TIFTON —The Technical College System of Georgia has named Liz Carson Keith, a former board member of Literacy Volunteers of Tifton-Tift County, to Georgia’s Literacy Honor Roll for her years of service and dedication to adult literacy.

The announcement was made April 4 during Georgia’s Certified Literate Community Program’s annual retreat at the Unicoi Lodge in Helen, Ga.

Keith has served multiple terms as president, vice president and secretary of LVTTC through the decades.

According to Bonnie Sayles, LVTTC executive director, Keith has gone beyond the typical duties of these roles. She has also organized and hosted the agency’s longstanding Carnival of Knowledge and Choc-It-Up for Literacy events, especially when the agency was between directors.

“Each year, she donates vacations at her own home in the mountains of North Georgia as a prize in both events,” Sayles told statewide directors of literacy programs during the ceremony.

“She organized, coordinated and promoted a fundraising concert with an internationally renowned opera singer. She also donates jewelry and luxurious coats to silent auctions for Literacy Volunteers and continually encourages monetary support from board members and her friends on social media.”

Because of a temporary relocation to North Georgia, Keith recently stepped off the board, but she continues to donate items and promote local literacy events on her personal Facebook page, Sayles said.

Keith’s connection with adult literacy began 25 years ago when she worked with the Job Training Partnership Act program at the Regional Development Center and referred students to a lab that the RDC and then Moultrie Technical College jointly operated. She also served as a language arts teacher.

She was subsequently named to the board of Literacy Volunteers of America, Tifton-Tift County, which later, after LVA merged with Laubach Literacy, became Literacy Volunteers of Tifton-Tift County.

Keith served on the board until last December, serving multiple terms as president, vice president and secretary. She helped to spearhead Tifton’s designation in 2010 as a Certified Literate Community by the State Department of Technical and Adult Education. The designation was a 10-year process that involved literacy goals across many segments of the population and involved assessment of needs and improvement.

During this time, she was hired by Moultrie Technical College (now Southern Regional Technical College) as lead teacher in Worth County, where she improved literacy involvement in the program countywide.

When an opening became available in Tift County, she was transferred to Tifton and served at the main campus as lead teacher. During her tenure in Tifton, she improved the attendance and enrollment of the Adult Education student body by 100 percent, adding funding and staffing to expand offerings throughout the county.  

In addition to an independent non-profit, LVTTC also was the designated advisory council for Tift County’s Adult Education program for Moultrie Tech. During this time, Keith continued to work with LVTTC as its Adult Education contact.

After several years, Liz was promoted to Director of Adult Education for what is now SRTC, Tifton Campus. She continued her close association with LVTTC, growing its influence and helping it achieve grants and funding as a collaborative partner with the technical college.