Anecdotal stories sell newspapers and work great for talk show host. I've got a federal study of illiteracy and innumeracy done in the mid-90's kicking around somewhere---did you know that a certain percentage of people with graduate degrees are illiterate!(seriously) Then there are the poor folks who are bilingual illiterates... Your email pal, Tom L. michael wrote: > Supposedly education and technological competence explains the worsening > distribution of income. What can we make of the following story? > > Document 1 of 2. > > Copyright 1999 The Atlanta Constitution > The Atlanta Journal and Constitution > > June 9, 1999, Wednesday, CONSTITUTION EDITION > > SECTION: Business; Pg. 18D > > LENGTH: 292 words > > SERIES: Home > > HEADLINE: Exec getting Initiative Award > > BYLINE: Sandra Chereb, Staff > > BODY: > For decades, Jay Thiessens hid a painful secret as he built his machine- > and-tool company from a > mom-and-pop operation into a $ 5 million-a-year enterprise. > > During the day, he hid behind the role of a harried businessman. At > night, his wife, Bonnie, would help > him sort through the paperwork at the kitchen table, in the living room, > or sometimes sitting up in bed. > > Other tasks he delegated to a core group of managers at B&J Machine Tool > Co. , who had no idea their > boss couldn't read. > > ''I worked for him for seven years and I had no clue,'' said Jack Sala, > now the engineering manager for > Truckee Precision, a B&J competitor. > > ''I was his general manager. He would bring legal stuff to me and say, > 'You're better at legalese than me.' > I never knew I was the only one reading them.'' > > Few people knew of his shame and most burning desire: to be able to read > a simple bedtime story to his > grandchildren. But he couldn't keep his illiteracy secret forever. > > ''It became too hard to continue to hide it,'' said Thiessens, who has > begun to read at the age of 56. > ''Since I made the decision to let everybody know, it's a big relief.'' > > Today, Thiessens will be honored in Washington as one of six national > winners of the 1999 National Blue > Chip Enterprise Initiative Award. Sponsored by the U.S. Chamber of > Commerce and MassMutual, the > award recognizes small businesses that have triumphed over adversity. > > Last October, Thiessens found a tutor to instruct him for an hour a day, > five days a week. > > He recently read his first book. It was slow going, but he finished it. > > He hopes his story will encourage others. > > ''There is no shame in not knowing how to read,'' said Bonnie Thiessens. > ''The shame is not doing > anything about it.'' > > -- > Michael Perelman > Economics Department > California State University > Chico, CA 95929 > > Tel. 916-898-5321 > E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
