Campus News
June 10th, 2024
Literacy partnership seeks to support families
College, Judy Center, and Community Action working collaboratively
Garrett College, the Garrett County Judy Center, and Garrett County Community Action jointly oversee the Family Literacy Partnership. Pictured, left to right, are Amanda Reckart, Garrett County Community Action Family Service Operations manager; Instructor Becky Heath; student Alexis Seighman; Kaitlyn Glotfelty, Garrett College director of community & professional education; Melanie Cooper, Judy Center training coordinator; Judy Center Coordinator Carrie Wampler, and student Nicole Porter.
Reading is truly fundamental. That’s the impetus for the family literacy partnership involving Garrett College, the Garrett County Judy Center, and Garrett County Community Action Head Start.
“It’s never too early to start reading to your child,” said Carrie Wampler, the Garrett County Judy Center coordinator. “Reading together at home supports language and brain development, and nurtures a child’s social and emotional development.”
Wampler noted the Judy Center activities are meant to engage the entire family.
“We have playgroups, parent groups, family nights, field trips, learning materials, and a lot more,” said Wampler.
“The Family Literacy Program is designed to provide families with the resources needed to help them achieve their educational and family goals,” added Wampler. “Individuals who have children enrolled in a child care program through the Judy Center, Head Start, or Early Start – and in need of a high school diploma – are eligible for the family literacy program.”
While adult students are attending the GED prep classes, their children are receiving child care services through one of the partnering agencies.
“In the realm of education, the family unit serves as a crucial foundation for a child's learning journey,” said Kaitlyn Glotfelty, the College’s director of community and professional education. “We’re striving to emphasize the importance of Family Literacy Services, designed not just to enhance individual literacy skills but to foster a culture of learning within households.”
Glotfelty said the literacy services are “characterized by their intensity, duration, and integration of specific components aimed for long-term sustainability for the families we are serving.”
The areas of emphasis for the literacy program include: parent literacy training for economic empowerment, training parents to be the primary educator, interactive literacy activities, and age-appropriate educational activities.
