Literacy Program Shines

Jack Cassidy, a nationally respected expert in literacy, couldn’t have come to a better place to practice his profession. He arrived at the University in 1998 and found himself in a county where one in every four adults is functionally illiterate.

Cassidy is among several University faculty and staff working to develop and implement programs to improve literacy in the area while teaching classes and training others to become literacy experts. One innovative program Cassidy initiated is The Literacy Connection. This program is designed to help parents of children with limited literacy skills improve their own skills.

“Parents are their children’s first teachers,” Cassidy said. “We felt if we could improve their literacy skills that would improve the literacy skills of their children.”

The Literacy Connection, located in the Early Childhood Development Center, is featured in the March issue of Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy published by the International Reading Association. The article, written by Cassidy and others in the College of Education, argues for increased emphasis on family reading programs, especially for Latino parents who often have literacy problems of their own.

He and his colleagues have brought national attention to the University and helped countless children and adults learn to read and make what Cassidy hopes is a “permanent, positive difference” in the lives of others.

Cassidy is Associate Dean of the College of Education and directs the Center for Educational Development, Evaluation and Research (CEDER) which serves as an umbrella for research and development projects within the College of Education. Under Cassidy’s leadership, CEDER has assisted members with their research and helped them obtain grant funding. One example currently in the works, Project ESCUELA, will expand The Literacy Connection to families who live near the Antonio E. Garcia Arts and Education Center on Agnes Street.

Cassidy, who also wants the University to be known for educating teachers in teaching gifted and talented children, wants a literacy center at the University to help children and adults in the evenings and on Saturdays.

Making a permanent, positive difference in someone’s life is one reason he and others at the University have made literacy their life’s work. Another is the personal satisfaction they get from knowing they have helped people become more successful.