Community Learning Centre, Napanee (CLCN) is a not-for-profit organization that provides learner-centred instruction for adults who wish to upgrade their basic literacy and numeracy skills for employment, further education or personal fulfillment. It began in 1996 as a branch of Kingston Literacy, to provide services for people in the rural community of Lennox and Addington County.

Learners in the program can participate in small group instruction facilitated by paid staff or they may choose to be matched in the one-to-one program with a volunteer tutor. The choice is up to the learner depending on which stream best fits his or her goals.

In 1997, under the name of Reading Routes, CLCN began a family literacy program. Family Literacy offers literacy-enriched programs for preschool-aged children and their parents/guardians to assist with emergent literacy skills and school readiness.

The program is open five days a week and one evening. It is free to anyone over the age of 18 who is interested in life-long learning.

Community Partnerships for Trails to Literacy

The Town of Napanee has been upgrading its waterfront. This includes developing walkways, with a historical perspective, for tourists and residents. CLCN contacted the Parks & Recreation Department and formed a partnership to work together on this project.

Ontario Works for Prince Edward, Lennox & Addington was very interested in the Trails project. They felt it would give their clients more opportunities to learn skills and connect with the community. OW workers are referring learners, who will be able to build their self-confidence and identify areas where more literacy/numeracy skills would be beneficial. By referring clients for community placements with Trails to Literacy these people get to share their expertise, providing new skills to learners, as well as picking up needed job skills for future employment.

Short-term Goals (first ten weeks)

It is important that each member of the group has a short-term goal so he or she can see the results of his/her hard work. A short term goal was determined to be something that could be completed in about ten weeks such as:

• Research (birds, plants, historical events, materials, costs, etc.)
• Design building plans (benches, birdhouses, feeders, planters, historical gardens)
• Complete small construction projects

Long-term Goals

CLCN, along with the Frontenac, Prince Edward & Lanark centres, has received an Ontario Trillium Foundation Grant to continue the projects. This grant will allow the project to run for a further year. It will also provide the means to plan for the longevity of the project. We have considered some of the following long-term concepts:

• Historical gardens
• Interpretive signs
• A "Wall of History"
• New boardwalk
• Brochure for the tourist office
• Web site for the town that includes a "Things to do in Napanee" list

 

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