Our Approach
At Washtenaw Literacy, we believe that literacy is freedom—and the foundation for our personal and collective success.
We each have the right to give and receive the information we need to create the best future for ourselves and our families. Likewise, we all have the responsibility to extend what we’ve learned to others, for everyone’s benefit.
Skills and Solutions for Everyday Life
Washtenaw Literacy’s approach to adult learning is relationship-based and rooted in the teachings of Brazilian philosopher Paulo Freire, who saw education as the key to collective liberation.
Each learner in our program sets their own goals, based on their own strengths and needs. Through relationships with volunteer tutors and other fellow learners, they identify the most actionable, practical, and sustainable steps to achieving those goals.
Then the learner and volunteer tutor set off on the path to learning, together.
Whoever teaches learns in the act of teaching, and whoever learns teaches in the act of learning.
– Paulo Freire
Meeting Learners Where They Are
Washtenaw Literacy offers a range of times and ways to learn. We do so by offering online and in person options in convenient locations throughout Washtenaw County, in Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor, and beyond.
Explore learning with us! We offer tutoring in reading, writing and math; ESL (English as a Second Language; digital skills; and programs for returning citizens.
What Do Learners Say?
“I can’t find the words to express my gratitude to Washtenaw Literacy for what they have provided for me. I am proud to say I am now taking two classes at Washtenaw Community College. My advice is to have the courage to take that step to Washtenaw Literacy, and your “world” will become brighter, as mine has.”
“No one has ever spent time with me explaining things I want to learn about. You are changing my life.”
“I love my tutor. She makes me think I can learn anything.”