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Welcome to Literacy New York

22% percent of New York State residents suffer needlessly from low literacy, severely limiting their quality of life and often leading to unemployment, poverty, health issues, and even incarceration.

We are here to help.

Literacy New York was founded on a vision and mission to serve adults and families most in need of literacy services.

Specifically, the Literacy New York mission is to increase the effectiveness of adult literacy practitioners and the capacity of programs so that adults, families, and communities reach their full potential.

Who We Are

Literacy New York's role is to:

Build the organizational capacity of adult literacy organizations by sharing expertise about funding and data management;
Offer state-of-the-art training for teachers, administrators, and volunteer tutors;
Advocate for adult literacy programs, particularly those that serve students with the most limited literacy skills and English language proficiency.

What We Do

The overarching vision that drives all of our work is that:

In New York State and beyond, innovative adult literacy programs collaborate to meet the literacy needs of adult students in their communities.

News & Events

Sep. 16th, 2022 3:00 pm

September is Stop Reading Challenge Month!

During the month of September, Literacy New York has been sharing an opportunity for all of us to experience, in a small way, what it is like to live without reading. Visit www.stopreadingchallenge.org, where we want you to try and get through 5 minutes of your typical day without reading any words. It is harder than you think-- try it!

Aug. 16th, 2022 3:00 pm

Building Literacy Skills Builds our Economy

In the recently posted article "Literacy is an economic growth engine-- will we seize it?" the authors build upon findings from a study done by the Barbara Bush Foundation, tracking how increasing literacy levels would boost economic activity and address labor shortages.

Jul. 15th, 2022 1:10 pm

LVORC Awarded $10,000 Grant By The McCarthy Charities

Literacy Volunteers of Rensselaer County has been awarded $10,000 by The McCarthy Charities. The funds, to be used for general operating costs, are greatly beneficial at a time when LVORC is establishing new programs and services in Rensselaer County and Albany County.

A Call to "Re-map the U.S. Adult Literacy Problem"

Our colleagues at ProLiteracy recently published this thoughtful 'white paper', First Things First: Re-Map the U.S. Adult Literacy Problem, a call to all of us who advocate for adult literacy learners to work together to create a clear vision for our field.

Immigrant and U.S.-Born Parents of Young and Elementary-School-Age Children

The Migration Policy Institute has released a report rich with data and analysis related to Immigrant and US-Born parents of young children, further underscoring the important work of programs supported by Literacy New York.

Janice Cuddahee Fund

Founded in September 2019, the Janice Cuddahee Fund honors the memory of a literacy advocate who enjoyed a long career with Literacy New York (LNY), culminating in her leading the organization as Executive Director. Janice Cuddahee's lifetime of service to LNY made our New York network the best in the nation. Janice was, as so many have said, a literacy warrior. She fought for literacy learners; she fought for the role of well-trained volunteers in adult education; she fought for NY State funding; and she fought for increased public awareness of low-level adult literacy in our state and across the nation. Sadly, we lost Janice to cancer in April, 2019.

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Advancing Adult Literacy in NY since 1974

3.9 Million