Special Initiatives

California libraries work together on activities that promote engagement and literacy, from learner leadership institutes to voter information projects.

ALLI and Adult Learner Leadership

California Library Literacy Services programs provide formal and informal opportunities for adult learners to connect with each other, serve as peer mentors and develop leadership skills. These efforts build learners’ self-esteem and confidence, support relationship building, and help learners be more successful in achieving their goals.

Learner Leadership opportunities include:

  • Learner Leadership discussion groups and workshops within libraries and across the state
  • The Adult Learner Leadership Institute (ALLI), which is currently being offered online, and is designed to:
  • Develop learners’ public speaking, communication, goal-setting, and other leadership skills
  • Support learners in advocating for themselves and their families
  • Support networking and relationship-building
  • Provide facilitation experience for ALLI graduates

View testimonials about learner leadership. 

For more information about learner leadership opportunities, contact clls@library.ca.gov.

Voter Engagement

Learning about the voting process is an important goal for many adult learners. One tool is the statewide Easy Voter Guide described below. California Library Literacy learners have also been involved in the Key to Community voting project for more than 20 years. Official voter information guides are produced by the California Secretary of State. Find more about how to vote from your address with the Voters Edge project. Election guides can also be found at the news site CalMatters. 

Easy Voter Guide

The Easy Voter Guide makes non-partisan information about why to vote, how to vote, and what’s on the ballot available and accessible to Californians.

The Easy Voter Guide was originally developed through the inspiration of adult learner leaders in California Library Literacy Services. They wanted to provide new voters with accurate and accessible nonpartisan information. The Easy Voter Guide has been produced for every statewide election in California since 1994.

The Easy Voter Guide project is a collaboration between the League of Women Voters of California. the California State Library, and other partners. Adult learners continue to play a central role in making sure the content is as accessible as possible.

To access the guide in multiple languages and see other resources, visit the Easy Voter Guide website. 

The Easy Voter Guide Project is part of the Literacy Initiatives program, which is supported, in whole or in part, by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian.

Writer to Writer

Writer to Writer is an annual writing contest for adult learners enrolled in California Library Literacy Services.

Participating learners read a book of their choice and write a personal letter to the author about how the book has affected them. Learners may listen to a book and dictate a letter to their tutor for submission. No book is too easy to be the subject of a letter.

Writer to Writer gives adult learners the opportunity to write, to express their voice in a safe and trusted environment, and to achieve many of the goals in the Roles and Goals framework.

How to Participate

Writer to Writer is coordinated by the Literacy Initiatives project in 2024-2025 and runs from October 2024 to February 2025. Entries are due by February 28, 2025, and must be submitted through a library literacy program.

Learners can enter Writer to Writer in one of four categories: Emerging, Beginning, Intermediate, and Advanced Writer. A panel of library literacy coordinators and adult learners judges the entries and selects one winner and two runners-up in each category. Every entrant receives a certificate of participation. The winning and runner-up letters are compiled into a publication.

We encourage all library literacy networks to support Writer to Writer for learners in their member libraries. If you have any questions, please reach out to the project coordinator. 

Writer to Writer 2024-2025 Resources

Adult New Reader Project

The Adult New Reader Project is a statewide collection of fiction and nonfiction books created in 2022 by Sacramento Public Library with LSTA funding. The Adult New Reader Project collection of 108 high interest, low-level books were written by 75 literacy tutors, staff and learners from 42 California Library Literacy Services programs. The books are accessible to adult learners reading at levels 1 and 2 on the Fry Index. Each book has helpful “Tutor Tips” that provide relevant pre- and post-reading and writing activities for tutors and learners to explore together.

The LSTA-funded Adult New Reader Project was inspired by Read Santa Clara‘s project in 2020 during which they produced 21 Adult New Reader books. While the LSTA collection includes “Tutor Tips” in all books and text that is accessible to adult reading at levels 1 and 2 on the Fry Index, the Read Santa Clara collection also includes books written at a slightly higher level and a few offer “Tutor Tips.”

This project was supported in part by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian. 

Adult New Reader Resources