National Coalition for Literacy

By Heidi Silver-Pacuilla

Hello all, I am honored and excited to take on the role of President of the National Coalition for Literacy. Thank you for your vote of confidence. I look forward to a year of learning from all of the members, policymakers, and advocates.

With the announcement of the Adult Literacy Caucus, we have an incredible opportunity to move the cause of adult literacy to a more central policy conversation where it belongs—deeply entwined with the conversations on the economy, jobs and a competitive workforce, poverty, gender equity, health and wellness, civic involvement, parenting and early childhood, dropout prevention, higher education and college degrees. We know that literacy is a policy lever and that when literacy skills rise, all the other issue begin to improve as well, for individuals and for communities. I pledge to work with all the members of the Coalition to use this mechanism to advance our policy priorities on the Hill.

I would also like to challenge us to remember that the Coalition—like the rest of the country—is facing a time of austerity. We do not have office or research staff. Grants and endowments are more difficult to secure. But we do have a whole Coalition full of smart, dedicated, experienced, and tapped-in members.

We need to bring all of our resources and energy to the table. If there is an issue that is critical to you, please call and I will work with you so that you can take visible leadership on it. I recognize that in my tenure on the Board, I got more out of the Coalition the more I put into it. We ARE the Coalition and we can be very proud of what we have accomplished and what we will accomplish in the coming year. I look forward to working with each of you and seeing what we can do.

Please contact me at any time and mark your calendars for upcoming events— online, on the phone, and in Washington. Participate in your advocacy organization, NCL.