Literacy Activities Handbook - Saskatchewan Association of Rehabilitation Centres

1.2 SARC and Literacy

In early 1998, SARC developed a three-phase strategy to attempt to address the literacy needs of people with intellectual / developmental disabilities in Saskatchewan. Three projects have been developed as part of the strategy: the SARC Literacy Needs Project, the SARC Support Inclusion! Literacy Project, and the SARC Literacy Training & Support Project.

Primary funding for these projects came from the National Literacy Secretariat (NLS), demonstrating its commitment to assist community organizations whose programs serve people having lower literacy skills. Supplementary funding was received from the Saskatchewan Literacy Foundation (SLF), the primary literacy fundraiser in this province.

The SARC Literacy Needs Project

This project ran from October 1998 to July 1999. SARC initiated the project to assess and begin to address literacy needs of people with intellectual / developmental (and other) disabilities, the population primarily served by its Member and Associate Member agencies.

The main project objectives were to:

Assess literacy needs;
Identify existing barriers to literacy;
Research and catalogue appropriate literacy materials and resources;
Purchase appropriate literacy materials and resources for a modest SARC / SARCAN Literacy Resource Centre collection;
Promote literacy opportunities for people with disabilities in Saskatchewan; and
Hold literacy presentations to raise awareness and to exchange information (November 1998 and June 1999).