VANCOUVER – NDP MLA for Niki Sharma says funding boost to community-based Indigenous, adult and family literacy programs in Vancouver will help people gain skills in reading, writing, math and digital literacy.

“Our government knows how life changing learning can be at any age and today’s announcement will help open doors to new opportunities for people in my community,” said Niki Sharma, MLA for Vancouver-Hastings. “Literacy and numeracy are important skills that everyone deserves to feel confident using in their daily lives.”

The following organizations will be delivering literacy programs in Vancouver thanks to the funding:

Carnegie Community Centre – Carnegie Literacy In-reach/Outreach Program

Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association of BC – Hastings Park Learning Centre

Kiwassa Neighborhood House – East Vancouver Family Literacy

St. John the Evangelist Anglican Church – Queen Mary Family Learning Program

Coast Mental Health Clubhouse – Coast Clubhouse Career Literacy 101

Mount Pleasant Neighbourhood House- Family Literacy Outreach (FLO) Program

The New Democrat government is investing $2.9 million in the Community Adult Literacy Program which includes a one-time investment for 2021-22. This support will fund 97 programs, delivered by 66 organizations in 128 communities throughout the province.

Community based Indigenous, adult and family literacy programs are provided free of charge and delivered by community organizations, Indigenous-led organizations, and public-post secondary institutions. Literacy programming typically includes one-on-one tutoring and small-group instruction which supports all levels of literacy. In 2020, many programs shifted to online service delivery in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Learn more: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2021AEST0046-001302