Erie Neighborhood House Receives $10,000 Grant from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation

Grant to support Erie House’s adult literacy programs

Chicago, Illinois –June 21, 2013— Erie Neighborhood House recently received a $10,000 grant from the Dollar General Literacy Organization to support its literacy programs. Specifically, the grant will increase access to serve more students, improve organizational efficiencies, but most importantly it will help individuals build a strong literacy and basic education foundation.

“Countless individuals have been impacted by an innovative English As A Second Language (ESL) at Erie House allowing them to reach their maximum potential as now highly employable and contributing citizens of society via the enhancement of English language skills,” said Sandy De Leon, Assistant Director of Adult Education and Workforce Development.

Within Erie’s Adult Literacy program, students have access to both structured instruction with ESL classes (levels 2, 3, and 4) and informal instruction with Community Literacy tutoring. Erie will serve 180 students with ESL classes and tutoring at our site in Little Village and 200 adult learners will participate in Community Literacy tutoring at our site in West Town and partner sites in West Town, Humboldt Park, Logan Square, and Belmont-Cragin.

The purpose of Erie’s Adult Literacy program is to increase adult English literacy skills and enable participants to become more effective members of the community and economy.

“At Dollar General, we are passionate about our mission of Serving Others throughout the communities we serve,” said Rick Dreiling, Dollar General’s chairman and CEO. “It’s exciting to see the Dollar General Literacy Foundation’s outreach in action as we partner with organizations to further education and literacy and make a real difference in people’s lives.”

Celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2013, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation is proud to support initiatives that help others improve their lives through literacy and education. Since its inception in 1993, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation has awarded more than $81 million in grants to nonprofit organizations, helping more than 4.7 million individuals take their first steps toward literacy or continued education.

For more information on the Dollar General Literacy Foundation, a complete list of grant recipients or grant application deadline information, please visit www.dgliteracy.org.