SALISBURY — The Rowan County Literacy Council has welcomed four new tutors to its ranks.

Donna Preslar, Evelyn Uddin-Khan, Meghan Maxey, and Hayley Weisberg recently completed certification through the ProLiteracy organization. This training gives new tutors the tools they need to help adult students improve their reading and command of English.

Preslar is an accountant but still finds time to meet with her student in the evenings. Like many, she sees tutoring as a mutually rewarding experience.

“I wanted to teach adults how to read because I knew it was an everyday skill I had that could be shared and potentially have a dramatic impact on someone else’s life,” Preslar said. “I am inspired by the desire for growth and self-improvement that brings students to the Literacy Council and really admire that in the student I’m working with now. Our sessions have been fun and equally enriching for me, exchanging skills, stories and ideas, and watching his improvements as we go. I look forward to it every week.”

Maxey attends Roanoke College in Virginia. She decided to pitch in while she was home over the summer. She completed her training, then tutored an adult in English as a Second Language and helped during the Literacy Council’s Summer Youth program in the East Lafayette Housing Authority community.

Uddin-Khan is a retired English professor from New York who recently relocated to Salisbury. She loves theater and is an avid reader who owns more than 4,000 books.

“As an immigrant, I lived the pain and frustration of living in a new culture,” she said. “Now it is time for me to give back to my community.”

Weisberg is working with two beginning ESL students who are focused on improving their English fluency.

“For years, I have considered tutoring and realized that I was putting it off mainly because I didn’t think I was qualified enough to teach,” Weisberg said. “I finally told myself, ‘You’ll never know until you try.’ Well, I am trying, and my students are trying”

Program coordinator Laurel Harry added, “In 90 minutes a week, a tutor can help a student so much. Sometimes people hesitate to volunteer because they are uncertain how much time it will take. Most volunteers and students meet just once a week. It’s a small time commitment that can make a huge difference in another person’s life.”

The Literacy Council is in Rowan Public Library on West Fisher St. The council is a United Way agency, and all student programs are free.

For more information on enrolling as a student or becoming a tutor, visit www.rcliteracy.org or call 704-216-8266.