Type of site Online education/e-learning Available in English and Spanish www.gcfaprendelibre.org Owner Goodwill Industries of Eastern NC Slogan(s) Creating opportunities for a better life(R) Alexa rank 10,375 Global; 4,490 US (January 2014) | ||
GCFLearnFree.org is a free online educational website focusing on technology, job training, reading, and math skills. The site is a program of Goodwill Industries of Eastern NC Inc. (GIENC) and the Goodwill Community Foundation Inc. (GCF). All content is created in Raleigh, North Carolina. As of summer 2014, GCFLearnFree.org has 16 employees responsible for content development and web development, and 9 online instructors who facilitate accredited classes by grading work and responding to learners' questions.
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History
GCFLearnFree.org was created in July 2000 by GIENC president Dennis McLain as an online training program with both English and Spanish language lessons. The program is funded through revenue generated from the value of donated items to Goodwill Community Foundation (GCF) throughout eastern North Carolina.
Self-paced tutorials
The GCFLearnFree.org programs are designed around self-paced instruction. The website offers dozens of free, self-paced tutorials in technology, Microsoft Office, work and career, reading, math, and everyday life. All tutorials can be accessed with no registration required, but users can also create a free GCFLearnFree.org account to track their learning history and create transcripts of completed tutorials. Tutorials use video, sound, art, storytelling, and text. GCFLearnFree.org's self-paced tutorials are part of the free resources available at DigitalLiteracy.gov, an Obama administration initiative focused on digital literacy. GCFLearnFree.org is also an Everyoneon.org partner. Organizations that use GCFLearnFree.org include K-12 schools, colleges, homeschool groups, nonprofit organizations, libraries, businesses, and career centers.
Online classes
GCFLearnFree.org offers free online classes that offer certificates of completion and continuing education units (CEUs). Online classes require registration and submission of assignments, and they are supported by online instructors. The online class program is accredited by the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET).
Awards and recognition
GCFLearnFree.org won the 2012 MERLOT Classics Award for its Word 2010 tutorial. GreatNonprofits, a provider of user reviews about nonprofit organizations, named GCFLearnFree.org a 2014 Top-Rated Nonprofit based on reviews submitted by people who volunteer for or use the website. However, calling GCFLearnFree.org a "nonprofit" is not exactly accurate because the Employer Identification Number listed for GCFLearnFree.org by GreatNonprofits is registered with the Internal Revenue Service to Goodwill Community Foundation Inc. and not to GCFLearnFree.org, and the name "GCFLearnFree.org" does not appear in other major nonprofit databases such as GuideStar and Charity Navigator but "Goodwill Community Foundation Inc." does.