Funded by the Professional Development Support for Nonprofit Adult Literacy Organizations grant from the Texas Workforce Commission, these regional symposia provide free professional development for volunteers and staff of nonprofit, community-based organizations.
Your local symposium is an excellent place to learn and network with other literacy providers in your region, and a great source of professional development for volunteer instructors.
Thank you so much for your interest!
This event is now over.
The symposium has the theme “Opening doors with literacy” and will be held on:
Friday, November 15, 2024, from 8:00 AM to 3:15 PM.
Check-in for registered participants will open at 8:00 AM, with the program starting promptly at 8:30 AM.
A working lunch will be provided at 12:30 PM.
The program outline is below. We will offer general sessions along with a special opportunity to complete an intensive day-long session on literacy at the lowest levels. You will need to choose that session at registration if you wish to take part – read on for more details.
This symposium will be held at The Commons, UTA: 440 W Nedderman Dr, Arlington, TX 76013.
Registration for this session has now closed
This symposium is offered free of charge to Texas nonprofit professionals who work in the fields of adult and family literacy – please note that a fully refundable deposit is required to hold your place. See Symposium FAQs for more information.
The symposium provides up to 5 hours of professional development.
REMINDER: CHECK YOUR SPAM
Every online registration will generate an automated email response with further information. If you don’t see it arrive, please check your junk mail!
ABOUT THIS SYMPOSIUM
PLEASE NOTE: In addition to general sessions, we will offer a special all-day intensive course on Beginning ESL. This is a special arrangement in response to the many requests we have had to learn more about assisting adult learners at the lowest literacy levels.
Registration is capped at 20 people for this special intensive session and you will need to select that session at registration if you wish to take part.
Schedule
Schedule will be kept as current as possible but is subject to change; check back here for updates
8:00 AM – 8:30 AM: CHECK-IN (Student Lounge area)
8:30 AM – 8:45 AM: WELCOME, OPENING REMARKS (Nueces A & B)
9:00 AM – 10:30 AM: Session 1 (90 min)
Delivering Job-Ready Candidates (Nueces A & B)
Olga Escamilla, TCALL
Group Chat IRL: Leadership (Frio)
Dr. Jenny McCormack Walker, Literacy Texas
SPECIAL ALL-DAY INTENSIVE SESSION ON BEGINNING ESL – PART 1 (Caddo)
For pre-registered attendees only – see above for details
Denise Johnson, TCALL
10:45 AM – 12:15 PM: Session 2 (90 min)
A is for Adult – Part 1 (Nueces A & B)
Wayne Crandall, TCALL
Group Chat IRL: Building Student Leaders (Frio)
Dr. Jenny McCormack Walker, Literacy Texas
SPECIAL ALL-DAY INTENSIVE SESSION ON BEGINNING ESL – PART 2 (Caddo)
For pre-registered attendees only – see above for details
Denise Johnson, TCALL
12:30 PM – 1:15 PM: WORKING LUNCH (Nueces A & B)
1:30 PM – 3:00 PM: Session 3 (90 min)
A is for Adult – Part 2 (Nueces A & B)
Wayne Crandall, TCALL
A Teacher’s Dozen (Frio)
Catherine Callejo, BurlingtonEnglish
SPECIAL ALL-DAY INTENSIVE SESSION ON BEGINNING ESL – PART 3 (Caddo)
For pre-registered attendees only – see above for details
Denise Johnson, TCALL
3:00 PM – 3:15 PM: FAREWELL & DOOR PRIZES
Symposium FAQs
Click on a question to see the answer.
A: Anyone interested in adult and family literacy in Texas is welcome at the symposium. We believe that the people who will gain the most are instructors – very much including volunteer tutors and teachers – at community-based adult and family literacy organizations and nonprofits.
Our regional symposia are designed to reflect the local needs of each region, and to represent a low-to-no cost opportunity to gain quality professional development without needing a large budget for travel or an overnight stay, in the vast majority of cases. We hope that multiple folks from the same organization will be able to come to the symposium – there’s no limit on how many people can attend from one place – something that’s harder to achieve at conferences.
We use the broadest definition of “literacy”, to include all of Adult Foundational Education: adult basic education, English as an additional language, high school equivalency, digital literacy, and workforce readiness, along with other kinds of teaching and learning.
A: Yes! Literacy Texas offers PD credit in conjunction with TCALL.
Certificates of completion will be awarded after the event. Complete the survey after the training is finished to give your details and get your certificate. Surveys will be sent via email in the days following the training.
A: The symposium is free to attend. Literacy Texas will cover the costs of your tuition, any meals and snacks offered, materials, and other resources.
Starting September 2024, we require a fully refundable deposit at some symposia to hold your registration space. If paying a deposit causes you any hardship, please get in touch: [email protected]
A: Unfortunately, we have significant numbers of people who register for our symposia and then don’t attend, without getting in touch to let us know. Every time that happens, it costs us money – we’ve paid the caterer for that person’s meals, done printing on their behalf, prepared a nametag, in some cases paid for parking, and often purchased other items.
Last year, an average of almost 25% of symposium registrants were no-shows – as high as 40% at some events. Unfortunately, we can’t afford that wasted money any longer – and it’s hard to justify to our grant funders, too. The deposit will cover our costs if someone doesn’t attend – and will be 100% refunded if someone does attend, or gets in touch to cancel within the advertised timeframe.
The Commons, UTA: Directions & Parking
We will be using a parking garage on the UTA campus. There is a fee for parking but Literacy Texas will cover these costs. You must register your car with UTA ahead of time to take advantage of this.
Click here for map, directions, and all parking information, including how to register your vehicle.
Downloads
Download a flyer to display at your location or send to others who may be interested in attending the symposium.
Download a printable copy of the symposium program. [link whole sentence to PDF]
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Checked/updated: 11/17/24
