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South Texas Literacy Symposium

Funded by the Professional Development Support for Nonprofit Adult Literacy Organizations grant from the Texas Workforce Commission, 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.

QUICK LINKS FOR THE SOUTH TEXAS SYMPOSIUM:

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BASIC INFORMATION

The 2025 South Texas Literacy Symposium is co-presented by the South Texas Literacy Coalition and Literacy Texas. 

The symposium has the theme “Life’s Tapestry: Art & Words” and will be held on:

Saturday, February 22, 2025, from 8:30 AM to 3:30 PM (CT).

Check-in for registered participants will open at 8:00 AM. 

This symposium is offered free of charge to Texas nonprofit professionals who work in the fields of adult and family literacy. See Symposium FAQs for more information.

The symposium provides up to 5 hours of professional development.

FREE ONLINE REGISTRATION

This session has reached capacity and is no longer accepting new registrations

Registration for this session has now closed

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!

PD CERTIFICATES

Someone who attends a session in every timeslot will receive 5 hours of PD credit.

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.

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. 

Please be aware that in recent years, between 25% and 40% of registrants are no-shows at our training events. Every one of these costs us money. If you’ve registered for a Literacy Texas event but then find you can no longer attend, PLEASE get in touch to cancel your registration.

PROGRAM, SESSIONS, & SPEAKERS

See the schedule outline below; detailed descriptions of the workshops will be linked here when confirmed.

Schedule: Saturday, February 22, 2025

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, BREAKFAST

8:30 AM – 8:45 AM: WELCOME, OPENING REMARKS

Dr. Ida Acuña-Garza, South Texas Literacy Coalition
Dr. Jenny McCormack Walker, Literacy Texas

9:00 AM – 10:15 AM

Session 1 (75 min)

Accountability – Telling Your Story
Sabrina Walker-Hernandez, Supporting World Hope, LLC (Nonprofit Management)

Enhancing ESL Instruction with AI: Practical Tools for Engaging Learning
Dr. Irene Ramos, TCALL

Understanding Literacy in a Wider Context
Dr. Ida Acuña-Garza, South Texas Literacy Coalition

10:30 AM – 11:45 AM

Session 2 (75 min)

ESL Alive, Awake, and Fun*
Karen Peiser, TCALL
*Repeated in session 3

English for Employability: Purposeful Planning for Adult Learners
Kenya Preuninger, Pearson Education

Effective PACT (Parent And Child Together) Time
Karla Rodriguez, Educator

12:00 PM – 12:45 PM: WORKING LUNCH + KEYNOTE

SPECIAL GUEST SPEAKER: Amanda Johnston, 2024 Texas Poet Laureate

“Examining Life Through Literacy”

+ Time to visit exhibitors and author tables

1:00 PM – 2:00 PM

Session 3 (60 min)

ESL Alive, Awake, and Fun*
Karen Peiser, TCALL
*Repeated from session 2

Financial Literacy & Budgeting
Dr. Irene Ramos, TCALL

2:15 PM – 3:15 PM

Session 4 (60 min)

Motivating Reluctant Readers
Dr. Arlene Longoria, BLOOM Project
Cassidy Martinez, BLOOM Project

Teaching Civics & Citizenship
Region One ESC – Adult Education

3:15 PM – 3:30 PM: FAREWELL & DOOR PRIZES

EXHIBITORS

Author – Roy Cervantes

Author – Elizabeth Huerta

Author – David Leija

Author – Faustino Lopez

Author – Rosa Esthela Mora

Author – David Norec

Author – Victor Vasquez

Essential Education

Just Right Reader

Literacy ConneXus

PaperPie Learning

Pearson Education

Region One ESC Adult Education

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]

Printable PDF copy of the symposium program is coming soon.

SPECIAL THANKS TO:

South Texas Literacy Coalition

UTRGV

The Texas Center for Advancement of Literacy & Learning (TCALL)

The Texas Workforce Commission

Checked/updated: 2/12/25

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