IMPACT
Adult Literacy Empowers
Literacy likely affects every part of your life, though you may not notice. For the 48 million adults in the U.S. with low literacy skills, it’s impossible to ignore.
Adults with less than a high school diploma earn three times less than those with higher education. Adult literacy yields better economic outcomes and can improve job opportunities, family relationships, children’s education, health issues, and general quality of life.
At First Literacy, we are committed to helping adults in Massachusetts improve their literacy skills so they can succeed in every aspect of their lives. That means helping adult learners continue their education and championing the incredible teachers who are on the front lines of the fight for adult literacy. With help from you and many others, our impact is significant and life changing.
Our Impact 2024-2025
7,697
ADULT LEARNERS
benefited from First Literacy Professional Development Workshops
714
ADULT LEARNERS
benefited from First Literacy Grant projects
49
CITIES
Cities and towns reached in Massachusetts
207
EDUCATORS
attended First Literacy workshops
879.5
HOURS
of free training helped adult educators in their classrooms
26
ADULT LEARNERS
received First Literacy scholarships to start or continue college
YOUR SUPPORT MAKES A DIFFERENCE
When you support First Literacy, you don’t just support the incredible students and teachers that are impacted by our work. It is estimated that bringing all adults to a sixth grade reading level would generate $2.2 trillion for the U.S. economy.
Adults with low literacy want to better their lives and contribute to the economy. Your donation can help make that possible.
FIRST LITERACY GRANTS
Since the introduction of the First Literacy Grants initiative in 2014, we have supported the development of innovative literacy programs across Massachusetts with unique hands-on technical support and field-wide sharing of project results.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
FIRST LITERACY SCHOLARSHIPS
Since 1990, we have awarded over 600 scholarships to recent graduates of Massachusetts Adult Basic Education (ABE) or English (ESOL) language programs who are continuing to vocational training (including certificate programs) or higher education.
SCHOLAR STORIES
Monique
Monique was born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts, and has always been driven by a deep curiosity about science, technology, and how...
Mamadou
Mamadou was born in a small town in central Guinea called Gongore. It was difficult for his father to financially support his family, so...
Kettie
A proud member of the Haitian community, Kettie graduated from Boston Public Schools Department of Adult Education with dreams of being...
Geremias
When Geremias arrived in the United States from Guatemala in March 2022, he carried little more than a suitcase, a dream, and the...