About six months ago, the University of Wisconsin published survey results on “America’s Most Literate Cities”. The criteria used to determine the level of literacy in the cities were based on five factors: number of bookstores, public school libraries, education levels, periodicals published and newspaper circulation. Sixty four cities with populations over 250,000 were rated; Indianapolis was one of them. Want to guess where we ranked? Before you continue reading, take a minute to think about where you think we ranked and, more importantly, where you would like to see us ranked.

Ok, now that you’ve made your guesses, I will reveal that Indianapolis ranked right smack in the middle: number 37. Now, depending on if you are an optimist and see the glass half full, this could be good. At least we aren’t at the bottom. If you see the glass as half empty, this is bad news. We are not at the top, or even in the top ten.

Anyway you look at it, one truth remains clear: we can and must do better. Indianapolis is such a great city, with so many positive attributes, that accepting a middle of the road literacy ranking would be a detrimental act of complacency. We deserve better.

So, what are we doing to improve our literacy ranking? Plenty! If you don’t already know it, you may be surprised, and hopefully, pleased, that the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library is one of the top ranked library systems in the Country. In addition to the many fine library programs offered, there are some basic services you may not be aware of.

Indy Reads, the library’s literacy services, offers free individual tutoring to area adults who read at the lowest levels of literacy. According to a national survey, close to 100,000 adults in Marion County read at the lowest levels of literacy. We are doing more than individual tutoring; we are working to raise the level of awareness of literacy issues and working with community organizations in hopes of having a greater impact on the problems associated with low levels of literacy. Many social issues are impacted by low levels of literacy; crime rates, welfare, etc. Education is one of the biggest factors determining a person’s quality of life, and reading is education. Learning to read gives our citizens skills they need to overcome their current problems, and the tools they need to build a better future.

How do we do this? Every month we train volunteers who provide either literacy or English as a Second language tutoring to area adults in library branches throughout the city. These volunteers do not have to have an education background, or even a college degree. Usually they're people who llove to read and “can’t imagine what life would be like if I couldn’t read”. They are your neighbors, your co-workers, and maybe even you.

Last year we taught a record number of students, but there are more adults on our waiting list, adults who have finally come forward and asked for help. We need more volunteers who are willing to teach an adult to read, more volunteers who want to help turn a life around, more volunteers to make Indianapolis a more literate city. Our greatest need is for volunteer tutors who will tutor in the center city area, where we have the most students waiting to learn to read.

If you would like to help area adults learn to read, please call Indy Reads at 269-1755. We will send you more information as well as dates and times for our volunteer orientation. If you can’t volunteer, maybe you know someone who can.

The more adults we teach to reach, the greater the impact on our city’s quality of life for all. Hopefully, the next time a survey is taken, Indianapolis will be in the top rankings of “America’s Most Literate Cities”. Now wouldn’t that be exciting?

www.indyreads.org

www.imcpl.org