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Greetings,
This month, I'm excited to share with you a recent event that is special to us here in Outreach and Access at Great Lakes. In May, we had the honor of sponsoring and attendingWisconsin Literacy's fifth annual Celebration of Literacy.
On May 17, we attended this luncheon that honored award-winning adult learners, tutors, and literacy advocates. It was inspiring to hear their stories of triumph over adversity. Wisconsin First Lady Jessica Doyle, a strong proponent of the importance of literacy, was on hand along with State Superintendent Elizabeth Burmeister. Both spoke of the role parents have in shaping their children's love of reading. One particularly meaningful sentiment came from Burmeister, who said that when children sit in their parents' laps to have a book read to them, they get feelings of safety, security, and happiness. Those feelings last the rest of their lives every time they pick up a book.
Several of the award winners learned English as a second language after immigrating to the United States. They each said that one of the best ways they could improve their language skills - and their opportunities to advance in the American workforce - was through reading.
Great Lakes was proud to sponsor this event, which aligns with our own efforts in Outreach and Access. We help to teach parents that college is possible for their children and that there are opportunities to help finance it. We strive to teach parents, especially those who didn't attend college themselves, about the financial aid process. In fact, we are adding information to many of our resources, including the Counselor's Toolkit, specifically to help parents with the financial aid process and provide information to help students with special circumstances, like immigrants and those in foster care, get started on the path to higher education.
For more information about Wisconsin Literacy, visit www.wisconsinliteracy.org. For more information about Great Lakes' efforts at helping parents of first-generation or immigrant college students, email me at lsykes@glhec.org.
It's wonderful to see that other organizations share Great Lakes' commitment to opening doors to greater opportunities through education and family involvement.
Until next time,
La Toya Sykes, Director
Outreach and Access Awareness
Click a link below to view past Opening Doors articles.
