About Us

The Richardson Adult Literacy Center is an accredited Pro Literacy America affiliate, non-profit, 501-C-3 organization. We train volunteer tutors, recruit adult students, and match students to tutors. English as a second language (ESL) instruction is provided at no charge to the student in a setting and using methods that meet the students’ unique needs. The Center also refers students to other programs and services that may better assist them.

RALC was founded in 1990 through a collaboration between several community organizations. Community members saw that Richardson’s demographics were changing and that there were gaps within adult ESL services. The organization has succeeded for 20 years because of its dedicated volunteers and loyal community support.

Programs

The Richardson Adult Literacy Center offers two types of programs:

English as a Second Language Instruction

The RALC provides free English as a second language (ESL) instruction to adults who live or work in Richardson or the Richardson Independent School District. Students meet with volunteer tutors either in a one-on-one setting or in classes at various locations in the Richardson area.

Volunteer tutors are always needed. If you'd like to learn more, visit our Volunteers page.

Family Literacy

Teddy Bear Time is RALC's family literacy program, which brings parents and their young children together in a fun, educational setting to model read-alouds and other interactive parent/child educational activities.

The 8-week program, sponsored by community organizations, is held once a week for an hour in the evenings at select RISD elementary schools.

If your organization would like to learn more about sponsoring a Teddy Bear Time program, please contact Katie Patterson at 972-644-5119 or director@ralc.org.

Board of Directors

• President: Barbara Berthold
• Vice President: Suzanne Etman
• Treasurer: Gene Tomasello
• Secretary: Karen Mitchell
• Roman Cooper
• David Patton
• Marybeth Hoesterey
• Martha Ritter
• Janie Jaquier
• Chris Simmie
• Jane Merz
• Pamela Tomasello
• Paul Vance

Staff

Katie Patterson – Executive Director

Katie Patterson has been an active volunteer and leader in the Richardson community for many years. She has served in various capacities within PTAs, both at local and council levels, school district committees, and local nonprofit organizations. As a volunteer ESL teacher and former RALC board member, Katie understands the rich history of the Center and the great need for its services in our community.

Most recently, Katie has directed communications for Texas Schools Project and the UT Dallas Education Research Center. Additionally, she has managed communications projects for various education organizations at the K-12 and post-secondary level. Prior to her work in education, Katie spent 20 years with Cookies by Design, a national franchisor, serving in various positions including vice president – franchise services, where she directed marketing and public relations efforts and was involved in operations, creative development and strategic planning.

Katie lives in Dallas with her husband and two children.