Project FLIGHT Research

Project F.L.I.G.H.T. is unique in that it is designed to enhance the current national family literacy model in two ways in order to address concerns raised by practitioners. Project FLIGHT is a family literacy program, established by Dr. Betty J. Cappella and Dr. Geraldine E. Bard as a pilot program in February 1994 at Buffalo State College. Over the past seven years, Project FLIGHT has evolved from a small program to one that was presented at the NGO Forum of the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women and has been recognized locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally. Through rapid development and implementation, Project FLIGHT and its initiatives have become identified as an effective strategy for caregivers and their families to combat the social byproducts associated with undereducation and illiteracy. Project FLIGHT accomplishes its goals by assisting families through the establishment of a collaborative university/community/business partnership that is designed to develop an integrated urban response to undereducation through literacy initiatives. Through its initiatives, Project FLIGHT has become identified as an effective strategy for children and their families to combat illiteracy and the social byproducts associated with undereducation. Project FLIGHT accomplishes the goal in three ways. First, a collaborative university and community partnership was established to develop an integrated urban response to undereducation. This innovative relationship has been shown to create system changes that augment existing ones. This relationship has also produced new direct services to assist educationally disadvantaged families through early childhood and adult education, early childhood education for at risk children, parent training, and the assistance with the intergenerational parent/child learning relationship. Project FLIGHT makes use of three integrated components: 1) The Research and Consultant Team provides technical assistance for training, funding, program design, development and delivery, needs assessment, grants, evaluation, problem solving, goal setting, service delivery, advocacy and new research initiatives. 2) The Family Literacy Resource Center contains research materials, books, pamphlets, and videos, as well as access to computer generated spin searches and information referral systems.