September | VOLUNTEER NEWSLETTER | 2025

September 21 marks the International Day of Peace, a day established by the UN to call for global cease-fire and non-violence. This year’s theme, Act Now for a Peaceful World, reminds us that in a time of uncertainty, each of us has the power and responsibility to take concrete steps—big and small—to build peace and create a more just and compassionate world.

Welcome to National Literacy Month! Around the world, 763 million adults still lack basic literacy skills, with two-thirds of them being women. In the U.S., 59 million adults read at the lowest literacy levels, limiting their ability to support their families, access jobs, or even read a simple story to a child. Here in King County, more than a third of adults need literacy support, which makes the work we do together not only important, but essential. At Literacy Source, we see every day how gaining skills in reading, writing, math, technology, and English opens doors to employment, education, and citizenship.

That’s why we’re so grateful for you, our volunteers, who donated nearly 8,000 hours to our students last year! Your commitment brings the numbers to life:

• Nationally, children of parents with low literacy skills are far more likely to struggle in school. At Literacy Source, your time with adult learners creates opportunity not just for our students but also for their children and families, multiplying impact across generations.
• Low literacy costs the U.S. more than $300 billion each year. Every hour you spend supporting students with reading, writing, and digital skills strengthens our economy by helping learners get better jobs, increase earnings, and reduce dependence on public assistance.
• In our own Academic English class, students read The Watsons Go to Birmingham and wrote essays in English for the first time (see more about this in the Courageous Conversation article below). These milestones, made possible by your support, show the transformative power of literacy in action.

As federal funding becomes increasingly uncertain, the work of volunteers like you is more critical than ever. You are the reason that nearly one thousand adult learners — spanning 8 decades, speaking 75 languages and representing 64 nations — were able to learn, grow, and build brighter futures with us last year. National Literacy Month is about celebrating literacy, and it’s also about celebrating you. Thank you for being the foundation of our community and incredible partners to our students as they create a better, more hopeful future for themselves and for generations to come.

Liz Wurster

Communications Coordinator

(See more in Proliteracy's Adult Basic Education Fact Sheet.)

This past quarter, our Academic English class (Instructor Elena, and volunteers, Alex, Emma, and Josh) read Christopher Paul Curtis’s award-winning novel The Watsons Go to Birmingham and watched the film adaptation. The timing couldn’t be more meaningful, as the National Park Service has developed a Books-to-Parks initiative around the novel. This project connects stories to the places where history happened—linking Curtis’s family narrative to the geography of Flint and Birmingham, and to pivotal moments of the Civil Rights Movement, including the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing. With oral histories, archival documents, and lesson plans, the initiative encourages readers of all ages to explore how systemic racism shaped everyday life and how children, then and now, have been central to struggles for justice.

For some of our students, this was the first novel they read in English or the first essay they ever wrote. In essays students wrote about the book, three of the students shared that they preferred the book because of its detail, humor, and the chance to enter the family’s inner world. One student reflected, “The author helped me develop my imagination by the use of figurative language. This is my first novel in English, the first is always at the top.” Another noted how reading strengthened vocabulary and writing skills, describing the book as “beautifully written” and “relatable.” A third connected deeply to the Watsons’ family dynamics, recalling her own childhood of resourcefulness and resilience.

One student, however, found the movie more powerful, praising how it highlighted the Civil Rights Movement and historical realities: “The recreation of many historical moments—Jim Crow laws, Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech, the Civil Rights Bill—help the audience understand the movement better.” She especially noted Byron’s growth from a rebellious boy into a young man with responsibility. Together, these essays reveal the courage it takes to engage with challenging stories in a language that may not be their first language, while also showing how literature—and the instructors and volunteers who support our learners—open pathways to imagination, history, and justice. If you haven't read the book yet, it sounds like our students would recommend adding it to your reading list!

Fall Break Office Hours

Universal Design for Learning



Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a teaching approach that helps make learning accessible to everyone by offering different ways to access information, show what you know, and stay engaged. It's based on research about how people learn and focuses on removing barriers to help all learners succeed. 

3 Key Principles of UDL

1. Multiple Ways to Present Information

• Present content in different formats: text, audio, video, or pictures.
• Use simple language and offer clarifications to help understanding.
• Goal: Make sure everyone can access and understand the information in a way that works for them...

You can read the full teaching tip here, and please join the Volunteer Roundtable (more info and registration linked below) for more discussion on this topic.

Niusha Shodja, Ready to Work Instructional Advisor

1) Online Volunteers:

Zoom for Online Instruction

Thursday, September 25th at 10-11:30am OR 6-7:30pm (online)

Note: This training is not to teach you how to use Zoom! It reviews Zoom skills that students need in their classes and provides strategies and practice time to help you learn how to teach and troubleshoot these skills with students. We offer this training at the beginning of every term so attending is optional for returning volunteers.

Please join this Google Classroom to sign up, find the Zoom link, and complete the pre-activity.

2) Matched Tutors:

Experienced Tutor Workshop (in person)

Saturday, September 27th at 10am - 12:30pm, at Literacy Source

If you are tutoring a student, you are considered an experienced tutor! As you work with your students, we know that you need to be flexible and thoughtful about meeting the individual needs of your student. In this training we are looking to create a space where you can share ideas, get support for challenges, resources to hone your teaching skills, ideas for activities for adapting class materials, help with scaffolding activities, and more. (This is an enhanced repeat of our training in the spring, so feel free to skip this time round if you attended in spring).

Please join this Google Classroom to sign up and complete the pre-activities.

3) All Volunteers, everyone is welcome:

Volunteer Roundtable Discussion: Working with Students with Learning Differences

Monday, October 20th , 4:30 - 5:30pm (online)

• What are our values around diversity & serving all students?
• What are reasonable accommodations, and how do we determine & implement them?

Please join this Google Classroom to sign up, find the Zoom link, and complete the pre-activities.

Congratulations and thank you to these volunteers who have achieved a year of service! We are so appreciative of all your hard work and dedication to Literacy Source.

• Amelia Stockdill – Conversation Partner
• Kayako Omori –Conversation Partner
• Josh Schwailer – Academic English, Class Assistant

This month we are changing it up! Literacy Source staff would love to share with you some of our favorite podcasts.

In The Dark Season 2: The Curtis Flowers Case

Staff: Liz Wurster

Hidden Brain

Staff: Allie Azersky

Volts

Staff: Caroline Socha

A Bit Fruity

Staff: Sarah Garcia

What Now?

Staff: Anshika Kumar

Maintenance Phase

Staff: Amy Kickliter

MEXAM NW Festival

Events every day through October 9 (Various Locations, many events are FREE)

MEXAM NW Festival 2025 is an exhilarating multi-event, multi-venue festival that spotlights the vibrant tapestry of contemporary Hispanic and Mexican-American culture. Curated by the Consulate of Mexico in Seattle and proudly presented by Delta - Aeromexico Airlines, MEXAM is supported and joined by multiple local partners. ​ We come together in a collective endeavor to celebrate the profound relationship between Hispanic heritage and the United States. Join us as we embrace the diversity of Hispanic culture and revel in the cultural exchange.

Duwamish Eco Tours

Various dates through October (Duwamish Longhouse & Cultural Center, FREE)

The Eco-Tours are back again! These tours are open to the public, they are free - donations are always welcome! 🌲 Come tour through həʔapus park and learn about the history of the land, river, and the connections to the Duwamish.

Join our tour guide on at 11am - 12:00pm at Həʔapus park. Meet your guide at the Welcome Desk inside the Duwamish Longhouse, where you will sign a waiver BEFORE going on the tour. Keep up to date on our Event webpage Duwamish Events for more dates, and remember to dress appropriately for the weather the day of your tour.

Refugee and Immigrants Festival

Saturday, September 20, 11am-6pm (Morrill Meadow Park, Kent, FREE)

Celebrate Culture, Unity, and Talent! 🎶✨

Join us for the Refugees and Immigrants Festival on September 20, 2025, at Morrill Meadow Park, 10600 SE 248th St, Kent, WA from 11 AM – 6 PM. Experience the vibrant sights and sounds of over 10 different performing groups representing multiple countries around the world — all coming together to share their music, dance, and traditions live on stage.

Bring your family, friends, and curiosity for a day filled with:

🎤 Live cultural performances

🍲 Delicious international food

🎨 Art and craft displays

🤝 A warm, welcoming community atmosphere

David Armstrong discusses "Broadway Nation: How Immigrants, Jewish, Queer, and Black Artists Invented the Broadway Musical"

Tuesday, September 23, 2025, 6:30-7:45 p.m. (Central Library Level 1 Auditorium, FREE)

Vivian Phillips will interview David Armstong, Artistic Director Emeritus of the 5th Avenue Theatre, about his new book “Broadway Nation”, a groundbreaking exploration that reveals the powerful impact of historically marginalized groups on the evolution of the Broadway Musical. The event will also include musical performances by Sarah Rudinoff, accompanied by Mathew Wright.

Our next New Volunteer Orientation (via Zoom) will be on October 1 at either 1pm or 7pm. 

Potential volunteers are invited to register online here. 

Miss any of our past volunteer newsletters? You can access archived newsletters at the bottom of the Volunteer Page of our webpage.