Kay Runner remembers sitting in her car outside the building, a small office in a commercial strip mall in the Drake neighborhood of downtown Des Moines 鈥� a place she'd heard about from her niece, who suggested Kay check it out.
It was the late 80s or early 90s (Kay can't recall precisely) but she does remember parking outside on two more occasions before she "finally got up enough nerve to go in."
"And I鈥檓 glad that I did," Kay said decades later. "It took me three tries, because I was afraid.鈥�
Afraid of walking through the door.
Afraid of saying the words out loud.
Afraid of admitting what she had spent her life hiding.
鈥淭hat I couldn鈥檛 read.鈥�
When Kay finally stepped inside what would later become the Adult Literacy Center (ALC). At that point, she was already living a full, complicated adult life 鈥� working, managing responsibilities, navigating the world through a web of workarounds few people could see.
A Hidden Disability
Low literacy is often called a hidden disability because, unlike a wheelchair or a cane, it doesn鈥檛 announce itself. There is no outward signal that someone is struggling. Instead, people develop strategies: memorizing routes so they don鈥檛 have to read street signs, relying on others to fill out forms, avoiding situations where reading or spelling might expose them.
Kay (pictured above, right) is dyslexic 鈥� a condition that runs in her family 鈥� and spent much of her school years masking her struggle.
鈥淚 was the class clown,鈥� she said. 鈥淚f I didn鈥檛 understand something, I鈥檇 make everybody laugh. Even the teacher.鈥�
But as she became an adult, and a hardworking working produce manager at the since-closed downtown Des Moines Safeway. In that role, Kay would often call her mother, who was "an excellent reader and speller," to help her read documents.
As the years pass, that childhood confusion often calcifies into shame.
鈥淵ou internalize it,鈥� said Anne Murr, longtime coordinator and co鈥憀eader of the Adult Literacy Center, which has been located at 鉴黄师app Urban Campus since 2018. 鈥淧eople begin to believe, 鈥業鈥檓 stupid. And I鈥檓 going to keep it to myself.鈥欌��
That hidden shame is exactly what the Adult Literacy Center exists to dismantle.
From the beginning, the ALC has been built around one central idea: individual attention in a safe, nonjudgmental space.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 really the basis of the Adult Literacy Center,鈥� said Anne, who is pictured in the photo to the right in her Urban Campus office. 鈥淲e try to help our students find the right tutor 鈥� the right match 鈥� someone who will work with them.鈥�
Students aren鈥檛 handed a one鈥憇ize鈥慺its鈥慳ll solution. Tutors are paired thoughtfully, often with specific learning needs in mind, including dyslexia or English language learning. Instruction combines structured skill鈥慴uilding with human connection.
For Kay, that environment changed everything.
鈥淵ou feel safe,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou can talk about whatever. You鈥檙e recognized. And therefore you don鈥檛 hold back. You open up and try to learn more.鈥�
Kay earned her GED with help from the ALC 鈥� fulfilling a promise she had made to her parents. And long after she reached that goal, she kept coming back.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to stop coming,鈥� she said. 鈥淚f you stop practicing, you lose it. It鈥檚 the community."
"These ladies are very important to me," she added, pointing to Anne and Vicki Merrifield, who shares responsibilities at the ALC and works directly with students and volunteers.
Today, Kay describes herself as a 鈥渇erocious reader.鈥� She even became confident enough to tutor others 鈥� something she once could not imagine.
Fifty Years of Quiet Persistence
As the Adult Literacy Center celebrates its 50th anniversary, its survival story mirrors the perseverance of the adults it serves.
The program began in 1976, when Drake University and Des Moines Area Community College jointly received a federal HEW grant to establish the Des Moines Area Reading Academy. Drake education students trained as tutors; 鉴黄师app referred students; community volunteers and adult learners filled the rooms.
When federal funding ended in 1980, 鉴黄师app鈥檚 participation paused 鈥� but the program didn鈥檛 disappear. Dedicated individuals at Drake, including faculty and volunteers, carried the work forward.
In 1999, Anne Murr joined the program, then known as the Drake University Adult Literacy Center. Under her leadership, the Center deepened its relationship鈥慸riven model, expanded training for volunteers, and strengthened its focus on adult dignity and empowerment.
In 2018, the Center returned to 鉴黄师app through a collaborative transition involving 鉴黄师app President Rob Denson, Drake leaders, and longstanding relationships built over decades.
鈥淭hat relationship鈥慴uilding in the background 鈥� that鈥檚 what keeps programs like this alive,鈥� Vickie said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 always who you know and who believes in you.鈥�
Since moving to 鉴黄师app, the ALC has served more than 1,000 adults, supported by over 300 volunteer Literacy Coaches, and funded primarily through United Way of Central Iowa investments 鈥� making the program entirely free for students.
鈥淎ll of the services are volunteers,鈥� said Vickie, who is pictured in the photo to the left (on the far right) tutoring a student in 2024. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 what鈥檚 unique.鈥�
One learner said simply, 鈥淢y tutor believed in me long before I did.鈥�
Adults enrolled in the Center report life鈥慶hanging outcomes: earning driver鈥檚 licenses, enrolling in 鉴黄师app classes, completing degrees, becoming citizens, advancing in careers, helping their children succeed in school, and 鈥� for some 鈥� becoming an avid reader for the first time well into their 70s.
Many volunteers return again and again 鈥� 鈥渉ooked,鈥� as Vickie puts it 鈥� tutoring multiple students over the years.
鈥淎s a volunteer, you have the opportunity to learn about diversity in a whole new way,鈥� Anne said. 鈥淵ou learn about someone鈥檚 culture, their immigrant experience. You form a relationship that enriches your own life.鈥�
No story captures the emotional truth of adult literacy more powerfully than the words of Norma Kay, a longtime ALC student and advocate whose writing continues to shape the program鈥檚 mission.
Her poem, often called Norma鈥檚 Declaration, reframes literacy not as a personal failure, but as a societal responsibility:
If I was in a wheelchair, you would open the door for me
But I can鈥檛 read, and doors continue to close for me.
I have a hidden disability with the written word
It鈥檚 an embarrassing secret. I don鈥檛 want to tell you.
I suffer in silence.
But it is Your Problem.
We are human beings, contributing to society.
For Anne and Vickie, Norma鈥檚 words remain a call to action.
鈥淥ur goal is always to reduce the shame, to let people know they are not broken 鈥� and they are not alone," Anne said.
Today, Vickie imagines the moment Kay described, the memory from a few decades ago, and worries about adults who might be sitting outside, unsure if they can walk inside.
鈥淲e have people waiting, and sometimes they fall by the wayside because they get tired of waiting鈥� Vicki said. "That's why awareness about the opportunities here at the ALC is so important."
For Kay, that first step changed everything.
鈥淚鈥檓 a much better person,鈥� she said. 鈥淭he more that I read, the more knowledge I gain.鈥�
And for those still sitting in their cars, wondering if they can do it?
The door is open.
Fifty years in, the Adult Literacy Center continues to do its work quietly 鈥� one conversation, one relationship, one breakthrough at a time.
And for those still sitting in their cars, wondering if they can do it?
The door is open.
How to Enroll in the Adult Literacy Center at 鉴黄师app
Step 1: Complete application
DOWNLOAD OR PRINT AND COMPLETE APPLICATIONStep 2: Schedule an interview
Schedule a time for an interview and 1 to 1.5 hour assessment process by emailing the Adult Literacy Center coordinators, or calling 515-248-7517.
After enrollment, you will be placed on the list for a literacy coach. While waiting for a literacy coach, you will have access to online learning on home computers, at libraries or at the 鉴黄师app Des Moines (Urban) Adult Literacy Center location.
Ways You Can Help
Donate
The Adult Literacy Center (ALC) at 鉴黄师app is funded solely through grants and donations, with additional support from 鉴黄师app. Donations from individuals help the Center purchase more learning materials and books for students, and are greatly appreciated. If you would like to make a donation to help support the Center鈥檚 work, you can do so online using the 鉴黄师app Foundation鈥檚 鈥淢ake A Gift鈥� donation form. When completing the form to submit your donation, be sure to type 鈥淎dult Literacy Center at 鉴黄师app鈥� in the donation designation comment box.
Volunteer
Volunteer Literacy Coaches meet one to one (or on Zoom) with their assigned student once a week for 1 to 1 陆 hours. Coaching sessions can occur in study rooms on 鉴黄师app campuses or at any library or community center. These sessions are arranged in the Adult Literacy Center office to accommodate both Coach and Student.
The Adult Literacy office staff will furnish the Literacy Coach with the appropriate curriculum and resources to work with their individual student. Staff is available to answer questions and provide support.
The Adult Literacy Center also uses MindPlay, an online program that offers anywhere, anytime learning. The ALC student first completes a MindPlay universal screener to assess skill levels in phonics, comprehension, fluency and vocabulary. Each student is then assigned individualized MindPlay learning activities based on their unique learning needs.
How to Become a Literacy Coach
Complete the Literacy Coach application and indicate the times you will be available. Coaches and students are matched according to their availability and preferences. A one-year commitment is requested.
ALC COACH APPLICATIONQuestions about volunteering? Call 515-248-7517 or email Vickie Merrifield at vlmerrifield@dmacc.edu.
More information about the Adult Literacy Center at 鉴黄师app.