By Mayte Penman, SWOT City Portfolio Manager

SWOT City alum All Saints Literacy Center is a 501(c)(3) non-profit located in southwest Detroit that is committed to helping adults reach their educational, social and career goals by improving their literacy skills right in the heart of Mexicantown. The center is a welcoming place for learners to improve their reading, writing, math and English skills. The program serves adult learners ages 18 and older and welcomes all levels whether the person is a beginner, intermediate or advanced learner.

Students are paired with trained volunteer tutors who are committed to their success and create a customized learning plan. Tutors meet one-on-one with their students, adapting the learning approach to meet the needs and goals of the student. This is all done at no cost!

During the course of working with the All Saints Literacy Center, TechTown provided a complete SWOT assessment that allowed us to better understand the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to the organization.  We identified that volunteers were a large part of the organization’s success, so we helped them find additional volunteers though networking, social media and more intentional outreach.  We also identified that community members needing support were unaware of the organization or the services that they provide. To solve this problem, TechTown staff suggested collaboration with other service organizations and a more intentional and strategic marketing plan to gain visibility.

Because of the unique needs of nonprofits, TechTown’s SWOT City program no longer serves nonprofits directly. These services are now provided by our sister organization Co.act Detroit. We still want to encourage everyone, however, to consider donating skills and time to make sure that All Saints Literacy Center continues to receive the resources they need to provide outstanding service to the community. There is a waitlist of students needing support, and we can make a difference by serving one student at a time. Get more information and sign up to volunteer at https://www.allsaintsliteracy.org/p/volunteers.html.