Local Literacy Group The READ Center Gets Provincial Support!

Many will recall the READ Center fundraisers that The Woodlawn Inn put on from 1990 to 2000. Back then, the READ center was not known, had no funding and was run by a Nancy Blackler Jenkins and her dedicated group of volunteers. I like to think that The Woodlawn Inn had a small role to play in highlighting the work of the READ center in Northumberland County. For ten years, my wife Jennifer Gillard coordinated the summer sell-out dinner and we had guest authors like Timothy Findley, Rohinton Mistry and Jane Urqhart. The READ center did ultimately get to be a United Way of Northumberland funds recipient and just recently the READ center has recieved provincial funding. Congratulations Nancy!!

LOCAL LITERACY SERVICES GET A BOOST

McGuinty Government Helping More Ontarians Become Literate

Ontario is moving forward with improvements to literacy programs in Northumberland-Quinte West.

The province is investing in the Northumberland READ Centre ($70,600), the Quinte Adult Day School Inc. ($121,327) and Sir Sandford Fleming College of Applied Arts and Technology ($389,760), to strengthen literacy training provided by Employment Ontario, Lou Rinaldi, M.P.P. for Northumberland-Quinte West announced today.

Ontario is investing $3 million across the province in research projects to improve service to adult learners and create a new province-wide curriculum for adult literacy training.

QUOTES

“The work of organizations such as the three listed above are critical to ensuring that the people of Northumberland-Quinte West can participate in high-skilled training, required by the new economy.” - Lou Rinaldi, M.P.P. for Northumberland-Quinte West.

“We’re taking action now to help people strengthen their skills while laid off and looking for work so they’ll be better able to find jobs in the new economy.” - John Milloy, Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities, and Minister of Research and Innovation.

QUICK FACTS

• 3.4 million Ontario adults have literacy skills at less than a high school level.
• By 2020, about 70 per cent of new jobs are expected to require postsecondary education and training.

LEARN MORE

For information about the Ontario 2009 budget.

For information about Ontario’s services to strengthen literacy. .

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Contact:

Lou Rinaldi, M.P.P., Northumberland-Quinte West

1-800-263-3980