Allegheny County Literacy Council,Inc./Christian Literacy AssociatesGuideStar Nonprofit Profile Charting Impact Report * Last Updated on

10.31.2016

This report represents Allegheny County Literacy Council, Inc./Christian Literacy Associates's responses to Charting Impact,a joint project of BBB Wise Giving Alliance, GuideStar USA Inc, and Independent Sector. Charting Impact uses five simpleyet powerful questions to encourage strategic thinking and help organizations share concise information about their plansand progress toward impact.

Allegheny County Literacy Council, Inc./Christian Literacy Associates541 Perry Hwy , Pittsburgh, PA15229412 -364-3777www.christianliteracy.org

Mission:Mobilizing the Christian community to meet the basic reading needs of children and adults byproviding the key to eliminate illiteracy, build relationships, and share the Good News usingThe Christian Literacy Series.

Allegheny County Literacy Council, Inc./Christian Literacy Associates | Last Updated on 10.31.2016

The content of this Charting Impact Report is the sole product and responsibility of Allegheny County Literacy Council,Inc./Christian Literacy Associates. This report does not in any way represent an endorsement from Independent Sector, BBBWise Giving Alliance, or GuideStar, nor does it represent fulfillment of the BBB Wise Giving Alliance's Standards for CharityAccountability. For more information on Charting Impact, visit www.guidestar.org/chartingimpact

Allegheny County Literacy Council, Inc./Christian Literacy Associates | Last Updated on 10.31.2016

1. What are we aiming to accomplish?The number of functionally illiterate adults in the United States today is approximately 40 million. These are adults whocannot read above a 5th grade reading level. Most of these are native-born English speakers. Sadly, for our children, thestatistical analysis of 4th grade standardized test scores paints a much gloomier picture. Overall, approximately 65% of ournation's 4th grade students do not read at a proficient level. For low income students, the percentage rises to 80% of 4thgrade students not reading at a proficient grade level. The significance of these test scores is recognized nearly universally.For instance, depending on the state you live in, the Department of Corrections uses either 3rd or 4th grade reading scoresto determine the number of prison beds that will be needed in the future. The problem is too large for the school system toaddress effectively. In response to this crisis, Allegheny County Literacy Council, Inc./Christian Literacy Associates isbuilding the 2ten Network. The 2ten Network is comprised of churches and community ministries who are trained to use andequipped with The Christian Literacy Series, enabling them to provide the basic reading assistance that their owncommunity's children need. It is our vision to equip a minimum of one Christian church in every town within the United Stateswith the training and materials to help an adult or child learn to read using The Christian Literacy Series. We also continue tooffer free training and consultation services for parents and caregivers to meet the needs of their children.

2. What are our strategies for making this happen?Our strategy to accomplish this vision begins with word of mouth advertising. As a small nonprofit we have a minimaladvertising budget. Therefore, we must gain exposure to alert churches, parents, caregivers, and other social serviceagencies to our existence and the unique way that we can help them and their constituents. We then partner with thesechurches and community groups to train and equip them to provide the basic reading instruction their community's childrenand adults need. Partnering with funding sources to provide sponsorships for those individuals who have extremely limitedmeans is also an important part of the equation.

3. What are our organization's capabilities for doing this?Our dedicated staff is uniquely qualified to provide training to any organization in the United States that wishes to offer basicreading assistance to those in need. The Christian Literacy Series is of special importance because it is designed to be usedsuccessfully by trained tutors with no previous experience as educators. This allows us to train anyone who can read well,desires to help someone in need, has patience, and is willing to use Christian-content materials to teach someone how toread. Most Christian churches in the United States would have at least two people who would fit that description. Fortunately,the advancements in technology have provided us with numerous opportunities to reach out to the nation effectively. Also,partnerships with judicatory bodies and other organizations related to the churches are potential partners in the fight againstilliteracy. We specialize in creating programs that can be easily replicated. By developing training tools for distanceapplications such as training videos, or live online tutor training, we are able to mobilize parents, caregivers, and volunteersfrom churches and community ministries in multiple regions simultaneously.

4. How will we know if we're making progress?We chart progress with listings of locations that have trained individuals and The Christian Literacy Series available on site.We also maintain a list of churches and organizations that have informed us of tutoring activities at their location. 2tenNetwork members remain in contact with and periodically provide a summary of their ongoing activities.

/report/531808686/allegheny-county-literacy-council-christian-literacy-associates.pdf Allegheny County Literacy Council, Inc./Christian LiteracyAssociates | Last Updated on 10.31.2016

5. What have and haven't we accomplished so far?This is an ongoing national level effort to mobilize the Christian community to fight illiteracy. Along with more than a dozenchurches locally, we have equipped churches in New York, Arkansas, and California, along with ministries in Florida,Georgia, and Texas who are actively tutoring using The Christian Literacy Series. The 2ten Network continues to grow as weare in the early stages of partnering with a national church based after school program to equip as many as 200 existingafter school programs with the textbooks and training necessary to handle the basic reading needs of their students.

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Allegheny County Literacy Council, Inc./Christian Literacy

/report/531808686/allegheny-county-literacy-council-christian-literacy-associates.pdf Allegheny County Literacy Council, Inc./Christian LiteracyAssociates | Last Updated on 10.31.2016