Rochester, N.Y., retiree revamps literacy training
for teachers

When Marianne Overcash retired from teaching French and Spanish in the Rochester, N.Y., school system in 2000, she signed on with the Literacy Volunteers of Rochester (LVR), an affiliate of ProLiteracy Worldwide. As a literacy tutor, she began looking for ways to get other active and retired teachers to volunteer.

This kind of tutoring offers the best of all possible worlds, says Overcash, who is a member of the Rochester Retired Teachers Association, an affiliate of the New York State United Teachers/AFT. “Teachers choose what they teach and how they teach it, and the students are just sitting there waiting to be taught. It’s perfect for people who have spent a lifetime teaching.”

And, she adds, “There is such a need for literacy volunteers.”

Overcash came up with an idea to expand the volunteer workforce—by recruiting other teachers. Changing the tutor-training workshops was an important first step. The former teacher realized that some parts of the training were unnecessary for certified teachers. So, she suggested redesigning the tutor training for teachers to focus less on teaching strategies (which were already familiar to teachers) and more on understanding the diverse cultures of the students.

At the LVR, tutors often are paired with adult students who come from other countries and have limited English skills or native-born students who need help with basic literacy. Overcash has worked with a student from Turkey since she began tutoring in 2000.

The retired teacher worked with the LVR to revise the curriculum and cut the tutor training for teachers from 21 hours to just 14 hours. In 2003, Overcash also was able to get the Rochester Teachers Association to pass a resolution that allows the union to reimburse literacy volunteers half of the $40 fee for the tutor training.

The reduced training will be an incentive for even more teachers to get involved, Overcash hopes. It seems to have worked so far: Last year, five of the 12 tutors who took part in the training were active or retired teachers.

For more information, visit www.proliteracy.org.

Florida retirees give thumbs-down to privatizing Social Security

Retirees in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., rallied in February to protest the effort to privatize Social Security. The demonstration was sponsored by the Florida Alliance for Retired Americans and the Florida AFL-CIO.

Retired members of the New York State United Teachers and the United Federation of Teachers (NYSUT's largest local) were among the protesters. Marna Davidson, the UFT's Florida member coordinator, spoke about the importance of Social Security for women.

"Women earn less, live longer and are the primary caregivers for their families, and we're on the road to dismantling their safety net," Davidson explains. "We must educate the public and let them know that Social Security may need adjustments, but it shouldn't be thrown out."

Bill Cea, retiree services consultant for NYSUT, agrees. He is deeply concerned about his fellow retirees and the potential loss of benefits if Social Security is changed to establish personal investment accounts as a substitute for future guaranteed benefits.

"Social Security is not broken, it just needs tweaking," says Cea. "We will block any attempt to privatize the program."