Our Mission
The Literacy Council's mission is to provide confidential, one-on-one tutoring and mentoring services to individuals who need help with reading, writing, spelling, math, and English as a second language.
Our Students
- LCGW works with more than 350 students per year, who range in age from 4-80
- English as a Second Language (ESL) students represent approximately 50% of all students. Of those ESL students, 50% are Spanish-speaking
- LCGW serves students from approximately 28 countries
- LCGW volunteers work with approximately 50 children each year
- Students are referred to the program through employers, self-referral, human service agencies, The Women's Center, Salvation Army, the Waukesha County Technical College (WCTC) and the Waukesha School District
- LCGW works with approximately 10% of all students enrolled in WCTC's high school completion program. LCGW tutors help these students with their writing, reading comprehension and math requirements
- Approximately 10 ESL students receive their U.S. citizenship each year
Our Volunteers
- LCGW has more than 350 volunteers tutors each year. 90-100 volunteers tutors are trained and matched during the 90 Tutors in 90 Days campaign
- Approximately 20 volunteers assist in a classroom setting either at the Waukesha County jail or an ESL class at WCTC.
- A 12-hour basic skills tutor training and a 9-hour tutor training program are each offered twice during the year.
Financial Support
- Financial support comes from corporations, businesses, service clubs, churches and private individuals. LCGW is a United Way funded agency
- LCGW does two major fund-raisers each year: the Corporate Spelling Bee in June, and the Scrabble® tournament in February
Additional Programs
- LCGW organizes a community-wide Dr. Seuss Celebration, where more than 30 volunteers read Dr. Seuss books at more than 30 sites throughout Waukesha County. Ten of these readers are LCGW students
- LCGW has a students' book club which meets the third Tuesday of each month
Why Our Work Is Important
Illiteracy has negative effects on the entire community when an individual struggles with basic requirements:
- The ability to secure a job with a livable wage
- The ability to help a child with their school work
- The ability to fulfill a daily routine, including tasks like shopping or reading a bus schedule
- The ability to succesfully interact and communicate with others
It is estimated that 60 percent of people in U.S. jails and prisons are functionally illiterate. The societal and economic costs of illiteracy run into billions of dollars each year.
Illiteracy is a fundamentally solvable problem. It requires a combination of public awareness, additional funding for literacy problems, development of new instructional approaches and support for needed research and teacher training.
