a hello and welcome a prime time thirty nine on this Friday evening.

I'm Jennifer Blomquist.

I know you're disappointed you don't get to see Bruce Haines tonight.

I'm sorry he is off this evening on a different assignment but I assure you he will be back next Friday.

So I had the pleasure of hosting this program tonight.

I don't get to do it very often but I really enjoy it and please take advantage of the fact that this is a live show.

We are all here in the studio tonight and we welcome any questions or comments you want to make.

We focus on a different organization each week.

This week it is the Literacy Alliance and we have a lot of information to pass your way and a really neat video you'll make sure you watch that video.

So in case you want to call, there's the number it's (969) 27 two zero.

If you're outside of Fort Wayne it's still a free call.

Just put an 866- in front of there and they don't just throw you on the air if you want to ask something live, you're more than welcome to do that.

But they won't just throw you on the air.

You get to talk to Jim on the phones and he'll kind of field your question and then we'll take your question live or you have the option of just giving your question to Jim and he'll pass it along to us here in the studio.

So let's go ahead and meet our guest tonight again from the Literacy Alliance here in Fort Wayne .

Sitting next to me is Melinda Haynes.

You may remember her from the past being the arts and focused program that we had years that we still have now.

But she did it while back and she is the chief executive director or officer excuse me of the Literacy Alliance next to her somebody whose last name I've had to practice pronouncing Brian Schlichting, Maya and Brian is the CEO for the Literacy Alliance.

We're glad to be here.

Thank you so much for coming and I can't wait to show everybody the video.

We'll get to that in a little bit.

But let's just talk about the literacy Alliance, what it is and what it has to offer.

I'm sure people have heard of it but may not be aware of all that you do.

Sure.

Well, the Literacy Alliance is a nonprofit organization that exists to help adults in the community who want to earn their high school equivalency diploma.

We do a few other things as well.

We'll teach English language skills and we do some certification training with employers and we also have a new program project reads that we'll talk about but all of our services are free to students.

So happy to share some details about that.

>> And when she says free is the real free not you know er quote free it's totally free of charge though.

>> Did you want to add anything, Brian, to that or no.

No Brian has a novel idea you've been there for while going on two years not quite two years and Brian you've been there since twenty three so they have a wealth of expertize and knowledge to share with you.

So why don't we talk about the mission of of we'll just call it play for short so every every organization has a mission.

>> Steve That's right.

Yeah well and ours is to empower adults to to do better at work, at home in the community.

And one of the ways that they can do that is through earning a high school equivalency diploma.

>> There are thirty thousand adults in this area who don't have their high school diploma .

>> It it's a huge number.

It's hard to believe that you're right.

And so one of the ways that it's a better pathway for them to get a get a job some are unemployed, get a better job or to just move up and make more money is through earning their high school equivalency diploma.

So that is one of the empowering things that that we help with a lot of these students they they come to us and they have a lot of barriers, a lot of barriers that most people you know, are not encountering and they're usually barriers that had them stop out of high school in the first place.

>> Well and now especially with the economy the way it is and there are a lot of jobs open if you have the ability I mean it'd be a great time to be in a position where you can fill those jobs.

>> I think.

Well, and that's one of the problems right now when unemployment is low we don't have as many students because they're working.

>> Yeah, that's true.

You think about that.

OK, yeah.

How can somebody just I know your office is on Ruidoso Boulevard here in Fort Wayne so can you kind of walk me through maybe what how how does somebody go about getting your services or taking advantage of them?

>> We have everybody start by completing an application.

We've got it available online on our website.

Just go to the website and click the become a student button and that'll point you to the application you can fill out online and click the submit button and it sends it right to us and we'll we'll bring the organization's website up at the end of the program.

But just so you know, it's a literacy alliance or right now could you I mean can some people be turned away for some reason or is pretty much what everyone we try to serve everyone OK adults OK. >> Yeah and do you have to be 18 or older to 18 and older and if we can serve 16 and 17 year olds if they're fully withdrawn from their school corporation OK so then what's the next step.

Do they attend classes at the site unrealizable Verd or how do they do?

>> Well the next step is we when we receive the application we contact the student to schedule an orientation and then they go through the orientation.

It's two days, three hours per day and at the end of that orientation we place them in a class so they know where and when to begin and the class again everything's free of charge but they the classes I mean especially if you talk about Valinda that a lot of people are working ah there is their flexibility to work around work schedules.

>> Yeah, we've got daytime classes, evening classes and we have several different locations.

You know we do have a dedicated classroom at the summit on Ruidoso but we also have a class in New Haven at Redeemer Baptist Church and we serve Adams and Wells County so we have a classroom in Bluffton the library and we have a new classroom for us at the merit center in Decatur.

OK, all right.

>> And but Fort Wayne is the main location the primary I guess headquarter location per say.

OK, world headquarters.

Yeah, World World Headquarters.

I just want to remind you I don't want to interrupt Melinda or Brian but we are taking questions or comments or anything you might want to know about the Literacy Alliance or maybe you know somebody who could take advantage of these these opportunities and again they are free of charge and this is a very dedicated group of folks wanting to help.

So call with any questions you may have.

It's (969) 27 two zero.

I know you're not outside enjoying the evening so that can't be your excuse for not calling in because this is dark now and it's not very pleasant so and we're only here to eight o'clock.

I want to remind you that a lot of times we end up getting callers right to the end of the show.

>> We hate to miss your question.

Why don't we go ahead and move ?

I know you gave me a list of all the different things we've talked about high school equivalency but there's also do you want to talk about project reads right now?

>> That's a new and exciting thing.

Yes.

Project Reads is a program that the Literacy Alliance is just kind of taken under our wing.

They're part of our family.

>> It's an organization that has been around I think since the early nineties.

Yeah, And they were started to work with the four school systems in Allen County.

>> They were the Allen County Education Partnership to work with students who had been identified by their teachers in the first through third grade who were below grade level reading.

And so these students it's really important to get them up to grade level reading by grade four if they are at grade level by grade for they have a higher percentage of probability of graduating from high school.

So we think this is a great program to keep keep alive in our community.

>> So if if there's a parent or maybe a grandparent watching and they have a concern about a child, do they contact their school about this or do they call your office?

>> Yeah, you probably know a little more.

Yeah, they should contact the school about it.

OK, um and what we do is we partner with schools in the community um in the schools, identify the students we would tutor um and and we match volunteer tutors with the students to help them with their reading one hour a week after school and you know just I used to volunteer a lot at the elementary school and children find such joy when they can read you know they start with those that list of sight words the real simple ones and the you know and and there's a lot of support among their peers at that point.

You know, they celebrate like I was helped out one teacher she used to give me a stuffed animal like once you got to a certain level she'd ring a little bell and say, oh, you know what?

This is going to get her you know, her dog to a little stuffed dog today.

But as it gets as they get older third and fourth grade they become embarrassed if they because a lot of times they will be reading things aloud to the class and I've noticed that's a huge impediment to kids are they'll sit in the back or shrink back, you know.

And so that's that's why this project read sounds wonderful.

But the important thing is to make sure they're reading at grade level when they enter the fourth grade because um up to and through the third grade they're learning to read and from the fourth grade on their reading to learn.

Yeah.

So if they're not at a level where they can read to learn they're going to struggle.

Yeah well it's I mean there's so many wonderful books out there, great libraries and all of our schools and so it's it's a shame to think that the kids you know, would be struggling can't take advantage of that.

So I just want to make sure people are aware of how to to get in touch with somebody over that problem.

Yeah, they talk with their teacher in school because all the the students who are in project reads were identified to you by the teachers and then they filter into the program from there and it sounds like it's discreet.

You're not coming in during the school day for like outside of school.

OK, because that's another thing kids don't like to have that attention are being drawn out by like a tutor.

So this is something that's a little more private and they have a lot of fun too.

I mean they play games and they read books and you know, do those things together for an hour snack time I was going to say food is a great, great incentive for kids.

>> The more sugary the better right.

>> So yeah.

Well since we're talking about students, do you want to go ahead and watch that video?

Oh sure.

The video docs about some of our adult students who are in our high school equivalency prep program and we talk about students with barriers or overcome things and this has a couple of our students in it with their their stories.

>> All right.

Well, we're going to go ahead and watch the video then enjoy it was totally a different person before I turned to the Literacy Alliance.

I have the education to qualify to the college and then I have lots of experience with the cost me the teacher and the tutors and not just your school programs things they're more like a family to me.

>> So the Literacy Alliance achieved my goals a lot.

I feel like if I never attend here I would have never ever do the math problems because I always struggle with the numbers when it comes to me so I know I can do anything.

I came here to accomplish a better life for me and my daughter.

I work and I go to school and I take care of my mother as well.

They push me further than what I thought I would go especially Melanie.

Um she's six.

I'm and I never had nobody pushed me as much as Melanie.

I want to build my education because when my daughter get older I want her to know that mom did it so I can go and do that is one like the sky's the limit and I notice things about myself that I never thought was me.

You know, I never really thought I was a people's person and I'm like OK, I see that now and I just I just see myself doing that now.

I really do come come to the Laodicean alliance.

They will push you and you will find all your weaknesses and your strengths and you will feel good about yourself.

You actually really go far.

You have people that actually truly care about you and they understand your situation.

I really appreciate the maturity see alliance introduce me.

This class ended all teachers the tutors understand their cheer me up and guiding me uh educating me and just like me go further I attended HHC class last year and I Godet to the new students I will say work hard and if you have any question just ask teacher our tutors they will help you no doubt about what made me come here to a literacy alliance was bettering my math skills.

They've helped me by sitting down one on one because I am a hands on learner.

It's helped me at first I was embarrassed and I feel more confident.

It helps me feel accomplished that I have achieved my HSC.

I want to say thank you to those who support literacy Alliance and thank you to the math teachers and the tutors because I am very grateful and I know that other students would be very grateful from benefiting from the education here.

>> It's very emotional to see the change that our students go through.

They come with these innovations that they've been trying to jump over or leap over and they can't do it and there's something that happens when they come to our program.

>> They give themselves permission to succeed.

The staff gathers around them and supports them something that they don't have in their lives and and then as they move forward they take these little baby steps and they start to find out oh my gosh, I got a grade on this.

>> You know, of course our teachers and our tutors come in and just basically become such a great support system for them to say you can do this and they keep hearing that over and over again.

>> You can do this, you can do this, you can do this and they come back with these big eyes going I did it.

>> And I think that is the most emotional part I think for Amy and I is to see that on their face that they did it, that it was with help of other people but that they did something I don't know.

It's kind of what we live for .

We love to see that change in that student and then they go off and they go do incredible things.

They become very fearful to the very courageous and I don't know there's not a whole lot of jobs out there that get you to be able to experience that and people and that's what I really love about the Literacy Alliance.

It's very powerful to see that in our students.

That's a very powerful video.

Oh gosh.

I get choked up every time I see that at the end.

That's Melanie.

Melanie yeah.

She's a site coordinator and our career advisor and she is wonderful with with the students.

I mean, you know our our staff we have seventeen now on staff and we have the teachers and cycleway court coordinators who staff each class plus volunteers in the classroom.

But our staff is just very supportive, you know, to try to help these students who often come to us with no support.

>> You know, they just don't have a support system in their life and so our staff is really that support system that they need to get through the program and some of them can get through the program fairly quickly.

It all depends on where they come in.

They're all tested and you know, they can get through some just takes longer and so we're there to support them.

It sounds like you meet them where they are.

No, it's not a cookie cutter type of program.

I mean can you imagine just having one like that one in Melanie?

I mean she's just you could just tell from the video she's very caring and compassionate about what she was doing and and I remember one of the women one of the students on there said, you know, I was worried about I was embarrassed and so I'm sure they're they are worried about being judged.

I mean I don't know if either one of you ever hear from people that say, you know, that they're embarrassed or you know, they probably feel badly about themselves.

>> Yeah, I mean one of their one of their barriers that many of them come to us with is a lack of confidence and uh and that's part of it is the uh um you know the embarrassment.

>> Yeah yeah.

No and like we were talking before the show that's a shame that people would let something like that stand in the way of a life changing experience and and obviously I mean gosh, I hope that that video moved as much as it did me and that if you know somebody who needs these services I mean please speak up to them or a family member or maybe it's a teacher or school because they can't you know, it can make such a huge difference in a person's life , especially young person's life when it really doesn't matter what age they are.

You know, they we have the students who come to us at eighteen and you know, I think the biggest number as well between twenty five and forty four you know where they've tried to make it without it and not having that high school degree has really hindered them so they come back and get it but we have some older yeah yeah that's good to know and I think also I've met some people in the past that they've said they've done something to for their kids say you know like they want to show their kids, you know, if I can do what you can do it.

That's right or if you're doing it right.

Yeah yeah.

We have a lot of ways to share absolutely a motivating factor and we have a couple more things we want to talk about.

But I didn't want to miss a question.

Somebody had somebody called in and this is Roseanne and she wanted me to ask you guys does the Literacy Alliance volunteers?

>> Oh, that's a good question.

What kind of work needs to be done?

I'm sure you do need all kinds of volunteers you don't need Brandi.

You want to talk about what they're doing in the classroom ?

>> Yeah.

The volunteers are in the classroom to help, uh, the students with their studies.

Um, classes are divided up.

There's whole class lessons and then there's time spent on individual independent study and during independent study that's the time when, uh, tutors circulate and help students.

Um, we've also have uh volunteer tutors help with a little small group lessons and uh and we've had volunteers with the pandemic uh, helping virtually um one of the things we've had success with is students who are just, uh just about ready to take that high school equivalency test.

Yeah.

Or if they've taken it and they they've passed all but one or two and they need to retest to get that accomplished, uh they'll work virtually with a tutor to help with that particular subject and ah I mean do the students they probably have homework that they so I mean I don't know if like a tutor is helping or stuff like that as well.

Yeah the projects they're available one on one you know to them do and we also one of our programs we call it pre HSC when a student comes to us at a very low reading level and they might need to learn to read or just extra help we can do one one tutoring with that student or we have a class that's a lower level class for students and we're the only ones in this area who offer that that level.

Oh assistance as well.

>> And I know there is somebody waiting in line to ask a question.

I think it's a it's either Joanny or Johnny if you don't mind holding on for one second because you had talked about the high school equivalency test and you wanted to talk about that versus GED and most people are probably more familiar with oh I got my GED.

Exactly.

And you know what what what is the GED is the brand name of a test like an act or a LSAT you know that a lot of people know.

But it was the test that was used by the state of Indiana for a long time and so now I guess twenty fourteen was when the state moved from using the GED test to the very unfortunately named task the test assessing secondary completion.

>> So at that point really the adult educator educators kind of pivoted to using the generic term high school equivalency.

Oh, and so HSC has been what's stuck for a while and we were glad for that because this year the state change test providers again and so now it's the high set oh the high school equivalency test.

So we're just sticking with HSBC I think and it's nice to know that they can get some help with that.

So yeah, I'm glad you brought that up because that's what growing up that's what I would absolutely that's how people know it.

Yeah, well it's just like Kleenex versus one of the same ones a brand.

That's right.

Oh OK.

Thank you so much and I apologize I'm not sure if this is Johnny or Johnny but thank you for your patience and you have a question for our guest tonight.

Are you there?

Yes I am.

Oh thank you.

They it's Johnny.

Yes thank you.

>> Go ahead.

I am elderly.

I do not drive anymore but I still have cognition and I could be a tutor virtually.

Oh OK is that if that would ever be needed.

I think that that would be something that we would love to talk to you about because we do have some students who have that need and we did have virtual tutors during the height of the pandemic.

You know what I would suggest is go to our website and click on Volunteer Button and there's a volunteer application and when you fill that out there would be a spot for you to indicate that you would be interested in virtual tutoring and then we can match you up with somebody who also needs virtual tutoring.

>> Jondi did you want to ask anything else?

>> No, I don't think so.

Thank you.

OK, thank you for your interest.

One thing I want to say is there are organizations around that will give you a ride because what a wonderful thing to volunteer so if she felt comfortable maybe just because of everything going on she'd prefer a virtual but you know, don't let that be a hindrance.

Well, you know, that's another barrier for a lot of our students is transportation.

So we do provide bus passes for students who need help with that effect.

I think we have a couple more minutes and I don't see any other calls coming in.

So there was one of the thing you really want to touch on was I'm familiar with the term ESL English as a second language but there are other and acronyms ESL and E l l you want to talk about yeah they're all the same.

I mean ultimately but they're different terms and sometimes you know we speak in acronyms.

Sure.

And you always hate for that to confuse people and but English as a second language people know and then ESL English for speakers of other languages and now a newer term is English language learners which a lot of places are transitioning to because English is not a second language for some of our students it's the third language or a fourth language is so people may see a transition to English language learning and al OK yeah because we hear about ESL students you know like especially in high school.

So that's that was one thing that stuck with me.

Before we forget I want to bring up there is a full screen shot of the Web address so I want to make sure you're familiar with it.

It's Literacy Alliance dot org and as they've mentioned tonight, if you want to volunteer, find out more information.

>> It sounds like that's the place to go.

Yeah.

Or give a call where you you can call and get an application mailed to you if you don't have access online or we can mail them and take information over the phone.

Yeah, well that is just awesome.

I'm so glad you guys are able to come tonight.

Melinda Haynes and Brian Schlichting Meyer they're all right.

Yeah don't ask me to spell it.

I spelled phonetically on ice sheet so well God bless you both for coming and all the great work you do.

>> I appreciate it as does everyone in our community.

So we're going to wrap it up there.

OK, take care everybody.

Thank you so much for tuning in tonight.

We appreciate everything that you've done for our community as well and calling with great questions.

>> Bruce , I promise he'll be back next Friday.

Take care.

Have a really nice weekend.

Bye bye.