Our Six Strategies to Reach Those Who Need Us

Learner recruitment has been a longstanding challenge for adult literacy programs such as Literacy NRV.

The statistics revealed by the 2020 PIAAC study -- the most recent comprehensive study of adult literacy -- are astounding.

A whopping 24,000 New River Valley adults read at an elementary school level. 

And about 38,000 NRV adults cannot do very basic math, such as solving a one-step problem involving counting, arithmetic, or a percent.  

At Literacy NRV, we are committed to offering adult literacy services that meet the needs of the community, and we design our services to help adults overcome barriers to participating in our program through 6 strategies. 

First, thanks to the generous donations and volunteer support, our services are free.  We believe strongly that financial resource challenges should not be an obstacle for a local adult wishing to improve literacy skills. 

Second, we are constantly engaged in active student recruitment and building trust and relationships in the community. Read here to learn more about how we spread the word about our services to adults with low literacy skills. 

Third, we believe flexibility is key.  Our potential and current students are busy with work, family responsibilities, and other commitments --  and we want to make it possible for them to participate by offering a diverse menu of learning opportunities.  We offer registration, classes and tutoring on a variety of days and times, including evenings and weekends, and at a variety of public locations throughout the New River Valley and on line.  Students have the opportunity to enroll in a short-term (semester-based study) or study with us for a longer period of time. 

Fourth, we offer supports specifically tailored to help students overcome obstacles to attendance. For example, some of our programs offer child care. Additionally, we have a Laptop Loaner Library so students who want to study online but don’t own a computer can borrow the technology they need.  A generous local business, _____, has funded the cost of testing for GED test takers so that testing fees are not a hurdle to GED achievement. And we seek out and are appreciative of partnerships such as Montgomery County Social Services who help clients with transportation to tutoring and classes. 

Fifth, we strive to create a safe space.  We have taken trauma-informed service delivery training and are thankful for grant-funded resources to create a warm and welcoming learning environment.  Of course, we take confidentiality seriously to help adults who might carry embarrassment, shame or fear around reaching out for help.  Read here to learn more about our confidentiality practices. 

Finally, we develop student-centered programs that incorporate curriculum and learning activities that are meaningful to adult literacy students. We strive to learn about potential and current program participants’ goals and why they would consider enrolling in a program to help us better understand potential learner populations and focus recruitment and instruction on relevant goals. For example, our Family READS program was developed because so many parents wanted to learn English skills to support their children’s education. Other students work on specific goals including GED, US Citizenship, and getting a job or driver’s license. 

While we are so proud that this year we have served more than 400 adult literacy students, we know we have a lot of work to do to reach all who need us.   We are so very grateful to the many volunteers, learners, and community partners who help us with student outreach and instruction and make our progress possible.

If you know someone who would like to improve his or her literacy, English, or basic computer skills, please let them know about us!  To register or learn more, potential students can call (540) 382-7262 or visit www.lvnrv.org.