Brevard College, Brevard, N.C.
Monday, October 1, 1990
Volume 58, Number 3
BC and the community are fighting for.
Freedom from the demons of illiteracy
by Libby Enloe
Clarion Co-Editor
Reading used to be a hinderance
for BC sophomore Dino Locklear but
with the help of faculty in the Learning
Center, he says it isn't such a problem
anymore.
"I wish I had caught my reading
problems before I came to BC." says
Dino. "When I came here,” he explains,
"I started out at a third grade reading
level. I'm up to a seventh grade level
now."
Dino says that his grade point
average has risen every semester and tliat
he owes it all to EC's Learning Center.
"With the reading lab and people like
Naomi Gibbs," he says, "I can read and
comprehend things better. " Dino says,
now he enjoys reading. "It makes it
more exciting to read when you can com
prehend everything."
Dino wants to let other students
know that help is available if they need
it. "There is a reading test that takes 35
minutes." he says. "It's a vocabulary and
reading comprehension test. You do as
much as you can." Dino urges students
to take the test first to let them know
exactly where their weaknesses lie. He
also tells students to take a reading class
and to use the computers in the Writing
Lab.
Dino encourages other students not
to give up. "Just because they need help
in reading doesn't mean they can't get
help." he says "They can get help. If I
can, anybody can."
Dino Locklear is one example of
the many students who have come to
the right place for help, according to
Naomi Gibbs. Gibbs, the former
director of BC's Learning Center, is on
leave of absence and is studying at Ap
palachian State University. She says the
purpose of the Learning Assistance
Program here at the College is to get
students reading on a college level.
"We've seen as much as a five full grade
levels of improvement in some
students," she says.
"What we work on is mostly
reading comprehension and building
vocabulary. We're not talking about
learning disabilities," she says, "Only
about two percent of students who can't
read have learning disabilities. It is a
natural inclination to label those
students who have low reading com
prehension levels as 'learning disabled'."
In looking at the problem of
Scott Barnes
Sept. 30 0ct.7 is Literacy Awareness Week in
Transylvania County. For its part, Brevard College is
hosting the Community Convocation on Literacy, Wed.
Oct 3. Students are invited to attend an open
journalism class featuring the guest appearance of
Time Warner Co-CEO, Richard Munm, 10-11 am., room
118 MG. In addition, lunch that daywiHI)e served on the
lawn ol Coltrane Commons to make room hr tie
convoc^km in Myers Dning Hall
illiteracy and marginal reading levels of
high school and college students, Gibbs
says, "I do feel that the blame is placed
on the public school system." She
conunues, "I also feel that in the past
30 years, public schools have been in a
state of transition. They're having a hard
time adjusting."
Gibbs also recognizes parents'
rolls in their children's education. "A lot
of priorities get shifted in homes today^
There isn't enough reading going on.
She also says that most of what people
read today, (magazines, newspapers,
etc) "are written on an eighth grade
reading level. College textbooks are
written on a college reading level.
Gibbs stresses that this problem
is not unique to BC. "We see^it at
almost every college in the
The Learning Assistance Schedule
(see page 3) offers 96 hours pet week
up from last year’s 48, of help and
referral in any subject area.
Time Warner, Inc. Co-CEO J.
Richard Munro, the former
publisher, general manager and
business manager of Sports
Illustrated, will speak here 10
a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 3, at an
open journalism class for
students in MG 118.
The issue of literacy will be
addressed at a Community Convocation
on Literacy to be held at Brevard
College, Wednesday, Oct. 3. The
featured speaker will be the Co-
Chairman and Co-CEO of Time Warner,
Inc, the owner of Time, Life, Foriunet
Money, People and Sports Illustrated
magazines.
The address, to be given at a
special 12:30 p.m. luncheon meeting in
the Myers Dining Hall on the campus
of Brevard College, will be the
highlight of the week-long Literacy
Awareness Week, Sept. 30 - OcL 7.
A college and community literacy
committee has invited over 600 Western
Noith Carolina educational, governmen
tal, business, civic, and church leaders
to hear the address by J. Richard Munro
of Time Warner, Inc.
Munro will be joined by Helen
Crouch, President of the Literacy Volun
teers of America, and Leonard Hall, a
Brevard resident who is on the board of
directors of the Literacy Volunteers of
America.
"The College has undertaken this
ambitious project, "says BC Director of
Public Information Jock Lauterer, "out
of our concern over the illiteracy
problem. By increasing the awareness of
and understanding about this problem,
we believe we can have an impact in
this area.
The City of Brevard has proclaimed
Sept. 30 - Oct. 7 as "Literacy
Awareness Week." Lauterer adds, "In ad
dition, the United Nations has
proclaimed 1990 as 'International
Literacy Year.'"
It is no accident that the College
be chosen as the site for the Com
munity Convocation on Literacy.
Brevard College, whose motto is "Learn
So That You May Serve, " is requiring
a minimum of 30 hours of service for
graduation, beginning with this fall's
entering freshman class.
The Literacy Awareness Week
committee is targeting the five-county
area of Transylvania, Henderson,
Buncombe. Haywood and Jackson Coun
ties.
John Richard Munro is chairman
of the Executive Committee of the
Board of Directors for Time Warner Inc.
He assumed the post after stepping
down as co-chairman and co-chief
executive ofTicer of the company.
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