2006 Governor's Award, Community Capacity Builder – Private Sector/Business: Texas HOPE Literacy

In 1997, after discovering the rate of illiteracy in the Texas correctional facility system, Lucy Smith created the Texas HOPE Literacy project.  Soon after Lucy found that a great number of inmates also suffered from undiagnosed learning disabilities and most were leaving the prison still unable to read and perform as contributing members of society.  Through the HOPE Literacy project Lucy recruited volunteer tutors who are trained to use multisensory systematic structured intensive phonics.  The HOPE Literacy project has proven to be so successful that it is now implemented in seven different correctional facilities in Texas.  A new approach has also been implemented and the concept uses city government as examples during the regular curriculum and has proved to result in greater show of responsibility and accountability while inmates learn how to live in a community with different cultures, belief systems, values and morals. This approach has also promoted peer mentoring within the system as offenders are learning to think, practice and model appropriate behaviors.  This ultimate goal of the Texas HOPE Literacy project is for inmates who are released from prison to have improved their reading skills, increased self esteem, and be better prepared to be active members of society and therefore reduce recidivism.  Lucy Smith’s vision and forethought has now reached countless individuals and the organization has left a lasting effect on each of them.  For more information about the Governor's Volunteer Programs see

 www.onestarfoundation.com

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