Our Lady of Mercy Community Outreach
Contact:
Susan Friedrich, Director of Adult Education
Susan Friedrich, Director of Adult Education
1684 Brownswood Road Johns Island, SC 29455
Serving: Charleston
Programs Offered
- Adult Basic Education
- Citizenship Preparation
- Civic Literacy
- College and Career Readiness
- Digital Literacy
- Employer-Endorsed Certificate or Credentialing Programs
- English Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL)
- Financial Literacy
- Foundational Reading and Writing
- High School Diploma
- High School Equivalency (GED) Exam Testing
- High School Equivalency (GED) Preparation
- Integrated Education and Training (IET)
- Workforce Development
Programs At Capacity
- Additional instructors/ programs services are added based on learner and program need
- None of our programs are at maximum capacity
Course Modalities
- Fully online
- Hybrid (virtual and in-person)
- In-person courses
Assessment Tools
- Best Literacy
- Best Plus
- State Assessment of Adult Literacy
- TABE
Learner Goals
- Citizenship preparation
- Digital Literacy or support with technology
- Employment goals
- Get a better job
- Help children with school
- Learn English
- Learn to Read
- Obtain high school diploma or high school equivalency (HSE)
- Work readiness
Wraparound Services
- Job or career counseling
- Resume writing
- Transportation or support with access to transportation
- WIOA and SC Works co-enrollment
Local Partners
- Berkeley County Adult Education
- Boeing
- Charleston Adult Education
- Charleston Chamber of Commerce
- Charleston Council of Governments
- Charleston County Adult Education
- Charleston County Public Library
- Charleston County School District
- Charleston Promise Neighborhood
- City of Charleston
- City of North Charleston
- Dorchester County Adult Education
- Office of Adult Education
- Our Lady of Mercy
- readySC
- SC Vocational Rehabilitation
- SC Works Trident Region
- Sheriff's Office of Charleston (Al Cannon Detention Center)
- Tri-County Cradle to Career Collaborative
- Trident Technical College
- Volvo
National Partners
- Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy
- Coalition of Adult Basic Education (COABE)
- Dollar General Literacy Foundation
- ProLiteracy
Beyond program offerings, we asked leaders to think more about their organizational strengths and challenges in the local literacy ecosystem. The purpose of this chart is to identify potential opportunities for partnership. For example, health literacy may be an area for expansion.
Strengths
Challenges
Essential Conditions
Strengths:
- Community Development
- Evidence-based practices
- including book access)
- Literacy Resources (access to, including book access)
- Safe Learning Spaces
- Skilled Educators/Teacher Training
Challenges:
- Holistic Early Childhood Development Experiences
Foundational Literacies Building
Strengths:
- Confidence, self-esteem, and love of learning
- Critical Thinking
- Foundational skills in reading and writing
- Numeracy
Challenges:
- Critical Thinking
Advanced Literacies
Strengths:
- Digital literacy
- Literacy integration
- Ownership of learning
- Self-expression
Challenges:
- Holistic Early Childhood Development Experiences
Civic Fluency
Strengths:
- Capacity to learn
- Civic Participation
- Workforce upskilling
Challenges:
- Health literacy
Additional Strengths
Charleston Adult Education has strong partnerships and collaborations with community agencies, business and industry, and workforce development.
Additional Needs
One need is: Additional funding to support students with their specific learning disabilities
Number of Learners Served
More than 500 annually
Learner Population
- Adults experiencing incarceration or re-entry
- Adults in need of foundational reading and writing (ABE)
- Adults seeking a high school diploma or equivalency
- Adults seeking industry-specific credentials or certifications
- Adults seeking workforce readiness or career skills
- Adults with disabilities
- English learners
- Housing insecure or unhoused
- Incumbent workers
- New immigrants
- Parents and Families
- Unemployed and/or underemployed
- Veterans
Enrollment System
Managed enrollment based on program location- registration is ongoing
Recruitment Types
- or other channels)
- Referrals
- Social Media (Instagram, TikTok, Twitter/X, Facebook, YouTube, or other channels)
- TikTok
- Twitter/X
- Website
- Word of Mouth
- YouTube
