The Centre for Literacy

News from The Centre
SUMMER 2000

The Centre has been honoured with the Weiler Award, awarded annually by The Weiler Award Trust Fund, to acknowledge contributions to community and social development in Canada. The Trust gave two awards, an Organization Award and an Individual Award. The theme for 2000 was literacy and health, in particular, furthering the use of plain language and clear verbal communication in Canadian health practice.

The Organization Award was presented to Dr. Linda Shohet, founder and Director of The Centre for Literacy on May 29, 2000, in Ottawa at the First International Conference on Literacy and Health sponsored by the Canadian Public Health Association. Along with a plaque and a cheque for $1000.00, we received a striking print of an original painting commissioned by the Trust.

The Weiler Award was established in the late 1990's in memory of Dick Weiler, a humanitarian and social advocate, who helped lay the groundwork for many Canadian social policies that we take for granted today. He devoted his life to work with disadvantaged groups, among them street youth and Aboriginal communities. He worked in policy and program with numerous organizations, such as the Canadian Council for Social Development, and played an important role in crime prevention, and research on law and the family.

The Centre is honoured to be one of the two winners. Today, the emphasis on functionality and accountability can easily overshadow the commitment to social justice. The Weiler Award is a reminder of why we and many others are active in the field of health and literacy.

The Individual Award was given to Dr. William Hettenhausen, a Thunder Bay dentist, who has devoted his career to promoting dental care among the most disadvantaged populations in the North. He has inspired local aboriginal communities to create written and video resources that excite children about caring for their teeth. His work can be seen at www.ytfl.ca.

The Summer Institute on Adult Literacy and Television was an exciting three-day event in May whose high point was the televised colloquium hosted by Daniel Richler. Tapes of the exchange will be edited over the summer and made available by late August. They should make excellent discussion starters for aspects of teacher/tutor training, as well as for policy conversations or public debates on literacy and television. Check our web site for updates.