County Literacy Program Presents Award to Tulare HHSA Counselor

HHSA administrators and members of Tulare District Office WTG T26 Unit

(From left to right) Jorge Vidrio, Lynn Henry, Maria Luviano, Lydia Fernandez, Mindy Balaam, Idalia Gonzalez (T26 Unit Supervisor), Candeda Vipham, Karen Hansen, Katherine Cristovao (with certificate), Sue Gillison, Donna Ortiz and Lanny Lewis.  Not pictured are unit members Monica Popoola, Martha Barba, Bonnie Gonzalez and Erica Paine.

Katherine Cristovao was honored today with the Literacy Advocate Award for her contributions to the joint Health and Human Services/Literacy program.  This is the second time Ms.Cristovao, a Self Sufficiency Counselor III for the HHSA Tulare District Office, has been chosen to receive the County Library Literacy Center’s award.

In making the presentation, Literacy Center Director Sue Gillison said, “We are grateful for your commitment to your clients, your dedication to their welfare and your support of our joint literacy efforts.  You are a shining example to your co-workers, the HHS Agency, the Literacy Center and your community.”

Donna Ortiz, TulareWORKS Division Manager, congratulated Ms. Cristovao, saying, “The Health and Human Services administration knows the importance of what you do, and we thank you for all your work with our clients.”

The HHSA/Literacy program was conceived of as a way of directly connecting HHSA clients with the services provided by the Literacy Center.  Many HHSA customers lack the functional literacy skills needed to enter and succeed in the work force.  By participating in the Literacy referral program, these clients can improve their functional literacy while they are also pursuing employment training and opportunities. 

The umbrella of functional literacy covers not just reading and writing skills, but the range of activities necessary to ‘function’ in a work setting.   These activities include the traditional academic subjects necessary for obtaining a GED, as well as resume preparation, job search options, computer training, health knowledge and budgeting skills.  More than 260 referrals have been made to the combined HHSA/Literacy program since its inception in 2007.  The Literacy award is presented quarterly to the HHSA counselor who has made the most viable referrals to the Center in the preceding three months. 

Also attending the award presentation were Karen Hansen, TulareWORKS Unit Manager, Mindy Balaam, Tulare District Office Manager, Jorge Vidrio, Program Specialist, and  Ms Cristovao’s office unit members (see picture caption below).