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Thank you to all who made the event a success!
Tutor of the Year Award
Denise Rondini, Mercy Housing Lakefront
Denise Rondini, second from left, with nominator Kelly Bradley (far left) and award presenters (from center) Maureen Meehan, Director of Community Literacy Programs at the Center for Literacy, John McLeod, LVI board treasurer, and Cyndy Colletti, Manager of Literacy Programs at the Office of the Secretary of State
CeCe M Tilsley
New Reader Leadership Award
Josephine Miller, Adult Literacy Institute,
Prarie State College
Josephine Miller, far left, with Robert Dowling, New Readers board president, and award presenters
Outstanding Tutor Awards
Lynda Aird, Literacy Volunteers of Illinois -
Jump Start at IYC-Warrenville
Lynda Aird, second from left, with Sandi Ivemeyer, Principal at IYC-Warrenville and award presenters
Toby Anstett, Adult Learning Connection at Waukegan Public Library
Toby Anstett, second from left, with her nominator Barbara Babb and award presenters
Udayan Das, Jane Addams Resource Corporation
Udayan Das, far left, with award presenters
Helen Dawson, Adult Literacy Institute at Prarie State College
Helen Dawson, far left with award presenters
Mary Peranteau, School on Wheels at the Congregation of St. Joseph
Mary Peranteau, second from left, with nominator Deborah Bradt and award presenters
Chris Sherman, Indo-American Center
Chris Sherman, second from left, with nominator Jai Ramos and award presenters
Desiree Domingo McFallar, Howard Area Community Center
Desiree has been tutoring at the HACC for six months. She's put long hours into lesson planning, goal setting, and personal development. By helping her student build her self-confidence and motivation, she's gone above and beyond the duty of a tutor. Desiree's student's reading scores have significantly improved since they have begun meeting, and upon Desiree's encouragement, she has gotten a library card. Lida McDaniel, who nominated Desiree, writes that Desiree is "essentially...a life coach."
Augustina Flores, UIC Center for Literacy, Family Start Learning Center
In the past two years, Agustina has provided over 1,000 service hours as an AmeriCorps member at FAST. Meggie Harvey, her co-facilitator at Incarnation Head Start, says "Augustina brings an energy to the room and relates to learners on an equal level of solidarity. They learn from her and she learns from them." By empathizing with learners, Augustina seeks to empower the Latino community through education.
Vivienne Hildebrant, The Literacy Connection
Vivienne seems to participate in nearly all aspects of the Literacy Connection, writes her nominator, Karen Oswald, the executive director of the agency. In the past five years, she has donated 326 hours of her time to tutoring and 123 hours to administrative work. Karen says that Vivienne is willing to do whatever she can to further the cause of adult education and literacy at the Literacy Connection which includes assessing students and scoring tests, conducting in-service presentations, sharing her experiences as a tutor with others, substituting as a tutor trainer, and helping with tutor-student follow-ups, mailings and fundraisers - which explains why Karen Oswald describes Vivienne as dedicated, motivated, and selfless.
David Price, Albany Park Community Center
David started at APCC in the fall of 2009. During 2010, he volunteered 16 tutoring hours per week to adult learners facing many obstacles. He puts great effort into lesson plans, tailoring them to each student's unique needs. David's commitment to teaching is exemplified by his enrollment in an adult education master's program, which he will finish this year. David also assisted in orienting and training new AmeriCorps members in September. Karen Parillo, who nominated David, describes him as "an unpaid staff member" and writes that "...his contributions to both APCC and to his students have been invaluable."
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LVI names the Illinois Commission on Volunteerism and Community Service Partner
of the Year
Tim Gibbs, Executive Director of Serve Illinois pictured with LVI and UIC Center for Literacy staff and AmeriCorps members, and Cyndy Colletti
Denise Rondini has served as a volunteer tutor at Mercy Housing Lakefront for nearly 5 years. He nominator, Kelly Bradley, describes Denise as "not only a devoted tutor, but an exceptional human being." She has been working one-to-one with one adult learner since 2006. Together they have made tremendous progress in learning and reading, as well as personal development. Denise says her student has "become a leader."
In 2009, Denise began leading a creative writing group in addition to one-to-one tutoring. The strong bonds fostered between members of the group have enhanced the learning that they are able to dotogether. In 2010, the group compiled a book of their original writings entitled An Emotional Spectrum, which was printed and bound by Denise. A student says that she was proudest in her life when she wrote her first story, which was included in the book.
Most recently, Denise has joined a planning committee for an upcoming Aritsts/Writers Event to be held in May. Kelly writes that "she's igniting growth within our Learning Program."
Josephine Miller became involved with the New Readers for New Life of Illinois three years ago when the Adult Literacy Institute at Prarie State College hosted the annual conference of the New Readers organization. Josephine's irreplacable support before and during the conference earned her an invite to join the New Readers board. She was elected Vice President last year.
Jo has led many various technology workshops for her fellow students. After she earned her GED in November 2009, she earned a scholarship to Prarie State College and, wanting to give back to her community and school, began tutoring at the Adult Literacy Institute.
Lynda Aird has been working with incarcerated teen girls for six years at IYC-Warrenville serving as a tutor and voluntary program coordinator. Last year alone she volunteered 800 hours, coming in three times a week for 4-6 hours a day. As a tutor, Lynda typically works with three to four girls with varying needs and abilities on math and reading. As the voluntary program coordinator she handles all student referrals, including assessments, and tutor/student matches. She also assists LVI with tutor recruitment and training, last year recruiting eight community volunteers. Since becoming a tutor at IYC, six of Lynda's students have successfully secured their GEDs. Besides the tutoring she provides, Lynda also acts as a mentor and role model for the young women.
Toby Anstett's students each quarter are among those with the most instructional hours. In 2010, Toby provided 234 direct tutoring hours and another 150 volunteer hours in planning and training fellow tutors. Barbara Babb, her nominator, writes that "Toby honors each student's unique way of learning and plans accordingly. No lesson is complete without the student experiencing some kind of success for that session." Besides her tutoring, Toby also conducts initial assessments and develops educational plans for incoming students in the western part of Lake County - an invaluable contribution which helps better serve those not living near the literacy office. She then works with the new students to create a thorough educational plan for the permanent tutor. Toby's volunteer work benefits the students she tutors as well as the program.
Udayan Das has worked with approximately 40 students in the year that he has been volunteering at Jane Addams Resource Corp, which is why JARC staff refer to him as "Super-Tutor." Udayan is always ready to take on more responsibility; in addition to the small math group he facilitates twice a week, Udayan often facilitates additional workshops on topics such as real life math skills and money math. He also serves as an instructor in JARC's Community Technology Center, and seeks out supplementary training to enhance instruction at JARC. His dedication to his students gives them the support they need to stay in the program. Danielle Hammel, Udayan's nominator, writes that "JARC's adult program would not be the successful program it is without Udayan Das."
Helen Dawson has tutored at the Adult Literacy Institute for the past three and a half years. Dora Ivory, who nominated Helen, explaines that Helen's "personal values of commitment and dedication help to shape her ability to inspire, motivate and empower her adult learners." Helen decided to go back to school to get her degree in Adult Education when she heard a radio reoprt announce that there was a drop out rate of over 50% among high school students in her local community. Since then, Helen has tutored over 25 students as a one-to-one and small group math tutor. Her phenomenal retention rate of nearly 100% can be explained by Helen's empathy for her students, her professional preparation, and her excellent personal skills. Dora writes taht "Helen Dawson's talents are an asset to our literacy program."
Mary Paranteau has been involved with the School on Wheels for six years. According to her nominator, Deborah Bradt, Mary's most exceptional trait is her dedication to lifelong learning. By attending a variety of professional development workshops within and outside of School on Wheels, Mary better serves her students. She also taps the local library as a resource, sharing materials with her students as well as fellow tutors. The wealth of information she collects allows her to prepare detailed lessons as well as adjust lessons when necessary, based on regular evaluations and assessments of her students' needs and abilities. Mary also takes great interest in her students' lives and cultures, creatively incorporating them into relevant lessons designed specifically for them. Mary not only inspires her students, but her colleagues. As Deborah Bradt writes, "Mary inspires all of us to achieve our personal best."
Chris Sherman has recently returned to the Indo-American Center as a volunteer. He works twice a week with over 20 students from a variety of backgrounds and literacy levels. Jai Ramos, his nominator, describes him as a reliable and diligent tutor, able to accomodate each of his learners and always able to bring something new to his class. Often students request Chris' teaching services. Jai says, "Chris is a phenomenal volunteer and has become an asset to the literacy program at the Indo-American Center."
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Contributors
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Thank you to all of our contributors
for their time and generosity with the event !
Corner of State St and Adams
131 S Dearborn St
Chicago, IL 60603
1332 S Halsted St.
Chicago, IL 60607
Jack Tuchten Wholesale Produce
2404 S Wolcott Ave # 31
Chicago, IL 60608-5344
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A special thanks to all workshop presenters!
To view workshop titles and presenters,
click on the image below.
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