READ Polk will offer a free training workshop to volunteers who would like to teach adults how to read on Friday, Oct. 19, from 9:15 a.m.– 4:30 p.m. at the Lakeland Public Library, 100 Lake Morton Drive, Lakeland. No experience is necessary. Volunteers will receive the training and materials to become certified tutors.

The workshop is sponsored by READ Polk and hosted by READ Lakeland. READ Polk is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit coalition of volunteers from businesses and the community. READ Polk is dedicated to facilitating relevant literacy instruction which improves the capacity of adults to negotiate their daily lives as parents, consumers, employees, and citizens. This countywide organization was formed to teach basic reading skills to adults. 27 percent of adults in Polk County are considered functionally illiterate, with another 29 percent classified as marginally literate. Register by calling 863-802-1512 or via email at READLakeland@aol.com by noon on Wednesday, Oct. 17, 2012. For more information, please call Diane Oropeza, Program Coordinator, READ Lakeland, 863-802-1512.