A local literacy organization has received a financial boost to its operations budget, allowing for more growth and development.
“Recently, we applied for a grant from the Community Initiatives Program with Alberta Culture,” said Lana Bramley, executive director with Mountain View Communities Adult Learning Society (MVCALS), based in Didsbury. “In November, we were thrilled to discover that our grant application was successful, and we received $50,000 from Alberta Culture in funding.”
The Community Initiatives Program (CIP) provides funds to enhance and enrich community initiatives throughout Alberta. The program is intended to reinvest revenues generated from provincial lotteries in communities, which helps to empower local citizens and organizations.
“The Mountain View Communities Adult Learning Society shares and embodies the government of Alberta's goal of building healthy, strong and vibrant communities,” said Heather Klimchuk, minister of culture. “Through the Community Initiatives Program, we are proud to support this organization in enhancing the quality of life in Mountain View County through vital literacy programming.”
Community members throughout Mountain View County will be provided with opportunities to improve their knowledge, employability and essential literacy skills through lifelong learning.
“The CIP offers organizations like MVCALS the opportunity to have a far-reaching impact not otherwise available with our non-profit budgets,” said Bramley. “And since we have just opened the doors to our new learning resource centre in Didsbury, with CIP funds, we are now better able to reach all five communities in Mountain View County. With an increased travel, resource and staffing budget, we'll be able to further embed literacy programs in each community.”
With several programs running in a broad region, there are “always challenges in finding the funds necessary to support them,” she said.
“Literacy programs are essential in raising the quality of life for our community residents, and we now have greater ability to further reach those who need support in learning essential literacy skills,” she said.
The volunteer tutor program will also gain momentum, with MVCALS's increased ability to reach and support local volunteer tutors.
“Funds will also be used to purchase books and other learning resources for the various programs we run,” she said.
For more information on programs and courses, please check www.mvcals.org or call 403-518-7020.
