Overview



The DLC collaborates with more than 20 organizations, agencies, and companies at the local and state levels to meet our students' diverse needs efficiently and effectively.  

 

Alliance Behavioral Health​​

This organization manages mental health, developmental disability and substance abuse in Durham County. Staff refer clients to the Durham Literacy Center for instruction, and we refer adult learners to Alliance Behavioral Health as needed. 

 

AmeriCorps/NC LiteracyCorps

The Durham Literacy Center hosts 3 full-time and 1 part-time AmeriCorps members placed by NC LiteracyCorps through the SCALE (Student Coalition for Action in Literacy Education) Program at UNC-Chapel Hill. The DLC collaborates with these organizations on a number of literacy-related projects, including book drives and other community service projects.



​The Augustine Project

All permanent Adult Literacy staff and several of our volunteer tutors have completed the Augustine Project’s 40-hour Orton-Gillingham-based training in structured, multi-sensory, phonics-based reading instruction. Our Adult Literacy Program Coordinator is an Augustine Project board member. We regularly share new ideas and resources.



Church World Service and World Relief

These organizations refer refugees who have recently arrived in Durham to the DLC for English classes. In addition to addressing these students' language needs, we also assist students in navigating systems related to housing, transportation, and employment.

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Department of Social Services

 The DLC has a formal arrangement with DSS to provide testing services for DSS clients who require documentation of their reading proficiency level. DSS staff also refer their clients who lack basic literacy skills and/or a high school diploma to us for instruction. We refer learners who require social services to DSS, as needed.

Dress for Success

We refer students and community members who use our computer lab to search for jobs to this job readiness program for low-income women. The program provides free business attire, job fairs and referrals, and classes on the job search, resume-writing, job interviews, and selecting appropriate clothing for different work settings. It also provides mentoring and support groups to newly employed women to increase their capacity to maintain employment.  

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Durham County Detention Center

Through a partnership with the Durham County Sheriff's Office that began in late 2014, the Durham Literacy Center is providing job-readiness, life skills, and GED classes to incarcerated males ages 16 to 24 years. 

 

Durham Economic Resource Center

Through a collaborative pilot program called Poject LIFT, begun in late 2014, the DLC is providing on-site classes for Urban Ministries shelter residents. The classes focus on basic skills (reading, writing, high school equivalency test prep), life skills, and job readiness. The goal is to increase participants' capacity to obtain and maintain living wage work and permanent housing.

 

Durham County Libraries​

Durham County Libraries host multiple ESOL classes led by Durham Literacy Center volunteers. The DLC is also collaborating with United Way of the Greater Triangle, Durham County Libraries, Motheread, and AAD to develop a comprehensive approach to improving educational and economic outcomes for Durham families with a focus on providing a healthy, literacy-rich learning environment for their children. 

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Durham Technical Community College (DTCC)

The Durham Literacy Center maintains a close working relationship with Durham Technical Community College (DTCC). We refer Adult Basic Education students from our Adult Literacy and Youth Education programs to DTCC for GED exams. We also refer students from all of our programs to DTCC’s post-secondary academic and vocational programs. In turn, DTCC refers learners to the DLC for one-on-one and small-group instruction. 



East Durham Children's Initiative (EDCI)

DLC's ESOL program provides English language classes to parents, while EDCI provides childcare for their children and classroom space in East Durham. 

 

El Centro Hispano

This community-based center provides classroom space for several ESOL classes. We conduct student orientations and testing, train instructors, and provide oversight for these classes. We also refer ESOL students to El Centro Hispano for support services like counseling, translation, and financial advice.



The Museum of Life & Science

​The DLC refers low-income families to the Museum’s Ignite Membership program, an outreach effort that provides families with one-year memberships and special programming to diversify museum membership.



​North Carolina Community College System

The NC Community College System administers our federal funding, provides professional development for program staff and volunteers, and provides technical assistance on data management. DLC Staff provide state-sponsored trainings to staff at other community colleges and community-based literacy organizations.

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Threshold

This exceptional education program is designed to improve the quality of life for adults living with mental illness. A DLC instructor is contracted to provide GED, English, math, reading, poetry, and other types of instruction depending on the needs of participating Threshold clients.

 

Urban Ministries of Durham

Through a collaborative pilot program begun in late 2014, the DLC is providing on-site classes for shelter residents. The classes focus on basic skills (reading, writing, high school equivalency test prep), life skills, and job readiness. The goal is to increase participants' capacity to obtain and maintain livable wage work and permanent housing.

 

We also sit on the following collaborative planning groups:

   >  The Durham Center’s Community Collaborative

   >  The Durham-Based Fund Development Group, a collaborative organized by

        the Durham Partnership for Children

   >  The Durham Center’s planning group for the BECOMING (Substance Abuse

        and Mental Health Administration) grant.