Leo Notenboom, owner and operator of the popular tech support site Ask Leo!, today announced grants totalling $20,000 to a variety of non-profit organizations in support of English and computer literacy.
The Need and The Opportunity
Ask Leo!'s focus on literacy comes on its 7th anniversary.
"In those 7 years three things have slowly dawned on me," said Notenboom.
"A broad segment of our population does not have sufficient English proficiency to prosper and succeed in English speaking communities. Too many students are leaving basic education with similarly insufficient English skills -- even if they're being educated in English speaking countries."
"The practical reality is that an immense amount of information on the Internet is in English; improving English skills planet-wide can only serve to enable and empower people regardless of location, station or condition."
The hope, he said, was that by publicly and tangibly supporting example agencies in this important work, awareness would be raised on a critical aspect of individual success and achievement in an increasingly connected world.
"English skills matter more than most people realize, and they matter more globally than most people realize."
Initial Grants Based on Reader Suggestions
The majority of the grants were made to organizations suggested by Ask Leo! readers.
"With nearly 1.5 million visitors every month, and well over 100,000 subscribers to my weekly newsletter," said Notenboom, "it seemed only natural to go to them for suggestions."
"Involving my readers serves two purposes," he said, "Naturally I knew I would get suggestions for literacy programs that I'd never have heard of otherwise, but more importantly it helps raise awareness of the problem."
"The organizations selected only scratch the surface of the work being done to improve English and computer literacy, but they represent a great cross section of the field. Their diversity -- both in approach and in location -- is also a good reflection of the diversity of my readership."
An Additional Grant
In addition to the original $10,000 in grants announced to Ask Leo! readers, a grant of $10,000 was also made to hometown agency Hopelink.
"I've been involved with Hopelink for over a decade and on their board for nearly 6 years - I've seen what a great organization can accomplish," said Notenboom. "In many ways Hopelink's adult education and literacy programs were a model of what I would look for as I evaluated agencies suggested by my readers."
Since 1971, Hopelink has served homeless and low-income families, children, seniors and people with disabilities in the areas north and east of Seattle, Washington. In addition to adult education and literacy, Hopelink's programs include food banks, employment assistance, energy assistance, transitional housing, transportation and more.
Reader Recommendations Represent a Broad Spectrum
The initial grants based on reader recommendations totalled $10,000 and went to national organizations such as ProLiteracy, a nation-wide organization that advocates for literacy and supports other organizations, as well as local agencies such as Whatcom Literacy Council, based in Notenboom's home state of Washington. Additional recipients included Literacy Council of Norristown Pennsylvania, Family Literacy Center, Lapeer, Michigan, and Literacy Source in Seattle, Washington.
Grants were not limited to the United States, and also included Action Read Community Literacy Centre in Guelph, Ontario, Canada and Computer Pals for Seniors -Turramurra Inc. in Australia.
"There were so many great agencies recommended it was difficult to narrow the list to just these," concluded Notenboom. "My hope is that others will be inspired to act in some related way to improve both English and computer literacy - be it their own, their family's or their community's."
--
Ask Leo! is a service of Puget Sound Software, LLC of Woodinville, Washington, USA. Email press inquires to press at pugetsoundsoftware.com.
