Provincial Literacy Groups
In order to respond to distinct learner needs, LBS funding distinguishes among four cultural streams: Anglophone, Francophone, Native, and Deaf and Blind learners. Links to the websites of our literacy partners can also be found on our website.

Ontario Literacy Coalition (OLC) is a charitable organization promoting adult literacy in Ontario through research, program and policy support, public awareness campaigns and partnership development.

The OLC has links to the national level through the Movement for Canadian Literacy to 12 other provincial and territorial literacy coalitions across Canada. The OLC maintains strong partnerships with the 16 Ontario regional networks and the sectoral networks, and works closely with the provincial organizations that support Francophone, Aboriginal, and Deaf and Deaf blind programs. The OLC acts to illuminate relevant literacy matters, advise on policy, foster professional capacity, and build alliances and partnerships that expand literacy’s sphere of influence across a range of social and economic arenas towards a more fully literate province.

For more information, see www.on.literacy.ca.

La Coalition ontarienne de formation des adultes (La Coalition) offers support services to providers of French language Literacy and Basic Skills programs working in the community, school board, and college sectors. It provides information, support, and training to its members. La Coalition also heightens public awareness with promotional campaigns aimed at Francophones in Ontario. For more information, see www.coalition.on.ca.

Ontario Native Literacy Coalition (ONLC) is a provincial networking and field development organization supporting and serving Native literacy practitioners and learners in Ontario. The ONLC provides information, support, and training to Native literacy practitioners to enhance ability and awareness of literacy issues.
For more information, see www.onlc.ca.

Deaf Literacy Initiative (DLI) is a provincial umbrella organization that provides accessible and culturally relevant training, research, networking, and resources to the Deaf and Deaf blind literacy community in Ontario.
For more information, see www.deafliteracy.ca.

Regional Literacy Networks
The 16 regional networks are the doorway to literacy services, advice, and information. A key role of the networks is documenting and guiding the development of literacy services within their regions. Each year, networks bring together literacy programs, literacy stakeholders, and other community resources to talk about literacy issues and to create literacy pathways. These pathways help people who have completed LBS training take the next step to work, to further education and training, or to personal independence.

The Literacy Service Planning (LSP) is an annual process, funded by the Ontario government, and coordinated by the regional literacy networks. The LSP process includes participation and input from all LBS agencies (Anglophone, Francophone, Native, and Deaf and Deaf blind agencies) and a wide range of key community stakeholders. Literacy Service Planning analyzes the local demographics and then examines local literacy programs within each community to see if there are gaps or duplication in services. The outcome of the process is a regional detailed Literacy Services Plan that includes an environmental scan, an outline of the services offered by each agency, and an assessment of gaps.

Regional literacy networks help literacy agencies determine what services should be offered and help them determine the effectiveness of their programming. The LSP process allows the community to set targets and then monitor results. The LSP process also outlines the annual plan for meetings, professional development, literacy promotion activities, information sharing and project activities.

Throughout the year, the regional networks support their member agencies, represent literacy issues and concerns on a regional level, and act as liaison with provincial level organizations.

Sector Literacy Networks
These four sectoral networks represent the methodologies of each of the four delivery sectors: colleges, school boards, community agencies, and the Laubach system.

Provincial sectoral networks enable programs in each of these sectors to discuss issues specific to their delivery systems. Sectoral networks deliver practitioner training that meets the specific needs of a sector. They conduct sector-specific research, develop and deliver staff training, develop materials, and develop innovative delivery approaches. They facilitate communication between programs and government, link literacy programming with the broader educational delivery system and represent the needs and concerns of their streams and sectors. They also raise public awareness of literacy issues and the need for literacy services.

The College Sector Committee for Adult Upgrading (CSC) is guided by a provincial working group with representatives of the 22 Anglophone and two Francophone colleges. It links to the broader delivery of college programming through the college consortium Colleges Ontario. The College Sector Committee for Adult Upgrading assists MTCU and leads the Ontario College System in the creation of provincial resources, procedures and standards related to the development and delivery of relevant programs and/or services. The CSC is committed to providing leadership in promoting the continuous improvement of the delivery of upgrading programs to meet the needs of adult learners.
For more information, see www.collegeupgradingon.ca.

Ontario Association of Adult and Continuing Education School Board Administrators (CESBA) represents the broad spectrum of programs offered in Ontario schools to promote and advance adult and continuing education. CESBA’s object is to promote and advance the cause of adult and continuing education. The CESBA LBS Committee represents the work of the School Board LBS Sector (public and Catholic boards in Ontario funded to deliver LBS in their communities). This broadly representative committee is elected at the annual meeting of School Board LBS Managers and reports to the CESBA Board of Directors.
For more information, see www.cesba.com.

The community-based organizations are under the Community Literacy of Ontario (CLO) network. CLO is a provincial literacy network of 100 community literacy agencies across Ontario. CLO provides many services to Ontario’s community literacy agencies such as sharing information, producing exemplary resources and tools to support literacy agencies, hosting two websites, providing online training and holding an annual training event, and researching the needs and priorities of its members.
For more information, see www.nald.ca/clo.

Laubach Literacy Ontario is a provincial network of 50 community-based literacy programs that use the services of volunteer tutors and trainers. Member agencies include community-based programs, some school board programs, and a prison program. Trained volunteers work both one-to-one and in small groups with learners. They have a nationally recognized tutor training and accreditation system.
For more information, see www.laubach-on.ca.

Literacy Service Agencies
AlphaPlus Centre actively supports research and promotes best practices in adult basic education for practitioners and programs that work with adult learners in the Deaf and Deaf blind, Aboriginal, Francophone, and Anglophone communities through innovative use of technology, research, and the design, development and dissemination of information and resources. Ningwakwe Press and Centre FORA provide support for the Native and Francophone sectors.