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LCUP Celebrates 30 Years of Service to Upper Pinellas

Tutor Carol Kennedy speaks at LCUP’s 30th Anniversary celebration

On February 17, LCUP celebrated its 30th Anniversary of Changing Lives Through Literacy at the Dunedin Public Library.? The well-attended event included the organization’s annual meeting with speakers?Pat Bauer, President, Library Director Phyllis Gorshe,? Jan Demers and Carol Kennedy.? Both Jan and Carol are members of the LCUP Board of Directors, tutors and Conversation Class leaders and spoke about their experiences in literacy.? Learner Dorotea Chavez spoke about the difference learning English has made in her life.

City Commissioner Deborah Kynes presented a proclamation from the City of Dunedin in recognition of the Literacy Council of Upper Pinellas’ 30th Anniversary.? Read the proclamation here.

The following history of LCUP was presented by President Pat Bauer:

? ? ???????????? A History of the Literacy Council of Upper Pinellas, 1988- 2018

The Literacy Council of Upper Pinellas grew out of increased need for adult literacy services in north county due to population growth and demographic changes in the 1980s. The council was formed by a group of dedicated citizens who were originally affiliated with the St. Petersburg Literacy Council and saw the need to incorporate the north county program. Our articles of incorporation are dated February 2, 1988.

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Essay Example from Tarpon Springs Conversation Team Teacher

The following was written by Tarpon Springs Conversation Class Team Teacher?Susan Hamill as an example to her students of how to write an essay for the 2015 LCUP Student Essay Contest. She read her essay in Monday night’s class and talked with students about the rules of the contest and that the deadline for entering this year was August 31, 2015. Susan and co-teacher Mary Frances Kirkpatrick will work with students wanting to try their hand at writing during class meetings Monday evenings at 5:30 pm at the Tarpon Springs Public Library. ?

Becoming Part of a Community of Learning – I am a Conversation Class Teacher

by Susan Hamill

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Susan Hamill is seated in the front row, center.

I moved to Florida last November. I did not know anyone here. Because I did not have family or friends in the area I felt lonely and isolated.

My sister reassured me that I?would make friends. She gave me the idea to volunteer with teaching ESL (English as a Second Language). This has been such a great experience.

The students are eager to learn. I help students learn English and they help me to feel like I am a part of this community. Now the students are not just students. They are friends and I now have friends from Mexico, Egypt, Lebanon, Iraq, Algeria and Vietnam.?

I would not have guessed the desire to learn English would lead to so many new friends.

 

LCUP President Pat Bauer: How the LCUP Literacy Program Changed My Life

pat1Each fall the Literacy Council of Upper Pinellas holds as essay contest open to all of our students. We ask that the participants answer the question, ?How has the LCUP literacy program changed your life? in 500 words or less. ???This year I gave myself the same assignment. Here are my 500 words about how being a volunteer for adult literacy has changed my life.

This November marks 10 years of service in both the Rotary Club of Dunedin and the Literacy Council of Upper Pinellas. This is not a mere coincidence. It was through a speaker at a Rotary luncheon that I learned of the opportunity to serve as a literacy tutor. The president of LCUP, Vicki Vinour, was persuasive and urged me to also join the board of directors and really get involved. This was at a time when I had just left full-time teaching at the USF School of Library and Information Science and was looking for a way to be active in my community and continue teaching in some capacity.?? Needless to say, I quickly found my niche in the Dunedin Public Library where our LCUP office is located.

In December 2008 I became President of LCUP and this role has truly been all-consuming. During the past 6 years I have been very fortunate to have the support of great cohorts in literacy who have not only taught me valuable lessons about curriculum and instruction for adult literacy students, but also life lessons that can be only learned by being engaged in important work in the community. Having the opportunity to match an adult learner with a tutor is a great pleasure. I know just how a matchmaker must feel when the bride and groom are perfectly suited to one another.

Another great pleasure is leading a group of English Language Learners in a conversation about current events, US history, or American culture. Learning to talk less and listen more has been an important aspect of my professional development in adult literacy. Our students are capable of teaching us so much about the world beyond Dunedin and Pinellas County, and I know that by listening to them I have become a different person.

Working with colleagues to plan new programs that help our students achieve personal literacy goals (such as becoming computer literate) has taught me the value of a ?working? board that is directed by our mission. Recruiting a training team and working with these dedicated teachers to prepare new tutors has given me opportunities to engage in program development in library communities throughout North Pinellas County. By serving the cause of literacy, I feel like I have given back to my community in ways that I never had time for when I was teaching full time in the school system or at the university. My thanks to Vicki Vinour, who persuaded me to become involved, and to my friend and mentor, Ann Palmer, who is always there to advise. Most importantly, I thank my husband, Tom Bauer, who understands my need to be involved in this important work and knows how to take up the slack on the home front when I am elsewhere.

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