Drawing on literature in participatory adult education, this article reports the findings from a collaborative research project exploring family literacy participants' experiences in their program's parent advisory council. The findings reveal that involvement in the council enhanced program effectiveness, increased learners' investment in the program, and fostered capacities that transferred to personal, educational, and social domains. However, learners had little influence over some programmatic areas. The study suggests that having a meaningful say in programmatic matters can prepare learners to speak out and exercise more control over decisions in their lives and communities.