Partnerships and Collaboration:
A Must for Family Literacy
Why Collaborate?
Networks and collaborations are beneficial because they:
- Stretch limited resources
- Help link families to community resources
- Facilitate integration of the four family literacy components
Family Literacy requires an extensive level of networking and collaboration to be effective.
Because of its complexity, it is rare for one organization to possess all the resources such as staff,
book collections, facilities, computers, support services, funds etc. to have a fully functioning program.
Programs, established in isolation, lack the "connections" to effectively recruit and support
families. Most programs are also not funded adequately to provide all four family literacy components.
The premise of "You can't do it alone!" is an accurate statement
for family literacy.
Literacy programs centered on the parent and or caregivers and their children require a team effort
between and among the library staff, the family literacy staff and staff from outside organizations.
When these staff and volunteers work together the outcomes achieved by the families are much greater.
Thus most programs can not function without extensive partnerships and collaborative efforts.
How To Get Started
It is easier to understand the value of collaboration than to do it.
It was recently stated in the Florida Literacy Coalition's
collaboration workshop that a typical collaboration will take two to three years to build. It takes time to
build the people relationships that make things happen. It takes time to put procedures for working
together in place, and it takes considerable effort to arrive at consensus on goals and action plans for
any kind of collaboration. Most partnerships start slowly. Any group of literacy providers and
their partners that are newly working together must first:
- Agree on a common mission. Often family literacy brings groups together.
- Clarify realistic expectations for every partner involved. Partners must give and get something
out of any networking activity.
- Select and be successful at simple, doable projects. A group can start with one pamphlet about the services of
all literacy providers or they can work together on one Family Night or special event.
Taking the time to do this helps to build professional
trust and raise the skill level of all involved. Once a group has a small success they can move on to bigger
challenges.
There are many books, articles, web pages and training
opportunities available on how to build coalitions and collaborations. The Florida Literacy Coaltion has
a training workshop available on demand.
Here are some other resources for collaboraton and partnerhsip.
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