Meet the Board: Anita Hillis-Krause

What is your name? Anita Hillis-Krause

What is your job title and company? Executive Director of the Haldimand Norfolk London Learning Centres

How long have you been with the Board? Five years

What inspired you to get involved? I wanted to give back to LLSC as they had been so helpful in my learning as much as possible regarding Adult Literacy and governmental & community relations, as quickly as possible, when I started with HNLC.

Why is literacy important to you, or how do you see it being connected to the "big picture" of the work you do? When my grandfather turned 65, and retired, he returned to an adult learning centre to learn how to read. He had kept his low literacy a secret for his entire life. This weighed on me and I wanted to do “something” so that others wouldn’t have to keep such a secret. I believe that literacy, in all its’ forms, and numeracy are the foundation for economic development. An educated population is a more productive, healthier and more vibrant constituency. And there is no greater avenue to improving childhood literacy then by having parents and grandparents being able to instill the joy and value of reading in their offspring.

Can you share one thing you've done, learned, or been involved in as a result of being on the Board? I have witnessed what a collective of voices at the government table can produce. We had an opportunity, with a very short timeline, to communicate to the Minister of our funding ministry. A number of learners, practitioners and administrators briefly shared experiences and reasons why adult literacy is so critical in our communities. The minister became our champion and we saw some fairly swift results of her efforts. While positive changes are slow, the differences since I started with the organization, are evident.