The Word on the Street program received $30,000 from the City of Nanaimo to tackle a wide variety of literacy issues. (Peretz Partensky/Flickr)

By Spencer Sterritt

Learning to read

Literacy program expanding with $30,000 to help Nanaimo’s most vulnerable

Feb 9, 2020 | 6:56 AM

NANAIMO — An expanding outreach programs hopes to help boost literacy rates among those who need assistance the most.

The Word on the Street program, created by Literacy Central Vancouver Island with the Unitarian shelter, was awarded $30,000 in a social grant from the City of Nanaimo.

Adult outreach coordinator Rhiannon told NanaimoNewsNOW this will help them tackle a serious need in Nanaimo.

“Literacy is fundamental to any step you need to take towards improved housing, employment, health and services you’re looking for. You’re always going to encounter a literacy hurdle.”

Since a pilot project last year she’s visited the Unitarian shelter to create connections and ease into the challenging task of boosting literacy rates. She works with educational lessons, turning many of the teachings into games and finding out what works best for everyone at the shelter.

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“The first step is building community. It can be very daunting to admit your challenges. It’s frightening and makes a person vulnerable.”

The $30,000 will pay for program fees, the cost of administration and running workshops with other service agencies.

A workshop was part of the pilot project. Rhiannon said enthusiasm was high and the event was overbooked.

She said bringing everyone to the table is important because literacy challenges hamper the great work being done by other organizations.

“Literacy is everywhere. We all need it, we all use it and every administrative process is laden with it. It’s a matter of improving our practice, improving our network and creating a perspective that recognizes literacy as fundamental and provides a broad spectrum of support.”

She said the $30,000 grant will hopefully help create permanence for the program and even gives her hope for society.

spencer@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @spencer_sterrit