Contact Us                 

Phone: (919) 489-8383
Fax: (919) 489-7637
info@durhamliteracy.org

Mailing Address:
Durham Literacy Center
P.O. Box 52209
Durham, NC 27717

Classroom Locations:
We have several classroom sites. Please click here and scroll down for addresses, hours, and contact info for each site.

Office Location:
SunTrust Bank Building
Suite 102
4235 University Dr.
Durham, NC 27707





      

Adult Literacy

The Adult Literacy Program is designed to empower people every day through a student-centered approach to learning.

What: The DLC's Adult Literacy Program provides two main types of services:

  • One-on-one basic literacy tutoring for adults who read at or below an 8th grade reading level and one-on-one tutoring for adults who already read at or above an 8th grade reading level but would like tutoring to achieve specific goals (e.g., improve writing skills, pass a driving test or a citizenship test, prepare for college courses)

  • Small group pre-GED and GED classes for adults who read at or above a 6th grade reading level

Whom We Serve: Adult students with a variety of goals such as learning to read for the first time, improving their reading ability, helping their children/grandchildren with homework, understanding more about their jobs, reading medicine labels, obtaining a driver's license, and earning a GED.

When & Where:

  • One-on-one pairs meet for 1.5 hours twice per week (minimum commitment = 3 hrs/wk) according to their schedules and preferences. Most pairs meet at our Lakewood classroom location (2100 Chapel Hill Rd) or at Durham County Libraries. Our classrooms at Lakewood are open Monday through Thursday (9am-12pm; 4:30-8:30pm).

  • The small group GED class currently meets on Wednesday evenings (6:30-8pm) at Lakewood (2100 Chapel Hill Rd).

How to get involved:

  • Do you want to volunteer? We are always looking for patient, dedicated volunteers to tutor our students. We currently provide orientation and training sessions twice a year in January and August, but we often have short-term assignments for those who are interested in getting started between training dates. Email us (or call us at 489-8383, ext. 27) to learn more about volunteering with our program and/or to sign up for an orientation and training series.
The commitment:  We ask most Adult Literacy tutors to make a 6-month commitment, and we encourage them to plan to meet with a student for 90 minutes twice a week (for a total of 3 hours of instruction time each week). Most tutors spend some additional time planning their lessons. Program staff also offer optional workshops for our tutors (e.g., curriculum refreshers and informal discussions) and optional community building events such as scrabble game nights, and spring and winter potluck celebrations.
  • Do you (or someone you know) want to be a student? Call 323-0902 to learn more about being an Adult Literacy student.
Questions? Contact AL staff: 

Check out our two blogs -- Adult Literacy Community Blog and STAR @ the Durham Literacy Center -- which contain stories, ideas, and resources shared by our students, tutors, and staff.

For Active Tutors

You can now submit data online via online surveys at surveymonkey.com. Click on a link below, enter your data, and then use your browser's "back" button to return to this page. You can also submit hard copies of your data (see staff for hard copies of all forms) or email us to have any of the forms (Word documents) sent to you via email. 

Note:  You will need to delete your browser's cookies before you return to any of these online forms to submit new data. Click here to learn how.