Literacy Links

Adult Learner Persistence

Welcome to our Library...

HOW DOES THIS MAIL ORDER LENDING LIBRARY WORK?

Books and other resources described in the Library section may be requested for a 30-day loan. We will mail each borrower up to five loan items at a time (just two for first-time borrowers), and even include a postage-paid return address sticker for mailing them back to us! Borrowers must be affiliated with a non-profit program providing adult or family literacy services. Annotated bibliographies of our entire library of resources are available in hard copy by request, or can be viewed on our website. Call 800-441-7323 or e-mail tcall@tamu.edu to check out materials described here or to request hard copy listings of even more resources.

“Thank you so much for all your help. It is great to have a resource like this.”

Christy Elders, Literacy 2 and 3 Teacher
Windham School District Roach Unit
Childress, Texas

Adult Student Persistence

Building Learning Communities: Early Results from the Opening Doors Demonstration at Kingsborough Community College. Dan Bloom and Colleen Sommo. New York, NY: Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation, June 2005. Many students enter community college with low basic skills and leave before earning a credential. Six community colleges tested special programs designed to increase student persistence and achievement and, in the longer term, labor market success.

One Day I Will Make It: A Study of Adult Student Persistence in Library Literacy Programs. Kristin E. Porter, Sondra Cuban, and John P. Comings. New York, NY: Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation, January 2005. Over four years, nine library-based adult literacy programs improved tutor training, goal-setting, computer-assisted instruction, and tracking of participation. A few also tried providing child care or transportation. Report describes outcomes and emerging lessons for program practice.

Promoting Student Success in Community College and Beyond: The Opening Doors Demonstration. Thomas Brock and Allen LeBlanc. New York, NY: Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation, May 2005. Community colleges are an accessible and affordable gateway to postsecondary education, helping students achieve personal and economic goals. However, because many students who begin courses at community colleges end them prematurely, MDRC’s Opening Doors Demonstration is testing the effects of intervention programs in six community college that are designed to increase student persistence and achievement. The programs include various combinations of curricular reform, enhanced student services, and increased financial aid. This report describes the background, objectives, and design of MDRC’s evaluation of Opening Doors.

Recruitment and Retention for Literacy Programs. National Center for Family Literacy. Louisville, KY: NCFL, 2005. Guide examines goal setting and tips for planning recruitment events. Appendices include a sample self-check survey; planning calendar for program recruitment and retention, student exit questionnaire, sample public service announcements, and more.

Fundraising and Grant Proposal Writing

Capital Campaigns: Constructing a Successful Fundraising Drive. Edward C. Schumacher. Washington, DC: BoardSource, 2001. Written in a question and answer format, this booklet presents an overview of capital campaigns to help board members make informed decisions about fundraising efforts and understand what will be required of them and of the organization as a whole.

Coping with Cutbacks: The Nonprofit Guide to Success When Times are Tight. Emil Angelica and Vincent Hyman. St. Paul, MN: Amhert H. Wilder Foundation, 1997. For nonprofit managers facing cutbacks, the authors propose strategies to succeed when funds are short. They offer ways to cut costs, manage payables, modify staffing, changes services, and more.

Family Literacy Beyond Even Start: TETN Broadcast: March 31, 2006. Texas LEARNS (March 2006). Houston, TX: Texas LEARNS. Video is of 3-hour training intended to prepare programs whose federal Even Start funding ended in August 2006 for the transition to providing family literacy without that funding. Experts discussed use of Title I funds to support parent involvement and early childhood components of family literacy. Directors who have continued family literacy programs without Even Start funding shared their strategies. Borrowers may duplicate the video before returning it to the Clearinghouse.

Fundamentals of Fundraising for Family Literacy Programs. National Center for Family Literacy. Louisville, KY: NCFL, 2002. Book explains theories and practices tracing the funding process, from developing a case and defining objectives to stewarding funders to ensure ongoing support. Appendix includes samples sample budget, proposal tracking document, and more.

Fundraising for the Long Haul. Kim Klein. Oakland, CA: Chardon Press, 2000. Speaking to the difficulties of organizations that are understaffed and under-resourced, the author provides tips and techniques for developing a healthy fundraising program.

Leveraging Resources for Student Success: How School Leaders Build Equity. Mary Ann Burke, et al. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press, Inc., 2003. Features of this book include survival strategies that have worked in urban schools and tips for cultivating and maximizing collaborative relationships in the community to obtain resources. Book is available on loan to Texas educators ONLY.

No Strings Attached: Untangling the Risks of Fundraising & Collaboration. Melanie L. Herman and Dennis M. Kirschbaum. Washington, DC: Nonprofit Risk Management Center, 1999. Authors address the risks associated with budgeting, raising money from foundations, soliciting individual donors, obtaining corporate support, negotiating collaborations and partnerships, and the challenge of restricted funding.

The Nonprofit Survival Guide: Finding Your Way in the New Economy. John DiConsiglio. Washington, DC: BoardSource, June 2003. Booklet discusses how some nonprofits keep their heads above water in tough economic times; the new fundraising realties; and the crucial role of board recruitment in keeping an organization flourishing.

Proposal Planning and Writing, Third Edition. Lynn E. Miner and Jeremy T. Miner. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2003. Book with specific examples, models, and step-by-step instructions for writing proposals for all kinds of grants, from local and federal government programs, to grants from private foundations and corporations is available for loan to Texas educators ONLY.

Secrets of Successful Fundraising: The Best from the Non-Profit Pros. Carol Weisman. St. Louis, MO: F. E. Robbins & Sons Press, 2000. Contributing authors are specialists on the how-to of social entrepreneurism, writing newsletters, and governance of non-profit organizations.

Winning Grants Step by Step, Second Edition. Mim Carlson. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 2002. Workbook guides the user through planning, developing, and writing successful grant proposals. Companion CD-ROM contains winning sample grant proposals and process worksheets. Book/CD-ROM set is available for loan to Texas educators ONLY.

Family Literacy

Assessing Success in Family Literacy and Adult ESL, Revised Edition
Daniel D. Holt and Carol H. Van Duzer, Editors. McHenry, IL: Center for Applied Linguistics and Delta Systems Co., Inc., 2000. With an emphasis on surveys, interviews, observation measures, and performance samples, the authors show how staff members and learners can gain accurate information about how well they are meeting their goals.

Encouraging the Heart: A Leader’s Guide to Rewarding and Recognizing Others
James Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 2003. Book for new leaders and those needing a new perspective offers seven essentials for encouraging, describe the heart of leadership, and finding one’s voice.

Engaging Families and Communities: Pathways to Educational Success
Larry E. Decker and Virginia A. Decker, et al. Fairfax, VA: National Community Education Association, 2000. Book suggests ways the reader can create a comprehensive family-school-community involvement program tailored to her/his own community. Book is available for loan to Texas educators ONLY.

Exceptional Returns: Economic, Fiscal, and Social Benefits of Investment in Early Childhood Development
Robert G. Lynch. Washington, DC: Economic Policy Institute, 2004. Report synthesizes several studies into an economic impact assessment for early childhood interventions, including impact on GDP, improving skills of the workforce, reducing poverty, strengthening global competitiveness, and reducing crime.

Family Literacy: Connections in Schools and Communities
Lesley Mandel Morrow. Newark, DE: International Reading Association, 1995. Comprehensive book for developing family literacy programs and practices is divided into three sections, with the first being Perspectives on Family Literacy. Second section on Family Literacy Practices is divided into two parts, Programs in Schools and Organization-Sponsored Programs. The last section is Titled Developing New Practices: Research and Perspectives.

Follow-Up Data on Parents in Even Start Programs in Texas: 2004 and 2005
Don F. Seaman, Don F. and Chia-Yin Chen, 2005. College Station, TX: Texas Center for the Advancement of Literacy and Learning. Because of concerns for demonstrating accountability in Even Start family literacy programs in Texas, TCALL researchers designed a project to document how investment of federal funds in Even Start provides returns on that investment. Since Even Start provides basic educational experiences to both parents and children, it was determined to first implement a pilot study to assess the impact of the program on the parents in 2003-2004. Data from the pilot test indicated that a more extensive study should be conducted on Even Start programs in the state. This report describes that research and its findings.

Raising Resilient Children: A Curriculum to Foster Strength, Hope, and Optimism in Children
Sam Goldstein and Robert Brooks. Salt Lake City, UT: Neurology, Learning and Behavior Center, 2001. Parenting curriculum includes 97-page workbook and 70-minute video with nine weeks of lessons outlined. Video has an introduction and nine segments to compliment the lesson plans. Lesson plans include self-quizzes, checklists, activities, assignments, key points, and “food for thought”, which can be copied for classroom use. This curriculum is based on years of research indicating how resilient children can be raised, including topics such as empathy, changing negative scripts, how to use discipline, problem solving, loving your children, how to view mistakes, and building competence. Book and video set are available for loan to Texas Educators ONLY.

Take Action! A Guide to Advocacy and Raising Awareness for Family Literacy
National Center for Family Literacy. Louisville, KY: NCFL, 2002. Tips on planning site visits, writing to legislators, and working with reporters make this booklet a hands-on resource. Appendix includes a glossary of legislative terms and overview of the legislative process.

Tell Me More: Listening to Learners Explain
Eleanor Duckworth, Editor. New York, NY: Teachers College Press, 2001. Several contributing authors describe how learners ranging in age from five to adulthood come to connect with subject matter. Features include examples of the power of the human mind to come alive across a range of subjects and situations.

Volunteers: How to Get Them, How to Keep Them
Helen Little (1999). Naperville, IL: Panacea Press, Inc. Book outlines 12 basic needs of volunteers and spells out how to meet those needs. Examples and tools enable programs to: recruit the best person for the job; manage volunteers; fire a volunteer; keep your best volunteers coming back; and more.

Who Moved My Cheese?
Spencer Johnson. New York, NY: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1998, 2002. This is a parable about adjusting to changes in work settings or in life could be useful for staff development or to anyone expecting change in their work setting. Clearinghouse Library also has children’s picture book version.

Work-Focus Strategies for Family Literacy Programs
Margo Waddell, et al. Louisville, KY: National Center for Family Literacy, 2003. Manual provides professional development in the areas of component integration and EFF strategies for family literacy from the perspective of a work-focused program.