Family Literacy Resources
- Literacy, Arts and Families Project
- Community and Family Economics
- Immigrant Family Literacy Alliance
- Recently Updated Family Literacy Resource Directory
- Family Literacy Resource Center
- Online Resources for Family Literacy Programs
Family literacy programs provide education and support to make families stronger. Their services may include:
- Classes in English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), adult basic education, and GED
- Help for parents with children in the public school system
- Education for parents in child development
- Early literacy programs to help children do well in school
- Activities to help parents and children learn together
Immigrant Family Literacy Alliance
Definition of immigrant family literacy
 |
At the second Immigrant Family Literacy Alliance (IFLA) summit on March 9, Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott announced that the city has committed $1.8 million dollars to support immigrant family literacy programs through the Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD). Walcott was joined by DYCD Commissioner Jeanne Mullgrav and Guillermo Linares, commissioner of the Office of Immigrant Affairs, at the summit. Read the Gotham Gazette coverage. |
| Under the leadership of Jack Rosenthal of the New York Times Company Foundation, Elyse Rudolph of the Literacy Assistance Center, Commissioner Mullgrav, and Nina Mogilnik of the Altman Foundation, the IFLA has committed to raising 50 cents of private funding for each city dollar, bringing the total commitment to almost $3 million. |  |
At the March 9 meeting, David Ramirez, Ph.D., of the Long Island University School of Education, made a PowerPoint presentation on family literacy. Carmen Faria, deputy chancellor of the NYC Department of Education, was the keynote speaker. See more photos
The first immigrant family literacy summit, also hosted by the NY Times, was held on January 18. City officials and representatives of corporations and foundations met to share best practices and discuss the creation of an alliance to advocate for more resources both public and private to teach English to the record number of immigrants in New York’s population.
- Joseph Salvo of the NYC Department of City Planning (DCP), Population Division, presented English Language Proficiency in New York City (PowerPoint PDF, 690K), drawing on his work on the DCP’s report The Newest New Yorkers.
- A map (PDF, 357K) created by the LAC and NYPIRG for the illustrated the disparity between the need for English-language services in the city’s community boards and the available family literacy services.
Family Literacy Resource Directory
Many schools, colleges, churches, and nonprofit organizations run free family literacy programs. To find a program that can help your family, use our web-based list of free family literacy programs in New York City. Each program has provided a brief description of its services. You can also download a print version of the fall 2006 directory. (PDF, 350K)
Family literacy programs that are not already included in our online resource directory can fill out our online survey in order to be included.
Family Literacy Resource Center
The LAC has launched the Family Literacy Resource Center to gather the many family literacy programs throughout New York City into a community. Our goals are to encourage these programs to share ideas, resources, and practices, and to help each of them in developing its individual strengths.
Online Resources for Family Literacy Programs
For the staff of family literacy programs, the LAC offers free family literacy workshops as well as the following resources:
- Annotated family literacy bibliography (PDF, 193K) from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
- Perspectives on Family Literacy, the Fall 2003 issue of Literacy Harvest in partnership with Family Literacy Forum.
- Delivery of Family Literacy Services in New York City, a report on responses to our survey of family literacy programs
- Links to great adult, youth, and family literacy resources
- Recommended books for family literacy practitioners
- Online versions of past LAC youth, family, and childrens literacy workshops
- Online lesson plans for use with children