1. Rotary District 9940 Literacy District Literacy Co-ordinator Joy Durrant Rotary Club of Port Nicholson

2. Literacy – a Key focus area “If you work hard your whole life, you ought to have every opportunity to retire with dignity and financial security.” President Obama

3. Why Literacy? Employment and earnings The number of jobs for which adults with low skills qualify continues to drop – those with only a high school or college education, or less, now quality for less than 20% of all new jobs.

4. Why Literacy? Welfare and poverty Seventy percent of adult welfare recipients function at the lowest levels of literacy. Literacy programs help adults make significant inroads in their fight against welfare dependence.

5. Why Literacy? Health Those who lack basic literacy skills are much more likely than others to suffer from heart disease, diabetes and prostate cancer and to have health care expenses as much as six times higher than adults with average levels of literacy.

6. Why Literacy? Health Evidence shows that as people gain literacy skills, they are more likely to understand their health problems, have both the confidence and knowledge they need in order to find appropriate medical care, and follow their treatment regimens properly.

7. Why Literacy? Correctional Institutions The average reading and math levels of an incarcerated adult are at below year eight level. Of those adults who have been in prison education programs, 20% are re-incarcerated, as compared to 49% of those not in a program.

8. Why Literacy? Regarding women Worldwide, 70% of adults who lack basic literacy skills are women. Low literate women are affected in terms of birth control, pregnancy, giving birth, and raising children.

9. Why Literacy? Regarding women In general, as women become more literate (and as their household income rises as a result) child survival rates rise and the nutrition children receive improves. As women become more literate they become more effective as advocates for their children with schools and other public institutions.

10. What can we do? FOR AS LITTLE AS $160 your Rotary Club could support 20 pupils at a low decile school with their own Usborne Dictionary. For $1500 your Rotary Club could implement a ‘Books in Homes’ program for a local primary school. Five books per student per year.

11. What do we plan as a District? Please appoint or volunteer as a Literacy co- ordinator in your Club. Twice per year 1 MARCH and 1 SEPTEMBER we will take orders from Clubs for Dictionaries deliver at points close to them. Need delivery points as well.

12. How to do it? Identify low decile schools in your area. Talk to the Principal to gauge interest. Place your orders for Dictionaries. Talk to Books in Homes. Attend School Prize giving and presentations.

13. District Literacy Questions? Email: joy@prosperity.co.nz