Acknowledgements

We wish to thank all the community-based organizations that participated in the Connecting Literacy to Community project (CLC).

Many organizations made changes in their services to improve access to their programs and services for people with limited literacy. In particular we are grateful to those that partnered with us to infuse positive literacy changes at a deep level within their organizations and communities. This includes managers, executive directors, service providers, learners/clients, and volunteers. We also appreciate the efforts made by businesses that participated in the project. Thank you for becoming champions for literacy.

We are very grateful to the National Literacy Secretariat for the funding they provided, and Bow Valley College for leading this project with enthusiasm and structural support. Having Bow Valley College as the lead partner enabled the project to reach into six rural and urban communities in central and southern Alberta.

Robin Houston-Knopff, Project Manager led the team of literacy specialists and researchers. The CLC project was born from her vision and knowledge of the need to address adult literacy issues at the community level. The literacy specialists and researchers are deeply grateful for her caring and clear-thinking leadership. The literacy specialists were Karen Appleby, Carmen Block, Audrey Gardner, Judy Millard, and Rebecca Still. The literacy specialists were successful in increasing awareness and action to address adult literacy needs within each community.

Bill Holbrow conducted research for the project on literacy friendly changes made by organizations, and literacy specialist skills and competencies. Audrey Gardner researched prior knowledge and experience of the literacy specialists. The team used a research in practice approach, which enriched the development of the project. Research in practice also offered insight about using a community development and capacity building approach to respond to adult literacy needs in diverse community services.

Thank you to literacy coordinators and practitioners who shared your thoughts and support for the project. Input and support was offered from literacy programs in the communities of Crowsnest Pass/Pincher Creek, Olds, High River, and Calgary. Thank you to Literacy Alberta staff for your review and feedback on the handbook. Workshops and presentations on the project were given at the provincial literacy coordinator’s advanced training, 2003, the provincial literacy conference, 2002, and the RIPAL institute, 2003.