Reading a hymn. Filling out health history paperwork at the doctor. Applying for a job. Understanding a permission slip sent home from school with a child.

Most people can perform these actions without a second thought, but for an estimated one in five North Carolinians hampered by some level of illiteracy, doing so is the equivalent of navigating through a thick mountain fog. Yet after a certain age, not knowing how to read becomes an embarrassing stigma that prevents people from seeking help.

“Every aspect that an individual has to interact with in their life is impacted by an inability to read or to read well — it sort of curtails success in all areas,” says Jenny Gore, a board member of the North Carolina Literacy Association.

That’s where the Literacy Council of Haywood County comes in. For 25 years, the only organization of its type west of Asheville has provided one-on-one assistance to adults and children impaired by reading difficulties. It’s been a godsend to those uncomfortable with airing their struggles in a group environment.

But questions of accountability and the future direction of the organization have caused Haywood County to yank the Council’s funding in this year’s budget, it to close.

“We’re totally shocked,” says Literacy Council Director Charlotte Whalen. “We simply can’t continue without that.”

Whalen says the Literacy Council was aware the county was operating under a tight budget and therefore asked for $24,000 — less than half the amount it received last year and the bare minimum needed to operate the organization. The Council never expected the county to cut the funding completely.

County Manager David Cotton says he had no choice but to recommend to commissioners not to fund the Council because he couldn’t get a clear financial picture of the organization. The Council owes the county more than $13,700 in reimbursements for payroll costs the county covers up front. Additionally, the organization has failed to produce its 2006-2007 audit despite multiple requests by the county and the document is now a year late, according to Cotton.

“I am disinclined to recommend funding to any agency when I do not have a complete picture of the financial status coupled with a similar reimbursement pattern,” Cotton wrote in a letter to commissioners.

There are also questions as to why the Council hasn’t yet spent money from some of its major sources of revenue, which Cotton says “raises concerns relative to cash flow and budget projections.”

Whalen couldn’t explain the missing audit other than to say it’s in the process of completion. She would readily admit, though, that the Council is behind in its payments to the county.

“We owe them money right now. Financially, we’ve been limping along,” she said.

Whalen said the funding for the Council has been dwindling for some time now. United Way is another primary funding agency, and has reduced the dollars it provides the organization. In the wake of an economic downturn, United Way has cut funding from other non-profits too. The community college system is another big source of money for the Literacy Council, and its funding is contingent upon the number of people served and improvements.

That’s not always easy to track, Whalen says. Sometimes it’s tough to demonstrate substantial improvements on pre and post tests, or people move away after months of tutoring and never take the post test. As a result, the organization can’t tangibly demonstrate the difference it is making.

In Whalen’s eyes, though, it doesn’t make sense to kick an organization when it’s down.

“You’re collecting even less (funding), so we’ll give you even less,” Whalen says is the attitude of county commissioners.

Ironically, the rough economic times that have contributed to a downturn in funding for the Literacy Council are the precise reason its role is more crucial than ever, says Whalen. Without education, it’ll be harder for many to find a job that will allow them to survive in today’s economy.

“We think there’s as much need, if not even more, right now,” Whalen says.

Still a need?

In the past year, some community members and county officials have expressed concern that the Literacy Council may be unnecessarily duplicating services already provided through the community college and public school systems.

That’s not so, say literacy advocates. At Haywood Community College, Literacy Council volunteers are instrumental in tutoring students preparing to take their GED. Often, a GED program attracts those for whom a traditional classroom setting didn’t work — students who don’t learn well in a group environment.

“Many adults who try to enter back into a classroom setting, because they weren’t successful doing that in a school system, the idea of going back to that is pretty flawed,” Gore says.

As a result, the individualized attention provided through one-on-one tutoring is imperative.

“With 10 to 15 people in a classroom working on different things, a GED instructor does not have the time,” says Whalen.

Deborah Gaddy, director of adult education at HCC, says that without one-on-one instruction, many of her students wouldn’t have had a chance.

“There are a number of our students who would not have succeeded if they had not had that relationship with a volunteer who met with them on a regular basis,” she says.

“Just having someone that can sit beside them and guide them through some of the tough spots — that makes all the difference in the world.”

By working with a tutor, students are given a leg up and move on to seek higher education. Often, they’re the first in their families to finish high school, let alone receive a college degree.

“All these other opportunities open up that they would not have had,” says Gaddy.

And in turn, having an educated populace contributes to the economic viability of the area, Gaddy says.

“We’re talking workforce development here. Many continue in occupational training at (Haywood Community) college, and that ultimately contributes to the economy.”

Whalen says her organization has been bombarded with people seeking their GED’s so they can get a better job to survive in today’s economy. Others have worked somewhere for years and are now being told they must receive at least a GED to continue working for an employer.

“When you cut that off, you’re cutting off the last hope of a huge group of adults for being able to be successful in lots of avenues,” says Gore.

Whalen agrees, and wishes commissioners had given more thought to what they were taking away from the community.

“I think they’re being short-sighted,” she says. “Much of what we do is provide education for the chronically unemployed and underemployed, and help to keep families off the social service rolls. They just don’t see it that way.”

Financial troubles plagued council

It hasn’t been smooth sailing for the Literacy Council in recent years. The organization has struggled with low numbers and financial troubles.

The council has seemed unable to overcome its tendency to owe the county money. When Carla Woody took on the post as executive director in 2003, the council owed Haywood County $24,000 for salaries that had not been reimbursed, according to an article in The Mountaineer.

Commissioners forgave the organization’s debt in 2003 so the council could start with a clean slate. A year later, the council’s federal funding was cut due to a static number of students. In 2005, the council resolved to be serving 25 adults and 25 children by the year’s end. By the end of that year, they had a total of just 9 adults and 11 children.

Still, the organization managed to stay afloat. Yet this past December, rumors flew that the council would shut its doors following Woody’s retirement. The Literacy Council board vehemently denied the speculations, and instead held a series of meetings with the community about the future direction of the Council.

“We had a plan, a purpose and a mission, and we were ready to go,” says Gaddy.

At that time, questions also arose as to what role the council was really playing, and whether it duplicated services already offered by the community college and the public school system. Both Gaddy and Haywood County Schools Superintendent Anne Garrett wrote letters in support of the council’s unique services.

Things appeared to be looking up by March, when the council reported 32 adults and 26 children were using its services.

But at the same time, the organization seemed to be in disarray. Budget requests to the county were due on March 7, yet the council didn’t submit one to the county until May 21 despite repeated conversations with County Manager David Cotton. Then there was the missing audit, money owed to the county, and the question of why the council failed to collect money from its revenue sources.

After incidents such as the Council on Aging debacle where county funds were misspent, the county seems hesitant to dole out funds to an organization without knowing where the money is going.

What next?

As of now, the literacy council is busy packing its materials and going through the complicated process of closing down a non-profit 501(c)3 organization.

Whalen says some tutors continue to work with students, even in light of an uncertain future for the council.

“I’ve talked to a number of tutors. I saw one this morning that’s been working with this boy for three years, and said he’ll continue to tutor him as long as he needs me,” she says.

Repeated requests were made to Whalen for tutors and students to interview for this article, but she failed to provide any names.

Future dreams and plans for the council have been dashed. The organization was to have its own office space under the community college’s master plan. Gaddy says the school continues to look at housing for the organization and whether it can bring on some tutors as part-time staff.

“We were looking forward to starting all these new things,” says Whalen.

Among them were ideas of how to help out in Haywood County schools, including having a booth at open houses and becoming more involved at the year-round Meadowbrook Elementary.

Now, Whalen says she may try to broker a deal with churches to see if they want to take on the responsibility of tutoring services.

Not everyone recommends throwing in the towel just yet. Gore, who heads the literacy council in Guilford County, said her organization went through a similar rough period four years ago.

“We had to evaluate where we were and what we were doing because the agency could have gone either way,” she says.

The Guilford County literacy council took a good, hard look at its internal processes and essentially rebuilt from the ground up. It was essential, says Gore. “You have to start back at the beginning if people are losing faith.”

A major part of the council’s reorganization was rebuilding its relationship with the community. It made sure it had a supportive board and a good relationship with United Way, a big source of its funding.

“We spent the first year developing partnerships,” Gore says.

The council also strived to earn community trust through transparency. They adopted first-class accounting practices and now balance their budget to the penny each year.

The council additionally returned to the basic principles it was founded on.

“We went back to a baseline for what is best practice in adult literacy,” Gore says, “and made sure that was reflected in everything we were doing.”

Today, the Guilford council has grown its ranks from 180 to more than 600 students. By becoming stable and holding itself accountable, it also increased its budget by several hundred thousand dollars.

Former Haywood Literacy Council board member Margaret Osondu agrees that the survival of Haywood’s council could hinge on an approach like Gore’s. She wants to see an independent party conduct an assessment of the council’s internal workings. Then, the council should start from the ground up, she says.

“It’s about getting a whole fresh, new thing — with new blood, new people and fresh minds,” she says.