About Me: My name is Bree Straayer, and I have been teaching and tutoring English and Writing for the last ten years, primarily at the high school and college level. Before that, I worked as a licensed childcare provider for several years. This year, I graduated with my PhD in Rhetoric and Writing at Michigan State University, and being a "non-traditional" student with a full life, I am proud of that achievement. I have three children -  a daughter in college, a son in high school, and another son in middle school.

About: Chad Patton is the director of the Customized Workplace English program at the Literacy Center of West Michigan. Chad graduated from Grand Valley State University with a dual degree in English Literature and Language and Spanish, both with an emphasis in Secondary Education. Throughout his career, Chad has been an educator in different capacities: he has coached swim teams, taught literacy to elementary school children, taught English to high school students, and now he directs an adult education program. Chad returned to school at Grand Valley to receive a master’s degree in Adult and Higher Education. He graduated with an M.Ed in 2016 and continues to practice the adult education portion of his degree by creating community programs throughout the Greater Grand Rapids area.

Written by Jennifer Summers, Program Coordinator

Maria, a new US citizen, is very excited to be voting in her first presidential election in the United States this year. As a learner at the Literacy Center since 2018, she has practiced her English during her tutoring sessions and her group classes at the Literacy Center. Her tutor, Denise, helped her to prepare to become a citizen by explaining the Constitution, quizzing her on the 100 questions, and practicing for the interview with her.

About me: Hello, my name is Alyssa and I'm originally from Grand Rapids, but have worked and lived abroad for the past 8 years! I am currently an English Instructor at the Literacy Center both for the Family Literacy and Workplace English programs. A little bit about myself is, I recently graduated with my Master's Degree in Education from the Universidad de Alcala in Madrid, Spain. I also have a Bachelor's Degree from Anderson University in Psychology. I have over 7 years of experience teaching ESL both to children and adults in the United States, South Korea and Spain. I am passionate about making English interesting, engaging and exciting for my learners! 

Written by Libby Wahlstrom, Development Director, & Cynthia Salinas, Communication Coordinator & FLP Instructor

In the summer of 2019, hundreds of families gathered each week in local parks for family-friendly literacy events. Special guests read stories aloud, local ice cream and food vendors gave away summer treats, and every child who attended received a brand new, age-appropriate book each week. By all accounts, Storytime in the Park was a huge success. 

The idea for Storytime in the Park came many years earlier from Barbara Lubic, a professor at Grand Valley State University. She and her friend Barbara Bush—a local ice cream shop owner—wanted to do something to celebrate the parks and the community in the summer. They decided to give away books and ice cream at weekly summer gatherings in Garfield Park. What began with 50 attendees 11 years ago has turned into something far greater. 

Written by Wendy Falb, Ph.D., Executive Director

As summer draws to a close, the Literacy Center is in the midst of planning for our most unusual—and important—year of programming yet. Because we know that COVID-19 has only deepened the disparities caused by low literacy, we have pushed hard to innovate in this new environment so that we can not only sustain our support of adult literacy, but expand and improve how we meet this crucial need in our community. 

Written by Carrie Roper, IET Coordinator

In the final weeks of June, we celebrated the ending of our two Citizenship Preparation ESL classes. What began as two in-person classes on opposite sides of Grand Rapids soon became a collaborative and experimental response to the communities’ needs during an uncertain time.  

 Written by Carrie Roper, IET Coordinator

Shola came to the United Stated from Nepal in 2018 with her husband and their young daughter.  The reason?  To find better opportunities for work and to further her education.  In her home country, going on to higher education, especially in healthcare, can be very expensive.  That is why Shola was excited to hear about the certified nursing assistant (CNA) classes being offered at no cost through Goodwill and the Literacy Center.

Written by Chad Patton, Customized Workplace English Director

For Olivia, Kent District Library (KDL) was a place to check out books and movies and use the computer. But, for Olivia, the library also represented a future career.

“I like the idea to be able to work in the library,” Olivia said.

Guest blogger: Chad Patton, Director of Customized Workplace English

If there were one word to describe Antonio, it would probably be “handy.” Since Michiganders were asked to Stay Home and Stay Safe due to the Coronavirus, Antonio has been taking the time to work around the house.

Lorenzo Gutierrez moved to Belmont, MI from Saint Albans, VT when he retired in 2018. He has been a Literacy Center tutor since late 2018. He recently spoke with his Literacy Coordinator about his experience. 

Why did you decide to tutor with the Literacy Center? What was it that drew you to this volunteer opportunity?

I moved to Michigan from Vermont in May of 2018. Upon moving to Michigan, I was looking for volunteer opportunities where I could be involved in some way with my new community.

Johanna Schulte is a Grand Rapids native. She works in the City of Grand Rapids Community Development department and has been tutoring with the Literacy Center since 2017. She recently spoke with her Literacy Coordinator about her experience. 

Why did you decide to tutor with the Literacy Center?

I was interested in finding a volunteer opportunity and found out about the work of the Literacy Center from a friend. I wanted to be involved in work that would contribute to making our community a more welcoming and equitable place.

Jennifer Summers, Customized Workplace English Coordinator

Eliana started classes at the Literacy Center in January of 2018. She had come with her family from Venezuela, and she started classes with her in-laws, Larry and Coromoto. She worked hard and made rapid progress, graduating from the highest levels of our programming by the end of September that year. I recently called and had the opportunity to check in with her.

Guest Blogger: Jennifer Summers, Customized Workplace English Coordinator

Maria Zamudio is a busy woman with a heart for others and a plan to get where she wants to be. She currently works for a law firm, where she helps people in the Hispanic community to address their needs. Her ultimate goal is to be a lawyer in the US so that she can continue serving her community.

Guest Blogger: Omar Cuevas, Vice President for Sales and Marketing at the Grand Rapids Chamber and Literacy Center Board Member

As a kid growing up in Southern California in the early 80’s, I served as an interpreter for my grandmother while my mom, grandpa and uncles were working. They pay wasn’t bad at all. My nana made the most wonderful homemade flour tortillas she would hand to me right off the stove as she made them with her beautiful hardworking hands.

Being the oldest grandson and already having an education (consisting of being able to read and speak English) and in the 4^th grade, I was often called in to action. Joining my grandma and cousins or my sister to a doctor’s office or dentist appointment. Sometimes we would need to take a bus, and this would usually end with my nana having to hail a police officer to help us because we took the wrong bus.