December 19, 2000

Dear Lang Committee,

Once again, we’d like to thank you for your support of our work with the Learning for Life program. This was an eventful, exciting semester for L4L. The goal of this report is to give you a sense of how our Lang work has shaped the Learning for Life program thus far. Included in the report is information about our recruiting strategies, samples of our work at the S.C.A.L.E. conference, and brief information about all of this semester’s participants in the Learning for Life program. You will also find a financial summary of our expenditures from the Lang grant.

This was one of the most successful semesters of Learning for Life thus far. There were many aspects of our Lang summer work that laid the groundwork for such a successful semester. For example, our stronger communication with all the supervisors was essential. For instance, our conversations with the director of Dining Services (Linda McDougall) this past summer translated into a real commitment to involve more Dining Services staff this semester. So, after several semesters with just one or two DS staff participating, we had approximately 15 DS staff involved in L4L this semester. Also, our decision to hold a Meet-your-learning-partner-event at the beginning of the semester was a very effective way to link up learning partners and to avoid learning partners never finding each other. In short, there were approximately 45 learning partnerships (which involve 45 staff members and 45 students) this semester. They worked on a wide array of learning goals, including dance, internet skills, e-mail skills, poetry writing, math skills, GED preparation, and more. The semester concluded with the traditional end-of-the-semester L4L celebration luncheon. With every seat taken, L4L participants packed into Upper Tarble to celebrate their semester’s accomplishments. The event followed its traditional format, with a brief formal introduction followed by an open floor for participants to stand up and share their thoughts about L4L with the broad group. The sentiments shared by so many staff and students reflected the powerful interpersonal and learning experiences that L4L offers to its participants – this element of the event made it a truly touching occasion.

The beginning of the semester involved much preparation for our trip to the Student Coalition for Action in Adult Literacy Education (S.C.A.L.E.) Conference at the University of North Carolina. Our research team – comprised of Hamza Wali, Liz Dozier, Al Miser (all Environmental Services staff), Prof. Diane Anderson, and Liz Derickson – met weekly to analyze Learning for Life data and to specifically prepare for the conference. At the conference, we were joined by Susie Ansell (who flew back to NC from France for the conference!) and we made two presentations. The first presentation, entitled " Dynamics of Power, Resources, and Language: Breaking down Literacy Boundaries," introduced participants to the Learning for Life program, and then focused specifically on our research methodology and preliminary results. We shared emerging themes with the workshop group, and read them examples of the moving passages from the interviews with staff participants in the program. The second presentation, entitled " A New Approach to Adult Literacy Education: Learning for Life’s One-on-One, Staff-Student Literacy Program," was entirely focused on the structure and experience Learning for Life. In a panel format, we all introduced basic elements of the program and discussed our personal experiences with the program. One of the most exciting aspects of this workshop was that we generated great interest amongst the workshop participants in trying similar programs at their institutions. Student representatives from Virginia Tech and Antioch College were extremely enthusiastic about the potential for the Learning for Life model at their schools. Through our participation in the conference, we also were introduced to activities all over the realm of literacy advocacy and education, making valuable connections with other individuals and organization. We also had a tremendous amount of fun in the rich learning environment of the conference!

Marking the completion of another aspect of our Lang project, the Learning for Life website was launched this semester (www.swarthmore.edu/admin/learningforlife). The website offers a lot of basic information about the program, including descriptions of the program, sign-up forms for staff/students), lists of program participants, etc. There is also a page of useful links for L4L participants, which includes links to webpages built by L4L partnerships. Ultimately, through the development of posting boards and chat spaces, the website may serve as a communication forum for L4L participants. The webmaster of the site will be Liz Derickson’s learning partner, Don Bankston (Environmental Services technician).

This semester, we also learned that L4L earned a Literacy Action Network grant through the S.C.A.L.E. organization. The grant matches the funds provided by our Lang Opportunity Grant, and will be used to fund similar goals to those of our Lang project. We are looking forward to more hard work and tangible results next semester. Our plans include developing our relationship with community service leaders at other institutions that are interested in L4L, meeting with Al Bloom, and integrating more staff leadership into the structure of the program. Our efforts will be undoubtedly invigorated by Susie’s return to Swarthmore after her semester abroad. Thank you once again for providing the resources to help us realize the potential of the Learning for Life program!

Liz Derickson

Susie Ansell