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BACKGROUND Twenty-two percent of adults in Palm Beach County don't have the skills to read a bus schedule accurately, balance their checkbooks, or speak English well enough to negotiate everyday situations successfully. Before 1989, this population was operating under the radar screen. Although outsiders may stereotype Palm Beach County as an enclave of rich snowbirds in mansions by the sea, this county the size of Rhode Island has a large proportion of adults needing literacy services. As a frequent volunteer in her community, the founder of the Coalition had a passion for making a difference in peoples' lives. After becoming a senior executive at The Palm Beach Post and attending a conference on literacy in 1988, Gail Howden set out to research the extent of the problem in Palm Beach County and what literacy services were already available. What she found was multiple service providers with little coordination, adults with little sense of how to find services, and a community with little knowledge of the need for adult literacy services. Realizing that a larger, more cohesive organizational structure was needed, she invited leaders from other media outlets, the United Way, and the Workforce Alliance to discuss the issue. Although those at the table recognized the need for coordination, at first they were unwilling to cross their turf boundaries. After many conversations and much negotiating, everyone agreed that the creation of a literacy hotline could be a first common goal. The group envisioned a central toll-free number that adults, volunteers, and community members could call for information on literacy in Palm Beach County. Soon thereafter, a local crisis center offered a phone line, the emerging Coalition created an intake sheet to track calls, and the hotline-and the Coalition-were off and running. One early test of how these partners would work together came in the form of an individual adult learner who clearly needed multiple services from several providers. Ms. Howden sat down with school and library staff and suggested that they create a model for combining their services to help this person. By working together to help a real adult with real needs, the partners were able to set aside their own agendas and turf issues dissipated. In this way, the Coalition engendered a spirit of cooperation and established itself as the coordinating body for a wide range of literacy services in the county. The establishment of the hotline was an impetus for the growth of the Coalition and a surge in community awareness of literacy issues. After a few years, the original partners decided it was necessary to hire staff for the Coalition. In 1992, Darlene Kostrub, the present executive director, was hired, given a small salary, a desk, and no benefits. Now with a full-time staff of fifteen, she has dramatically increased the Coalition's scope and outreach. Coalition partners unanimously praise Ms. Kostrub's enthusiasm, passion, and leadership skills as the glue that holds it all together. As one adult educator noted, Ms. Kostrub clearly defines the focal point of the Coalition's efforts. She "knows how to celebrate the students and bring the limelight to them." The Coalition coordinates all literacy activities in the county, ranging from early childhood literacy efforts and a program that puts books in pediatricians' offices to adult basic education and English-language learner services. Money, volunteers, learners, and in-kind contributions flow into the Coalition's offices and are then distributed to programs and locations throughout the county. The Coalition's recent successes include:
Each of these efforts brings the Coalition partners closer to achieving their goal of "universal literacy in Palm Beach County." (For more information on the Coalition, visit http://www.pbcliteracy.org/). View the Coalition's manual for volunteer literacy programs at http://www.pbcliteracy.org/TFVolume%20I.pdf and http://www.pbcliteracy.org/TFVolumeII.pdf. |
