New Initiative Calls on Community to Battle Illiteracy

Four faculty members have teamed with two professional colleagues to rally the community, especially its most front-line professionals, around the problem of illiteracy.

n the United States, according to the Literacy Project Foundation, 45 million Americans, or roughly 14 percent of the population, currently cannot read above a fifth-grade level, and only a third of fourth-graders read at a proficient level.

This figure does not surprise M. Sandra LaManna, a faculty specialist in the Education Department at The University of Scranton, who has spent her career watching this problem linger.

“I worked as a school psychologist in public schools for 31 years, and I’m not seeing major change in the literacy development of the students,” said Professor LaManna.

She and three University colleagues — fellow faculty specialist Sandra Pesavento; Debra A. Pellegrino, Ed.D., dean of the Panuska College of Professional Studies; and Teresa M. Conte, Ph.D., an assistant professor of nursing — have teamed with two professional colleagues to rally the community, especially its most front-line professionals, around the problem of illiteracy.

Their efforts are collectively known as the National Reading Crisis Project and will be developed in Northeastern Pennsylvania over a three-year period then extended to other counties in the state. The partnership will target four main stakeholders: health care professionals, educators, families and community agencies.

Read the full article here.

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