Since 2022
Holistic Literacy for the whole family leading to a successful future for the next generation.
Our History
Uptown Literacy Lights started to meet the challenge of illiteracy in our community. Less than 40% of public-school students read at grade level. The desire to fight the public school to prison pipeline statistics (see statistics below) lead us to focus on the whole family and provide holistic literacy services that benefit the whole family. We believe that a holistic whole family approach will lead to a successful future for the next generation.
Families Served
individuals impacted
volunteers involved
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What Drives Us
Our Mission
Uptown Literacy Lights exists to offer holistic education, learning opportunities, and resources to underserved communities by providing training, programs, and basic education in reading, writing, financial, legal, emotional, physical, and nutritional literacy, as well as developing and building up local leaders who, in turn, lead efforts in their own community through training and education for the whole family that effectively help children excel in life.
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Why Literacy?
literacy statistics & public school to prison pipeline
Not being able to read in 3rd grade comes with immense challenges. A lack of Literacy skills keeps children from learning academically in school. The public school to prison pipeline is real and effects our community greatly. Boys that drop out of high school get incarcerated at a rate of 1 in 3. Finishing high school reduces the incarceration rate to 1 in 30, starting college reduces it even further to 1 in 100. The common denominator for incarcerated young men from underserved communities is illiteracy.
financial literacy
Low income communities often suffer from unfair and predatory financial practices. Providing financial literacy training, resources and coaching for families helps alleviate poverty and enables people to see money traps that are designed to take advantage of people in our community.
legal literacy
Underserved communities face many challenges, be it landlords, immigration, public housing, government assistance, etc. Legal literacy enables families facing difficult situations to receive legal advice without spending money they do not have.
physical literacy
Organized sports are often outside our community or unaffordable for families in our community. Physical literacy provides affordable and free opportunities for organized sports in our community.
Nutritional Literacy
Physical ailments run rampant in our community. Nutritional literacy provides resources and training for families in underserved communities to enable them to make healthy food choices, leading to better health for the whole family.
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The Team
jessica Caceus
Founder, Executive Director
robin carabin
Co Founder, Program Director
Catherine Castillon
Project Manager
The Board
Jane, Patricia, Jessica, Robin