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Mission Learning Center, a 501(c)3 community-based organization, provides literacy education and training programs to children up to eleven years of age and their families, so they can develop the skills required to attain personal and economic freedoms, as well as strengthen the entire San Francisco Mission neighborhood.

Our services began in 1972, with after-school literacy programs for children who were not yet reaching their academic potential and we have expanded that program over the years to three sites, along with a five-week summer reading program that serves 150 students each year.

Sixteen years ago we realized that in order for our work to be effective we must include service to parents because the origins of many academic difficulties begin before children enter school. The stresses of extreme poverty, racism, single parenthood, isolation and other difficulties resulted in a home life that did not adequately prepare children for school.

Mission Learning Center was in the forefront of acknowledging the importance of family participation in schools and began the Parent Empowerment Project (PEP) in 1986. PEP services include family literacy activities, parent workshops, and an emphasis on school readiness and early literacy.