Literacy Council of Garland County

Greetings! We are the Literacy Council of Garland County, located in Hot Springs, Arkansas. Our mission is to empower our community through literacy. We are a 501(c) 3 nonprofit educational volunteer organization, founded in 1983.

To fulfill our mission we currently provide free tutoring services to adults in the form of two programs, Adult Basic Education (ABE) and English as a Second Language (ESL).

• For the ABE program we use the Laubach Way to Reading, a four book series taking students from zero reading ability to an eighth grade comprehension level.
• For our ESL students we use the Laubach Way to English, a three book series, taking students from no ability to reading, writing and speaking at a fifth grade level. Once ESL students reach the fifth grade level they are transferred to the ABE program.
• Both programs focus on phonics, grammar, punctuation, conversation skills, and comprehension.

Our tutors work one-on-one with each student, moving forward at their individual pace. If a student meets with their tutor twice weekly it should take them approximately a year to complete the program.

For the convenience of our students tutors can meet with them at a time and place of their choosing, from a list of safe locations we provide, including our classroom or the Garland County Public Library. All students are also invited to make use of our extensive library of training material, including Rosetta Stone software. These resources are available at our headquarters and do not require an appointment to access, just show up and use them, although they must stay on-site.

With such staggering levels of illiteracy in this country we are always seeking help, be it as office volunteers, tutors or patrons. Tutors are certified through an eight hour workshop, typically held on weekends.