills by one level or more.

Student Surveys Results:
95% (344) of 363 workforce students gained, retained or improved employment
94% (304) of 323 students with children were more involved in their children’s education
97% (660) of 674 students increased their self-confidence
91% (626) of 688 students learned more about computers
77% (355) of 462 students were involved in community activities
10% (47) of 462 students expressed interest in becoming US citizen
5% (22) of 462 students applied for or became a US citizen
11% (52) of 462 students took additional training including GED/HSE