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Consortium
Continuation
      
Activities
of the
Tennessee
Even Start Statewide
Family Literacy
Initiative
through 12/02
To
find a Family Literacy program near you by phone, call toll-free
1-877-FAMLIT-1
_________________
Tennessee
Family Literacy Consortium
Position Statement
In
Tennessee the practice of Family Literacy embraces a broad spectrum of
educational practices that share these basic principles:
• the family, in whatever form it may take, is the critical element
in advancing individual and community empowerment;
• the parent is the first and most important teacher of the child;
and
• empowerment of the parent to be the primary educator of the child
will empower the child to continue to learn and then to assume the role
of primary teacher to his or her children, through the generations.
Mission
Statement
The
Tennessee Family Literacy Consortium is established to strengthen and
expand family learning opportunities and services. We will be leaders
toward attaining this mission by:
• identifying, building, and strengthening activities and practices
in Tennessee that promote Family Literacy and family learning;
• providing a forum to advance awareness about and advocacy for
Family Literacy and family learning; and
• nurturing a network of, and strong, enduring partnerships among,
Family Literacy practitioners and other persons and organizations who
serve families in our communities.
To
these ends we commit our energies.
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 Next
Consortium Meeting – March 31, 2004
•
TN DE, 710 James Robertson Pkwy, Nashville; 10 a.m. - 12 noon
•
Please send topics of interest to Becky Goldstein rebecca.goldstein@state.tn.us
The
Tennessee Family Literacy Consortium
Serving Tennessee’s Families
In
January 2000 Tennessee was awarded a two-year federal grant to promote
the contributions of Family Literacy to the educational,
social, and physical development of children, the stability of families
and communities, and the development of a competent workforce. Our
state Department of Education had sponsored an Even Start Family Literacy
Program since 1990. Observing the potential of the Even Start program,
health and education professionals decided Tennessee must do more
to expand, strengthen, and coordinate Family Literacy services.
Backed
by the federal grant, experts from a wide array of programs and services
in Tennessee formed the Statewide Family
Literacy Consortium. Representative agencies included
departments of our state government plus institutions of higher education,
Head Start, county and city education agencies, non-profit community-based
organizations, philanthropic organizations, and individuals interested
in family-friendly programs.
Primary
sponsors of the Consortium are the Tennessee Department of Education
and the Center for Literacy Studies at the University of Tennessee.
Some of the projects the group has sponsored
include:
• Communications efforts
such as a radio and television public service announcement campaign;
a statewide newsletter featuring the
many facets of Family Literacy in Tennessee; a distillation of recommended
Family Literacy policy and practices,
based on the needs, services, and programs available to Tennesseans
and published by the University of Tennessee Press; and this Website.
• Enhancements to the existing
Even Start program, such as development of a program
assessment instrument based on the Continuous Quality Improvement
model; a Web-based data collection system; and training opportunities
for Even Start site directors, staff, and evaluators.
• A November
2002 Celebration and Summit to inform individuals
and agencies from the areas of education, business, industry, community,
and government of the benefits of Family Literacy-focused activities.
As
federal grant monies were available only until March of 2003, the
Consortium is now examining how it will continue to function as a
self-sustaining organization.
Post
Grant Consortium Continuation Objectives and Strategies
An
ad hoc committee of Consortium Members has met several times
since March, 2003, when the Initiative's federal funding expired,
to determine how best to continue to promote and attain the Consortium's
objectives. As a result of these meetings,
• The membership was
surveyed to determine who would make firm commitments
to continue the pursuit of the Consortium's objectives.
• A shared
leadership model was adopted to focus the Consortium's
priorities and expedite its activities.
• Project
suggestions for the upcoming year were generated.
Those included another Family Literacy conference and publication
of a Tennessee Family Literacy resource diretory.
•
Position and Mission Statements
were formulated (see at left).
Meeting announcements will be posted on this Website as they are planned,
and e-mail notices will be sent to interested parties.
For
more information contact rebecca.goldstein@state.tn.us
Original
Member Agencies
AEL
Tennessee • Assisi Foundation
East Tennessee State University
Education Equal Opportunity Group
• Friends of Literacy, Inc.
Head Start State Collaboration Office
• It’s Time to Read
• Martha O’Bryan Center •
Middle
Tennessee Reading Association
Nashville Area Assn. for the Education of Young Children
NashvilleREAD • National Center for
Family Literacy
Tennessee Association of Adult & Community Educators
Tennessee Board of Education
Tennessee Commission
on Children and Youth
Tennessee Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges
Tennessee Governor’s Office
Tennessee Higher Education Commission
Tennessee Housing and Redevelopment Authority
Tennessee Reading Association
Tennessee State Departments of Children’s Services
Education
• Economic
& Community Development
Health
• Human
Services
• Labor
& Workforce Development
Tennessee State Library and Archives
Tennessee State University
Tennessee Tomorrow, Inc.
•
The
Reading Bridge
United
Way of Nashville’s Read to Succeed Program
University of Tennessee Center for Literacy Studies
Vanderbilt University
Woodbine Community Organization
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