Volunteer Tutors

Join our Volunteer Tutor Team at Literacy Volunteers!

As a volunteer tutor with Literacy Volunteers of Greater Worcester, you have the opportunity to directly change the life of your student.

Our students are primarily adult immigrants and refugees who wish to improve their English so that they can gain better employment, further their education, become US citizens, and strive for financial stability. We also serve English-speaking adults seeking to improve their literacy skills. 

Qualifications to Become a Tutor:

• Eighteen years or older and have a high school diploma or higher
• A desire to help adult learners with communicative English language education
• Complete our initial information session and then 18-hour tutor training 
• Work with a student weekly for 2 hours for a minimum of 9 months

Training Requirements

All potential volunteer tutors will attend two training programs

1. 1-hour Orientation: Sign up for Next Tutor Orientation
   
2. 18-hour tutor training program provided by trained Literacy Volunteer of Massachusetts trainers:
   Two different focuses of training are offered:
   • English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) – help someone who speaks another language
   • Basic literacy/adult basic education (ABE) – help someone who already speaks English and wants to improve their reading ability      
     (Please fill out this Tutor Application prior 18-hour training. After you fill it out, save it on your computer, and then email it to info@lvgw.org.) 
3. Toward the end of the training, we begin matching each tutor with a waiting student. Careful thought and consideration goes into every match and our staff continues to guide tutors throughout the tutoring process – providing encouragement, assistance with lesson plans, teaching materials, workshops, and free access to professional development with SABES and ProLiteracy. 

Make a difference in someone’s life with the gift of English language skills through conversation, communication, and individual instruction!

Useful Resources:

• Barbara Bush Family Literacy: Annual Report 2023
• Celebrating 20 Years of ProLiteracy
• Key findings about U.S. immigrants by Pew Research Center
• Remembering the life of Ruth J. Colvin, 1916–2024
• U.S. Adult Literacy Facts

Email Amanda Andrews, Program Manager at aandrews@lvgw.org with any questions. | Sign up for LVGW Newsletter