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Established in 1975 as a nonprofit organization to promote the mutual interests of free-lance writers and to provide members a variety of services for mutual interests, Washington Independent Writers (WIW) has grown rapidly in scope and stature. In addition to offering such resources as a newsletter, job bank, grievance committee, and health insurance, it conducts professional and social forums for the exchange of information and ideas, plays an active role in issues that affect the independent writing profession, and strives to correct unfair practices in the field. Its membership ranges from full-time authors of best sellers, magazine articles, newspaper features, short stories, poetry or film scripts, to writers on assignment for government agencies, trade associations, public interest groups and private business, and to those just beginning their free-lance careers. WIW promotes literacy and reading both as a measure of enlightened self-interest and as a public outreach service to the community.
The Washington Post offers "Inside The Washington Post" -- an integrated curriculum resource program for the classroom, designed to reinforce fundamental skills of newspaper reading and reading in general. Teachers using The Post's program are trained in a one-on-one workshop and receive a teacher's manual with more than 150 exercises at three skill levels and various classroom resources.
"Learning Partners" is a free at-home program using the newspaper with school-age children. Learning Partners" complements "Inside The Washington Post," using and reinforcing the same fundamental skills being taught in the classroom. "Learning Partners" activities include puzzles and games for students from preschool through grade 12. Free workshops are offered to parent groups such as PTAs, as well as to any community groups such as library associations and community centers.
For nearly 70 years, Weekly Reader has been providing significant, relevant, up-to-date news and information to students. Ranging from preschool through grade 12, Weekly Reader's 18 periodicals are read by some 8 million children and young adults each week. Grade-appropriate content stimulates interest, provokes critical thinking and discussion, and instills a sense of civic responsibility. As one of the largest education publishers in the country, Weekly Reader promotes literacy and reading among children and sponsors a number of reading and writing contests each year, including the About Literature Essay Contest, sponsored by Read, the corporation's language arts magazine for middle-school and high school students.
Wider Opportunities for Women (WOW), founded in 1964, works nationally and in its home community of Washington, D.C., to foster economic independence and equality of opportunity for women and girls. For nearly 30 years WOW has provided programs emphasizing literacy, technical and nontraditional skills, and career development to help women learn to earn. WOW believes that literacy is one of the key paths to women's economic self-sufficiency and breadth of life choices. WOW coordinates a network of education and training centers in 50 states, serving 300,000 women each year.
The Women's National Book Association (WNBA), with chapters in 10 cities across the country, binds together publishers, librarians, and booksellers; writers, editors, and agents; designers, illustrators, and book producers. WNBA, working to help people feel at home in the world of books, believes that reading is the key to lifelong learning for individuals and wholeness for society.
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