Firefighters trying to educate citizens with sub-par reading skills

This program helps native English speakers with limited reading ability and also students with limited English reading ability. It is set up for different levels of ability and will help everyone be safer. DP

BY KATE WARD, Northwest Arkansas Times

nwanews.com: Fayetteville firefighters are teaming up with the Arkansas Literacy Council to provide fire safety training for area residents with limited literacy skills. The program aims at reducing the number of fire-related deaths.

"I wish we had started this years ago," said Assistant Fayetteville Fire Chief Chris Lynch. "Our No. 1 goal is to eliminate fire deaths and unfortunately, Arkansas ranks high compared to national standards."

Six Arkansas counties will participate in this year's home safety literacy program.

"It all started with the Home Safety Council in Washington wanting to make safety information more accessible to people with lower literacy proficiencies," said Jim Allen, executive director for the Ozark Literacy Council. "They went to ProLiteracy Worldwide, which is our umbrella organization, and looked for materials they had produced and discovered."
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