| From the Editor Dear Readers: This is the last issue of The Key Newspaper for perhaps another year or two. We are taking some time off. The Key and the Readers as Writers Contest have been funded by an Adult Education and Family Literacy (AEFL) grant awarded through the Wisconsin Technical College System. AEFL also funds many of the direct services you receive through your local literacy agencies and Wisconsin Technical Colleges. But the economy has caused AEFL funds to be cut. The Wisconsin Technical College System had to make a difficult choice. It had to choose between funding literacy services for adult students in Wisconsin or, dropping The Key Newspaper Project. It decided to suspend The Key in the hope that it can be funded again at a later date. The archives on our Website at www.keynews.org will remain open for you to use until we return. The Key has been serving adult literacy students and instructors for 21 years. That is a very long time for a grant-funded project. The project has been very successful. Its Website was endorsed by the U.S. Department of Education and given a link to the department’s preferred literacy Website. As a result, literacy programs throughout the country and even worldwide have used The Key Newspaper. The Key also has had the privilege of partnering with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel for many years. The Journal has been printing the newspaper at no cost to the project. We have been very grateful for the generosity and friendship of the Journal and its wonderful staff, headed by Royce Miles, Sam Travia, Cecil Schwartz, and John Sevilla. We have had exceptional teams of writers throughout the years. William Lavelette, Erik Brooks, Linda Hanig, Jeffrey White, Thelma Godin, Amy Waldman, and Andrew Muchin are some of the writers who have written interesting and informative articles about world events and features of interest. The talented Key Newspaper staff has also included wonderful instructors like Janet Nortrom and Andrea Sullivan-Jurek who developed the lesson plans to go along with the articles in each issue of The Key, and artist Corey Taratuta and distribution manager Liam Hughes. In addition, we have had a fine group of advisors whose advice and content suggestions have made the project better with each issue. They include among others Diane Steigerwald, Jan Spangler, Terry Corrigan, Dr. Douglas Vue, Peter Lee, Robert Garfinkel, Carol Philips, Shamus Wright, Marianna Ruprecht, Gloria Pitchford-Nicholas, and Sue Nemetz. Hundreds of teachers from literacy programs everywhere in Wisconsin have worked with students to develop their reading and writing skills so that they would shine in the annual Readers as Writers Contest. The contest received nearly 400 entries every year. Milwaukee Area Technical College and the Milwaukee Public Library have supported the event since it began. Their sponsorships have made the event possible. Milwaukee Area Technical College deserves special recognition. It has housed The Key and the Readers as Writers Project for nearly all of the 21 years of The Key’s existence. It has provided me with the support, time and resources to make The Key and the Readers as Writers Contest continually better products. Our Wisconsin Technical College advisors, Peggy Meyers, Mark Johnson, Alejandro Nunez, and Willa Panzer also have been supportive every step of the way. All of our thanks, however, go to you, our readers. Over the past 10 years, our mailing lists have numbered between 12,000 and 15,000 readers. That too is quite remarkable. You have shared your interests. You have told us what you like to read, and you have encouraged us to excel. It has been a wonderful project and a great run. We hope to be back again soon. But until The Key is up and running again, please read the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and your local newspapers to keep informed about local, national and international events. Good luck to all of our readers and the many friends we have made through The Key. It has been a joy to share in your educational success. Sincerely, |