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<p><font size=4 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:13.5pt'>Barbara
Bush <st1:State w:st="on">Texas</st1:State> Fund for Family Literacy Awards
Disaster Recovery Grants to Nine <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:State w:st="on">Texas</st1:State></st1:place>
Literacy Programs</span></font><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'>The Barbara Bush Texas Fund for Family Literacy is awarding nine <st1:State
w:st="on">Texas</st1:State> adult and family literacy programs with grants to
assist in their recovery from the recent natural disasters that affected the
state, including Hurricanes Ike and Dolly and <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">Rio Grande</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">River</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>
flooding.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
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<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Mrs.
Barbara Bush said, <em><i><font face="Times New Roman">“The recent storms
and flooding have turned the lives of many Texans upside-down. Their homes,
workplaces, and schools, as well as the infrastructures of their communities,
have been damaged or destroyed, and they must work hard to rebuild their
dramatically changed lives. </font></i></em><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p><em><i><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>By
providing important support to literacy programs, the grants will reach out to <st1:State
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Texas</st1:place></st1:State> families affected
by the natural disasters and ensure that they can continue to learn to read,
write, and comprehend. Each of the programs selected has made a difference in
the past, and I hope that with the help of these grants, they will continue to
do so in the future.</span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>The Texas
Center for the Advancement of Literacy and Learning at Texas A&M University
and the <acronym><font face="Times New Roman">BBTFFL</font></acronym> worked
together to identify programs to receive one-time recovery grants, ranging from
$8,300 to $20,000, for costs related to natural disasters. The nine
grants amount to $154,434 in total funding for disaster recovery. These
expenses include replacement of destroyed furnishings; equipment or
instructional materials not covered by insurance; rental of temporary classroom
space; outreach and recruitment expenditures to rebuild program enrollment; and
temporary additional personnel costs.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Technical
assistance and evaluation for the Disaster Recovery Grant projects will be
provided by a project at TCALL under the leadership of faculty Principal
Investigator, Dr. <st1:PersonName w:st="on">Mary Alfred</st1:PersonName>.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p><strong><b><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>DISASTER
RECOVERY GRANT RECIPIENTS</span></font></b></strong><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><strong><b><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Brazosport
College’s English Literacy and Civics Education Program</span></font></b></strong>
is located 60 miles south of <st1:City w:st="on">Houston</st1:City> in <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:City w:st="on">Freeport</st1:City>, <st1:State w:st="on">Texas</st1:State></st1:place>.
The program’s fall semester began promisingly with 111 students. However,
on September 10, 2008, a mandatory evacuation was issued for this coastal area,
and classes were subsequently canceled until September 22. Hurricane Ike
changed the students’ lives in various ways: they lost their jobs; their
homes were damaged; they worked more hours; they lost their means of
transportation; or they relocated to another area. As a result 31% of the
program’s students did not return once classes resumed. The grants will
support student outreach, recruitment, and retention activities, as well as
promote achievement, through expanded services. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p><strong><b><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Clear
Creek </span></font></b></strong><acronym><b><font face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-weight:bold'>ISD</span></font></b></acronym><strong><b><font
face="Times New Roman"> English Literacy and Civics</font></b></strong> <strong><b><font
face="Times New Roman">Program</font></b></strong> is located between <st1:City
w:st="on">Houston</st1:City> and <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Galveston</st1:place></st1:City>
in an area particularly devastated by Hurricane Ike. The storm damaged the
homes of many program participates, forcing them to move to temporary places
such as hotels or the homes of relatives. Many students’ workplaces were
affected, causing them to lose their jobs or changed their work schedules. All
schools and programs in the Clear Creek ISD, including the English Literacy and
Civics program, were canceled for two weeks as damages to schools were accessed
and repaired, and families started to rebuild their lives. To enable more
students to attend classes regularly, this program will be funded to expand and
extend classes into June, and implement marketing and retention efforts to
improve attendance. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p><strong><b><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>The
College of the Mainland Adult Education Program</span></font></b></strong> is <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Galveston</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">County</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>’s primary provider of adult
basic education, English as a second language instruction, and <acronym><font
face="Times New Roman">GED</font></acronym> preparation. The program has always
been accessible for <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Galveston</st1:place></st1:City>’s
citizens due to its multiple locations in the area. Unfortunately it lost
classroom space in several of these places in Hurricane Ike. The funds will
help obtain temporary classroom space, find and equip permanent classroom
space, and replace lost textbooks. Also, as many of the students had to move
because of their damaged homes, the funding will help the program remain
accessible to its students by providing web-based instruction, and conducting
marketing and recruitment efforts to ensure students are aware of changed
locations and the program’s continued operation. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p><strong><b><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Literacy
Advance of Houston</span></font></b></strong> is working to rebuild two of
their sites. On September 12, 2008, Hurricane Ike swept through the <st1:City
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Houston</st1:place></st1:City> area, tearing off
the roof of Literacy Advance’s Bay Area office and destroying everything
inside. High winds damaged and water drenched the program’s <st1:Street
w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">Wilcrest Drive</st1:address></st1:Street>
office, causing mold to grow in the interior walls and carpet. By using the
grant to help fund its “Take A Hike Ike Recovery Project” to
replace lost instructional materials, equipment and staff, Literacy Advance
will be able to continue providing adult basic education tutoring, English as a
second language instruction and family literacy programs at these two sites. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on"><strong><b><font size=3
face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Lone</span></font></b></strong></st1:PlaceName><strong><b><font
face="Times New Roman"> <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Star</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">College</st1:PlaceType></font></b></strong></st1:place><strong><b><font
face="Times New Roman"> – North Harris Adult Education’s</font></b></strong>
facility was fortunate to escape physical damages in Hurricane Ike. However,
infrastructure disruptions in the area caused the program to be closed from
September 11 to September 25 and its adult students subsequently lost 709
classroom hours. The College will be funded to help students make up these
important hours by extending 20 English as a Second Language classes, 18 GED
preparatory classes, and 7 English literacy and civics classes for two weeks
beyond the spring semester’s scheduled ending date. <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Lone</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Star</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">College</st1:PlaceType>
provides adult education services to residents in the north <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Houston</st1:place></st1:City> area. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p><strong><b><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>The
Lyford Even Start Family Literacy Program’s</span></font></b></strong>
facility, located in the southern tip of coastal Texas, experienced extensive
damages in Hurricane Dolly, and classrooms and instructional materials were
destroyed. While the building was fortunately insured and has been repaired,
their childcare playground infrastructure and some contents of the building
were not insured and must be repaired or replaced for the program to retain its
status as a state-licensed childcare facility. This license enables the program
to participate in the Texas Early Education Model Project and remain eligible
for state childcare funds. The funding provided by the grants will repair the
infant outdoor playground area and replace destroyed classroom furniture, toys
and books. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p><strong><b><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Pregnancy
& Parenting Support Center (</span></font></b></strong><acronym><b><font
face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-weight:bold'>PPSC</span></font></b></acronym><strong><b><font
face="Times New Roman">)</font></b></strong> is a faith-based program in <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Galveston</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">County</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> that provides free educational
services, practical household and infant supplies, and important encouragement
to pregnant women and to mothers with children under the age of three.
Hurricane Ike flooded the Center with eight feet of water, and many of the
mothers lost their homes and possessions and were forced to relocate within the
County. By traveling throughout the <st1:City w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Galveston</st1:place></st1:City>
area and offering “Read-To-Me” classes to mothers and their young
children, the center will use the funds to re-establish contact with their
former clients, as well as meet prospective clients. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p><strong><b><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>The
Presidio English Literacy and Civics Education Program</span></font></b></strong>
is the only adult education program serving <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">Presidio</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">County</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>,
an area devastated by the disastrous flooding of the Rio Grand River. In
addition to flooded homes and closed workplaces, the border crossing between
the <st1:country-region w:st="on">United States</st1:country-region> and <st1:country-region
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Mexico</st1:place></st1:country-region> upon
which the local economy depends was closed for three weeks. Job losses in other
parts of the state have also affected this area, with people moving to join
their extended family in Presidio, where jobs were already in short supply.
These disruptions and demographic shifts have resulted in smaller class sizes,
fewer students and low attendance at the program. Therefore, it will be funded
to employ a temporary recruitment assistant to reach out to and work with
former and potential students. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p><strong><b><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Region
5 Education Service Center Adult Education</span></font></b></strong> provides
education services to adults in Jasper, <st1:City w:st="on">Newton</st1:City>,
and <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Tyler</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">Counties</st1:PlaceName></st1:place>, which was an area still
recovering from Hurricane Rita when Hurricane Ike hit in September. Preliminary
damage estimates following Ike indicate disaster-related costs for this
tri-county area to be over $97 million. Residents endured prolonged power
outages, road closures, gas shortages, and interruptions to work and school. <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Tyler</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">County</st1:PlaceName></st1:place>
suffered so much damage that county officials allowed no outside traffic to
pass through for several days. While the Center’s buildings received only
minor damage, at least 25 percent of its student population did not return to
class after Ike. It will be funded to implement an aggressive student recruitment,
outreach and retention initiative. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p><strong><b><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Contact:</span></font></b></strong><b><span
style='font-weight:bold'><br>
</span></b><st1:PersonName w:st="on"><st1:PersonName w:st="on">Harriet</st1:PersonName>
</st1:PersonName>Vardiman Smith, Director, <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">Texas</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Center</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>
for the Advancement of Literacy & Learning (800-441-7323)<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal><b><font size=3 color=navy face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;color:navy;font-weight:bold'>---------------------------------------------</span></font></b><font
color="#993300"><span style='color:#993300'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal><st1:PersonName w:st="on"><st1:PersonName w:st="on"><b><font
size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-weight:bold'>Harriet</span></font></b></st1:PersonName><b><span
style='font-weight:bold'> </span></b></st1:PersonName><b><span
style='font-weight:bold'>Vardiman Smith, Director<br>
</span></b><a href="http://www-tcall.tamu.edu/"><font color=purple><span
style='color:purple'>Texas Center for the Advancement of Literacy and Learning</span></font></a><br>
<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Texas</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">A&M</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">University</st1:PlaceType></st1:place><br>
<br>
<font color="#993300"><span style='color:#993300'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
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