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WORKSHOP PRESENTER BIOGRAPHIES
NOVEMBER 2005 TUTOR/MENTOR LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE
to be held at
St. Joseph's School, 1065 N. Orleans, in Chicago on Nov. 17 and 18, 2005.
This is a list of people who will do workshops
and be part of panels at the November 2005
Conference. All are volunteers! We thank them for sharing
their time and talent. Workshops and presenters are subject to change without
notice. If you would like to do a workshop at future conferences,
or in an 0n-line conference, email the T/MC at tutormentor2@earthlink.net
Note: Parking for
the conference is available at Byrd School, 363 W. Hill. Call 312-492-9614 to
request a map be faxed to you.
Avery Austin, Vice President, National Tutors Association, www.ntatutor.com
Avery Austin received his Bachelor's and Master's degrees from Indiana
University of Pennsylvania (IUP), in 1988 and 1991, respectively. He
recently accepted a Math/Science Mentor position with Western Governors
University where he can give educators what h e has learned. With 10 years in
the technical industry, he has served as a Scientist, Technical Trainer,
Physicist, Senior Analyst/Engineer, and Senior Declassification Analyst.
During his technical career, he learned about semiconductor epitaxial growth
technology (Master's Thesis), hyper-spectral imagery, supercomputer
architectures, nuclear weapon technology, multiplexed focal plane array
engineering, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) prototype sensor trials, and
much more.
His love of tutoring started in 1986 after being trained as a
paraprofessional tutor at the IUP Learning Center. He taught Developmental
Mathematics, Algebra, and Physics to incoming freshmen through nontraditional
students at colleges in the Western Pennsylvania region. He has also
served as a coordinator for tutorial programs at IUP, Penn State McKeesport
Campus, and at his church. With a total of 15+ years teaching and tutoring
experience, he helps students relate classroom material to real world
experiences.
Currently he operates an independent private
tutoring practice called The Answer Key, where he specializes in tutoring
Arithmetic through Calculus, Statistics, Science, Critical Thinking, and
conducts "Overcoming Math Anxiety" workshops. Avery serves the
National Tutoring Association (NTA) as a certified Master Level Tutor Trainer,
the Distance Learning Chair, and the Associate Vice President.
One of his goals is to fuse his experience in academia and industry to help
educators, tutors, and students learn how to use higher order thinking skills to
bridge the gap between academia and industry for society's growing demand for
competent critical thinkers.
Daniel F. Bassill, Tutor/Mentor Connection
Dr. Daniel F. Bassill is President of Cabrini Connections and the
Tutor/Mentor Connection, organizer of the Leadership Conference series. He
is also a Commissioner on the Illinois Commission on Volunteerism and Community
Service. Dr.
Bassill has spent more than 30 years, mostly as a volunteer, reaching out
to children and youth living in Chicago's Cabrini-Green neighborhood. Bassill
first became a tutor in 1973, then became the volunteer leader of the Montgomery
Ward/Cabrini Green Tutoring program in 1975. More than 3,500 volunteers and
3,300 children have participated in programs Bassill has led. Some
volunteers have participated for more than 10 consecutive years and some
students from first grade through high school. With six other
volunteers, Bassill formed Cabrini Connections in 1992. Read
Dan's Blog at http://tutormentor.blogspot.com
Alex Ciesla, Partners in Education (4th Presbyterian Church),
Chicago
Alex Ciesla is the Tutoring and Scholarship Services Manager of the Chicago
Lights Tutoring and Scholarship Program at Fourth Presbyterian Church. She
recruits students (mainly form the Cabrini-Green and Henry Horner neighborhoods)
and tutors for the program, matches the students with one on one tutors based on
educational needs and personality, and helps to maintain the relationships built
through these matches. The program currently has close to 400 students enrolled
and each student has their own tutor who aides them in completing homework and
developing study and social skills. Alex also works with the program's
scholarship students by planning monthly meetings and motivating the students to
maintain good grades and prepare for college. Alex has a bachelor's degree in
Psychology and has been working with at risk youth for over 3 years.
For more
information, visit www.chicagolights.org.
Paul Collins,
Jordan-Webb, Inc. ,
Mr. Collins became an
independent consultant in1981, forming his firm Jordan-Webb.
Since 1989 Paul has provided high performance facilitation to clients
while using new techniques and
technologies that support collaborative problem solving and decision making.
Since 2003, these collaborative technologies and techniques have migrated
from the meeting room to the world-wide-web.
Today, Paul helps clients move into the 21st
century by hosting and facilitating distributed and virtual meetings,
focus groups and surveys, by helping clients deploy
web-based collaborative strategies within their organizations and by
providing free weekly webinars on internet collaboration.
Paul's facilitation style is described as empowering and leading without
directing, and making workshops highly productive and fun.
Paul is active in several professional organizations, including the
Midwest Facilitators' Network (co-founder, director, webmaster), Midwest
Society of Professional Consultants, International Association of Public
Practitioners, National Black MBA Association and International Association of
Facilitators. Paul
is a member of the Board of Advisors for Loyola University's Center for
Information Management and Technology and has lectured for Loyola, the
University of Chicago, De Paul University and the University of Wisconsin.
Paul's hobbies include ethnic folk dance, traditional square and contra
dance, folk festival production, web design, hiking, learning foreign languages
and public speaking. Paul is a
certified Forté Communications System
Facilitator.
Paul's
client experience has included: National Aeronautic and Space Administration,
GATX Corporation, McDonald's Corporation, Motorola, U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, BP Amoco Corporation, U S Cellular Corporation, the Wisconsin
Department of Natural Resources Commonwealth Edison, Loyola University,
Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, Pace Suburban Bus Service, Girl Scouts Promise
Group and American Traffic Safety Services Association.
Paul's
speaking engagements have included: UCGSB Roundtable, American Society for
Quality, American Society of Metallurgists, Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce,
Toastmasters International, Tutor/Mentor Leadership Conference, Midwest
Facilitators' Network, Midwest Society of Professional Consultants,
International Association of Public Practitioners, Finance Leaders Association,
International Association of Facilitators and Collaboration 2003.
Paul's web site
contains links to many presentations presented by himself and by others who
participate in quarterly meetings of the Midwest Facilitator's Network in
Chicago. This is a valuable on-line resource. http://jordan-webb.net
George Cox, Mentoring Network for Juvenile
Court Wards, Circuit Court of Cook County, Juvenile Justice Department.
George Cox has been a juvenile probation officer for the past 15 years. He
has served in the following assignments; delinquent field unit, juvenile sex
offender unit, and violence intervention specialist. His current assignment is
in the Mentoring Network. Georgeąs current duties consist of recruitment of
mentors/volunteers, public and community relations, speaking engagements,
liaison between mentors/mentees and probation officers, training and orientation
of volunteers, and community outreach.
Amalia Diaz de Leon
Ms. Amalia Diaz de Leon is the Bi-Lingual outreach worker for the City of
Rockford-Human Services Department, a Public Community Action Agency funded to
serve Boone and Winnebago Counties in addressing poverty issues and concerns.
She has been with the City of Rockford for eleven years.
Amalia is the founder and coordinator of the Boone County Tutoring Program in
Belvidere, Il. This program supports Spanish-speaking high school students in
Belvidere, helping them graduate from high school and attend an institution of
higher education. Ms. Diaz deLeon serves on the Board of Directors for
Hispanic Community Health Advisory Group in Boone County and the Ethnic Heritage
Museum of Rockford. She is active with ALERTA of Belvidere, a community service
organization and the Food Security Summit, which promotes organically grown
produce.
In September of 2005, Ms. Diaz de Leon was a participant in the Senate Hispanic
Leadership Summit in Washington, DC.
Lara Dieckmann, Cabrini Connections, www.cabriniconnections.net
Lara Dieckmann is currently the program coordinator and fundraising
specialist for Cabrini Connections. Previously, she worked in development at two
local non-profit organizations: Beyondmedia Education and About Face Theatre.
Ms. Dieckmann received her doctorate in performance and cultural studies from
Northwestern University and was on the faculty of the film, theatre and
communications department at California State University at Los Angeles. She
also taught courses in Creative Writing for the Media at Northwestern and
Community Organizing at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Lara works at
Cabrini Connections with the Art and Video club; she herself is an amateur
artist and crafter. Her favorite pasttime is creating handmade cards for
friends, family and fundraisers.
Mark Duhon, Executive Director, Highsight.
A native of Akron, Ohio, Mr. Duhon graduated in 1988 from Ohio State
University. He lived in New York City and worked in a soup kitchen before moving
to Chicago to work for the University of Chicago. He began volunteering as a
second grade tutor at St. Joseph's Elementary School and became chairman of its
school board. In the spring of 1992, armed with a lot of heart and a few loft
ideas about providing access to educational opportunities for the children of
St. Joseph's and Chicago's inner-city, Mr. Duhon helped found HighSight. www.HighSight.org
Barb Englund, barb@n2r.net
Barb Englund is the Executive Director of NET at TWO RIVERS for the past 10
years. Along with many other corporations, this organization has developed a
software available on the World Wide Web called "Follow the Yellow Brick
Road E-Mentoring" or FYBR located at www.fybr.org.
This program has allowed many kids from hard hit areas experience the love and
knowledge of e-mentors from all over Northern California. One of the many goals
of the program is to think "outside of the box" and create
possibilities where there would normally be none. To create opportunities out of
bleak circumstances and to REALLY MAKE A DIFFERENCE in the lives of kids as well
as their e-mentors.
Prior to developing FYBR, Barb, along with a wonderful volunteer staff, ran a
very successful federal grant given to her organization by the Department of
Commerce to train functionally illiterate people how to use the internet in
public access points throughout two states. As result of that success, FYBR was
born and is still successful today.
Meet Barb in the on-line portal at: http://msg.uc.iupui.edu/TMC/html/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&t=14
Audrey
George-Griffin, Executive Director, Horizons for Youth, Chicago
Audrey George-Griffin is the Executive Director of Horizons for Youth, which
serves children from low-income areas through education and mentoring programs
during the elementary school years. Horizons
for Youth offers its students comprehensive, long-term services that involve the
entire family. Students begin with
Horizons as early as kindergarten and continue through the eighth grade.
They receive private school scholarships, academic support if needed,
adult mentors, and monthly enrichment activities.
Horizons for Youth boasts a 100% high school graduation rate and a 67%
college attendance rate for its alumni.
Prior to joining Horizons for Youth, Audrey served as the Director of
Development for the “I Have a Dream” Foundation.
Her experience also includes working as the Director of Corporate and
Foundation Relations at the Greater Chicago Food Depository, and as the Youth
Director for Blessed Sacrament Youth Center.
Audrey earned her bachelor’s degree at the University of Notre Dame and
her master’s degree in Social Service Administration from the University of
Chicago.
Contact Audrey at audrey@horizons-for-youth.org
Eloyce M. Gillespie, Executive Director, Collaborative Youth Development
Services, Inc., Mission, Kansas
Formerly an elementary school teacher, Mrs. Gillespie has extensive experience
working with youth in grades K-12 in after school and summer programs,
such as the Collaborative Youth Development Services, Inc. Primarily serving low
and moderate income youth, CDYS is a non-profit organization focusing on
mentoring youth and providing staff development and training to those who
interact with youth.
Mrs. Gillespie holds a bachelor's degree in elementary education and maintains
her teaching certification in Kansas. She received her Master's degree in
Education Administration from the University of Missouri-Kansas where her focus
was urban leadership and policy studies in education. elgille@kckps.org
Dr. Edward E. Gordon, Imperial Consulting Corp.,
Dr. Gordon is has been involved in tutoring practice and research for over 30
years. While teaching in Early Childhood Education at DePaul University,
Chicago, Dr. Gordon developed a mastery-learning-based tutoring program that
provided diagnostic-developmental instruction to over 10,000 children and 20,000
adults. In 1982 this was the first tutoring program that was accredited by
the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.
Dr. Gordon's research has been published in such
books as Peer Tutoring: A Teacher's Resource Guide (2005), Centuries of Tutoring
(1990), and Tutor Quest: Finding Effective Education for Children and Adults
(2002), and Literacy in America: Historic Journey and Contemporary Solutions
(2003). soon to be published is Tutoring Research and Student Achievement: Best
Practices and Policy Implications. Gordon's work has been featured in
ASCD's Education Update, the Phi Delta Kappan, Principal Leadership (NASSP), the
Futurist, and the NASSP Bulletin.
As President of Imperial Consulting Corporation,
Ed Gordon has provided a wide array of educational institutions, government
agencies, trade associations, and businesses with his research, coaching, and
consulting assistance, including tutor training. As chairman of a Better
Business Bureau Trade Practice Committee, he guided the development of the first
advertising and professional standards on tutoring for the 150 Better Business
Bureaus across the United States and Canada.
Ed Gordon has appeared on the CBS network's
"The Early Show," CNN, NPR, and many other TV and radio programs as an
advocate for education reform. Dr. Gordon serves on many boards including
the Illinois Literacy Resources Development Center, the Association of Tutoring
Professionals, and the Tutor/Mentor Connection. He is a member of the
Education Quality Workforce Committee of the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce and
the Youth Council of the Chicago Workforce Board. Learn more at: www.imperialcorp.com
Erica L. Harris, Program Manager, Supplemental Education Services, Chicago
Public Schools
Erica L. Harris was hired at Program Manager for Supplemental Educational
Services for the Chicago Public Schools in June 2004. In this role, she
manages the relationships between private providers and the district, and works
directly with school administrators, teachers and families to ensure that CPS
students receive the quality after school programming they deserve. As a
former public school teacher in Washington, DC, Eridca is familiar with the
challenges and frustrations that SES raises for schools, parents, and
communities. In 2001, Erica earned a Masters in Public Policy from the
University of Chicago. She also has a Bachelor's in Political Science from
Spelman College. Visit the CPS After School Web Site at http://www.cpsafterschool.org/home.html
Nathan Harris, IUPUI
Kevin Hogan, YMCA of Metropolitan
Chicago
Mr.
Hogan is a human services professional with a Masters in Public Administration
and broad experience providing direct services to individuals with disabilities;
writing corporate, foundation, and government grants and development
communications for a major non-profit organization; designing, implementing, and
evaluating individual transition programs for high school youth; and collecting
and analyzing data. He was been with the YMCA since 2001 and was with the U.S.
Peace Corps, Tapa, Estonia from 1998
to 2000. Mr. Hogan was Rehabilitation Services Supervisor
with the Illinois Department of Human Services, Office of
Rehabilitation Services, Champaign, from 1992 to 1998.
Kevin is also Editor,
Chicago Area Peace Corps Association’s bi-monthly newsletter
and has been a Tutor
with East Village Youth Program since January 2004.
Phillip Jackson, President, Black Star
Project
Phillip Jackson is a nationally renowned speaker on educating Black and
Latino children. The Black Star Project, a 501(c)3 organization, is
committed to improving the quality of life in the Black and Latino communities
of Chicago by eliminating the racial academic achievement gap. The mission of
The Black Star Project is to provide educational services that help pre-school
through college students succeed academically with the support of their parents,
families, schools and communities. Additionally, the Black Star Project helps
students aspire to post-secondary educational opportunities and training as they
explore careers that will be emotionally, intellectually and financially
rewarding. Services are available to all students in Chicago Public Schools,
particularly low-income Black and Latino students who attend low-achieving
schools in disadvantaged communities. http://www.blackstarproject.org
Joan Klaus,
Bank One Saturday Scholars Program; Founder, Illinois College Access Network
Joan M. Klaus is a Vice President and Philanthropy Manager, JP Morgan Chase,
the nation’s third largest bank holding company.
She is responsible for coordinating education grants and initiatives.
In this capacity she oversees the Chase community schools, coordinates
special projects, leverages grants with major institutions and other nonprofits.
She was formerly the Vice
President and Foundation Director for the First National Bank of Chicago and
American National Bank, a legacy company. She
was responsible for coordinating the American National Bank’s corporate
contributions, and all of the parent bank, First Chicago, education grants and
partnerships. In this capacity, she
formerly directed the Hire the Future Program, founded the Saturday Scholars
program, and guided partnerships with four Chicago Public Elementary Schools.
Prior to that, she was the
Executive Director of the University Village Association, a neighborhood
economic and community development organization.
She was responsible for all programs and expansion of the organization.
Programs included housing, economic development and education.
Ms. Klaus is currently on the
boards of Scholarship Chicago, Associated Colleges of Illinois, The Campaign to
Expand Community Schools, and the Notre Dame de Chicago Foundation. .
She is founder and Chair of the Illinois College Access Network at the
Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce. In
2002, the Corporate Responsibility Group of Chicago named her “Person of the
Year.”
Ms. Klaus taught school in the
Iowa City School System for eight years. She
received her baccalaureate degree from Loyola University. She
lives in Chicago with her husband, Robert.
They have three grown children.
Dr. Sylvia Cobos Lieshoff,
National Center for Family Literacy, representing Verizon Literacy Campus
http://www.famlit.org
Sylvia Cobos Lieshoff, Training Specialist at the National Center for Family
Literacy (NCFL), has a Ph.D in Educational Human Resource Development from Texas
A&M University, College Station, TX. Lieshoff has experience as an
Even Start state director, adjunct university instructor, educational
consultant, Cooperative Extension associate, equity coordinator, and classroom
teacher. At NCFL, she designed workshops and provided training for Head Start
and Migrant Head Start staff, provided technical support for the network of Even
Start state coordinators, developed professional development materials and
facilitated trainings across the country. Lieshoff creates online courses
and resources for the Verizon Literacy Campus, http://literacycampus.org,
project.
Devon Lovell, Director, Community Tutoring
Program (E-A), Family Matters
Devon Lovell studied secondary education at Northwestern University with a
concentration in Speech Education and English.
She taught high school English, theater and humanities for nine years. In 2000, Devon came to Family Matters as the Tutoring
Coordinator. In recent years,
Devon has pursued training in multi-sensory teaching techniques.
She has attended seminars with the Illinois Branch of the International
Dyslexia Association and the North Chicago Chapter of the Learning Disabilities
Association. Devon completed a
course in multi-sensory phonics instruction from the Reading and Language Arts
Center (approved by the International Multi-Sensory Language Education Council).
www.familymatterschicago.org/awards.html
Loomis Mayfield, Consultant in Education,
Training, and Community Development
Loomis Mayfield's professional interests are
community based policy research and education on urban affairs, collaborative
partnerships, and public affairs. He has published articles and taught courses
in service learning, urban and community studies, and urban history.
Mayfield’s previous positions
include coordinator of the Illinois After-School Alliance; coordinator of the
UIC Neighborhoods Initiative; and research coordinator for the Policy Research
Action Group (PRAG), a consortium of universities (Loyola, DePaul, UIC, and
Chicago State University) and community groups in the Chicago metropolitan area.
Before his work with PRAG, Mayfield worked on various academic research projects
and in advocacy and field work with political organizations in Washington, DC.
Mayfield’s civic activities
and interests include election to the Local School Council for Nicholas Senn
High School in Rogers Park, Chicago; and board membership and work with various
community groups and associations. He received the Outstanding Community
Commitment Award from Renacer Westside Community Network in 1998.
Mayfield
received his Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh; his M.A. from Northern
Illinois University; and his B.A. from Indiana University.
Jacqueline McMahon, Illinois Student Assistance Commission, http://www.collegezone.com/
.
Illinois Mentor is ISAC's free career and college planning tool that promotes
access to college for all Illinois students, available this December.
Nathan Miller, Advocacy & Resource Corporation, Cookesville, TN
Nathan Miller is currently employed as a case management team leader at the
Advocacy & Resources Center. There he supervises a case management team that
provides services for disabled persons in eight rural counties in the Upper
Cumberland areas of Middle Tennessee. Other responsibilities there have
included being a mentor, serving on the ARC Mentoring Selection and Rules
Committee, as well as program development and coordinating the Advocacy &
Resources local involvement with the All American Soap Box Derby. Miller
also worked in a rural mental health center where he was assigned for three
years to the Continuous Treatment Team, which provided mental health case
management services to the severely and chronically mentally ill. He also has
served on several committees for and is member of the Tennessee Commission on
Children and Youth and has recently assisted in establishing two rural adult
drug courts in Tennessee. He received his Bachelor's degree from Middle
Tennessee State University in 1996 after majoring in Criminal Justice
Administration, and in 2002 received his Master's degree in Educational
Psychology from Tennessee Technological University.
Debra
Brodsky Natenshon
Debra B. Natenshon is the CEO for the Center
for What Works. Since 2004, she has
been actively building and managing the organizational infrastructure, research,
strategy and relationships to ensure its success. Debra is a social entrepreneur
who uses her skills in creative problem solving to advance the organizations she
leads. She has extensive experience in organizational development, project
management, sales and client services.
In
addition to leading the Center for What Works, Debra is the founding leader
of the Chicago professional chapter of Net Impact, a global nonprofit network
that uses the power of business for positive social change. Prior to her current
professional role, Debra worked in several international service industry
businesses. Most recently, she helped launch GPSLink, a global relocation
technology company, as the lead project manager. In that position, she developed
full cycle plans and successfully implemented the first corporate client. Prior
to that, Debra worked for IOR Global Services, an intercultural training and
consulting company, where she designed and streamlined business processes for
several Fortune 100 corporate clients.
Debra holds
a Masters degree in Organizational Management with an emphasis on the nonprofit
sector from the School for International Training. Her thesis focused
on social entrepreneurs and their effective use of performance measurement strategies
to improve performance. She received a Bachelor's degree from the
University of Kansas, with honors in English. Debra has studied, lived and
worked in England, Japan, India, Israel, and Argentina. She uses her evolving
knowledge of the world to learn, leverage and contribute on a daily basis.
dnatenshon@whatworks.org
The
Center for What Works
The Center for What
Works is a performance measurement and benchmarking resource center that
provides tools, tips, and techniques to improve social sector results.
Established in 1994, The Center underwent a strategic realignment in
2004. The Center is dedicated to
creating a common language that allows the sector to compare accomplishments. The
Center is completing the initial phase of a rigorous research initiative to
develop a sector-wide framework of program outcomes and indicators.
The results of this study will help social sector service providers to
better measure, manage, and improve performance. Learn more about The Center’s work by visiting www.whatworks.org.
LaDawn Noorwood, Director of Youth
Development, YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago
LaDawn Norwood is the Director of Youth Development with the YMCA of
Metropolitan Chicago. She is responsible for the development, management and
execution of numerous citywide youth development programs that serve
youth between the ages of 12-18. Mrs. Norwood has over ten years experience in
the youth development arena. At DePaul University she conducted workshops and
seminars on collegiate issues and concerns for freshmen students. Mrs. Norwood
served on a research team at Cook County Hospital that researched causes and
possible solutions to teen handgun violence. She served as a program development
committee member, mentor, and tutor for a Chicagoland mentoring program for
female high school students. Mrs. Norwood was also an advisory committee member
of the Chicagoland L.E.A.D.E.R. Institute, a leadership development program for
high students. In addition, Norwood was a contributing author to Implementing
Reform: Stories of Stability and Change in 14 Schools.
Mrs. Norwood has a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from DePaul University and will
be attaining her Masters of Arts in Education from DePaul University in June
2006. LaDawn_Nelson@ymcachgo.org
http://www.ymcachgo.org
Kristen Palana, William Patterson University, palank@wpunj.edu
Kristen Palana, is an Assistant Professor of Art at William Paterson
University in Wayne, NJ. In June, 2004 she started a website called Aura's House
at http://www.aurashouse.com
to help a family in Guatemala get a safe, sturdy brick home. To date my
students, friends, and volunteers have helped run the site and we have raised
over $12,000 for needy familes in Guatemala, Honduras, and now India, and
Zambia. Meet Kristen in the on-line portal at
http://msg.uc.iupui.edu/TMC/html/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&t=15
Rita Planera, Corboy &
Demetrio; Member of Executive Board, Abraham Lincoln Marovitz Lend A Hand
Program, http://www.lend-a-hand.net
Trained at Robert Morris College as a legal secretary,
Rita began her legal career as a legal assistant at Corboy & Demetrio in
April, 1981. Beginning in 1987, and for the following 10 years, she worked as
the personal assistant for Thomas A. Demetrio. She was Tom's assistant during
his presidency of the Chicago Bar Association. It was during that time that the
Lend-A-Hand fund was born, and she had the privilege of being a part of its
growth and the establishment of its mission, concurrent with the vision of the
man in whose honor it all began. Currently, as the Assistant Administrator for
Corboy & Demetrio, she is honored to serve as a member of the CBA's
Lend-A-Hand Advisory Board.
VeRita Quinn, Family
Resource Coordinator, Rich Township High School District 227
VeRita is a native of Chicago, born on the Southside, raised in
Cabrini-Green. VeRita attended, Edward Jenner, Richard E. Byrd, Cooley Upper
Grade Center and Robert A. Waller (Lincoln Park Academy) High School. She
attended the University of Illinois – Champaign-Urbana, Governor State
University, Lewis University (Romeoville), and is now pursuing her degree in
Biblical Studies from Evangelical Teaching Association.
VeRita grew up in Cabrini and watched the
many changes. As an employee of the YMCA – Isham Branch, she was around when
this Tutor/Mentor Program began.
Now working in the Rich
Township High School District 227, as a Family Resource Coordinator, she just
recently helped to introduce a Pilot Mentoring Program at Rich Central High
School. Formerly in the District, she worked as an Instructional Assistant, with
teachers and students in English, Reading, and Social Studies.
VeRita has a passion to see
young people succeed, and encourages them in anyway she can. She is an associate
Minister at her church, Anointed Word International Ministries, and interacts
with the youth there. She is an encourager, exhorter, workshop, seminar speaker
and/or teacher. She has worked with young people since the age of 14 years old
beginning in the Cabrini-Green area. Never in her wildest dreams did she
imagine, it would take her to the places and before the people she has met.
Jody Reecer, Advocacy & Resource Corporation, Cookesville,
TN
Jody Reecer is employed as a case management team leader at the Advocacy &
Resources Corporation (ARC) in the Community Services Division. He supervises a
team that provides case management services to the disabled population of the
Upper Cumberland Region of Tennessee. Jody has also served in several
capacities at ARC ranging from mentor to co-mentoring coordinator. Jody has also
served in several other community activities such as Rotary International,
Tennessee Council on Children and Youth, and a team member in a juvenile drug
court, and served in developing an adult drug court program in Putnam County,
Tennessee. He received his Bachelor of Arts Degree from Tennessee Technological
University, and is currently working on his Master's Degree in Education from
TTU.
Denis Rigdon, Executive Director, Project HOPE
Project HOPE of Cape
Girardeau, MO is a faith based mentoring initiative
serving 70 community faith based entities plus
other social and community development organizations in S MO and S
IL From its
inception 5 years ago, PH has been
instrumental in training some 700 faith-based
mentors who work in multiple
areas of social ministry facilitating
life transformation of marginalized individuals, families, single moms,
youth and others. PH asks participants
to profess a commitment to positive faith and
fellowship growth along with a promise to work their life plan to transform
their lives. In
addition to the mentoring process carried on by these faith based mentors,
areas of ministry include: personal
development, financial planning, community and economic development,
job search, acquisition skills,
reentry and recovery, furniture
provision, vehicle provision and transportation, IDA program, regional housing
needs, entrepreneurial development, micro-enterprise support and other ministries
linking people to community resources thru a
flexible, more effective outreach approach.
Mentoring is aimed at filling gaps in social services
thru the faith community. PH
also works in the areas of providing transportation, job support, transitional
and permanent housing. Family education that is life transforming is the focus,
teaching individuals to be responsible,
committed and becoming contributors
to society, family and the faith
based community. Mentors supply support to individuals and families in this
process of positive change. The
mentoring process allows faith committed individual to participate at all level
of human potential development, training, while
experiencing positive life experiences of their own lives and
those with which they work. . The partnership developed between mentor and participants
often result in longtime relationships in a spirit
of personal dignity, stewardship of God
given talents and life transformation.
The end result is often "a
hand up rather then a hand out” in an
environment of faith commitment and positive
action.
Odette
F. Samuelson, Manager of
Organization Development at Pace Suburban Bus Service,
Odette Samuelson has over fifteen years
experience in organization development, adult education, facilitation and
quality assurance.
As the Manager of Organization Development at Pace Suburban Bus Service, she
facilitates corporate change initiatives as well as managing training and
development for non-bargained-for employees.
Odette also has experience in Total Quality Management at Corcom, Inc.
and Baxter Healthcare Corporation.
Odette
holds a degree in International Business from University of Hawaii and a M. ED.
in Human Resource Development from University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.
She is also a certified facilitator in Achieve Global’s Leadership and
Customer Service systems.
Bernadette
Sanchez, Assistant Professor, DePaul University
Bernadette
Sánchez is currently an Assistant Professor of Psychology at DePaul University.
Bernadette obtained her Ph.D. in Community and Prevention Research from
the University of Illinois at Chicago. She
has been conducting research on youth’s mentoring relationships in Chicago for
10 years. Her research has mostly
focused on the role of mentoring in the academic achievement of Latino and
African American adolescents. She
has consulted with an array of mentoring programs in Chicago and Puerto Rico.
Bernadette has also conducted program evaluations with a variety of
nonprofit organizations and programs, such as a program targeting homeless adult
men and women, a program focused on health behaviors among African American
early adolescents, and an organization that provides technical assistance and
resources to programs related to HIV/AIDS in the Latino community.
Beth
Swanson,
Director, Supplemental Education Services, Chicago
Public Schools
Beth is responsible for the NCLB Program of CPS and the relationships between private providers and the district, and works
directly with school administrators, teachers and families to ensure that CPS
students receive the quality after school programming they deserve. Visit the CPS After School Web Site at http://www.cpsafterschool.org/home.html
Janet Takehara, Recruitment and Partnership
Development Manager, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metropolitan Chicago
Janet
received a Master's of
Education degree in Community Counseling from Loyola University.
Prior to her current position, Janet served Big Brothers Big Sisters as a
Case Manager, Outreach Coordinator, Vice President of Programs and a contract
trainer for the Chicago Mentoring Institute.
Learn more at http://www.bbbschgo.org
Alexandria Taylor is the
College Program Coordinator for the Associated Colleges of Illinois.
The Associated Colleges of Illinois (ACI) is a group of private colleges and
universities rooted in the liberal arts tradition working with business,
government, and community leaders. She is responsible for student retention and
coordinating the scholarship program. Alexandria comes to ACI with eight years
of experience from North Park University as the Director of the Center for
Africana Studies. Before leaving NPU, she was promoted to Assistant Dean for
Multicultural Student Development. Alexandria has a strong understanding of
student success in college. She have presented and created different programs
and workshops addressing student needs in higher education. Alexandria holds a
Bachelor of Art in Political Science with a minor in Public Administration from
Fayetteville State University and a Master of Arts in Multicultural Education
with a concentration in International Leadership from Columbia College in
Chicago, IL.
Helen A. Warren, Mentoring Network for
Juvenile Court Wards, Chicago, Il.
Helen Warren has been participating in Tutor/Mentor Leadership Conferences for
many years. She is Supervising Probation Officer of the Mentoring Network for
Juvenile Court Wards of the Circuit Court of Cook County. Helen has been a
family therapist, a group therapist, has worked with Chemical Dependent Clients
and has been a volunteer mentor. She received an undergraduate Bachelor of
Arts in Sociology from Roosevelt University and a Masters of Science in
Correctional Psychology from Chicago State University. She is a resident
of the Southside of Chicago.
Terri Williams, DePaul University
Terri
Williams is currently enrolled in the Community Psychology Doctoral Program at
DePaul University. Terri obtained
her Bachelors of Arts in Psychology from Williams College in Williamstown, MA.
She has conducted research with youth in and around the city of Chicago
for three years. Her research interests range from educational based programs
to community interventions designed for populations of color.
Recently, she conducted a program evaluation with a local nonprofit
organization whose primary focus is to educate and empower high school students
within Chicago Public Schools.
_______________________________________________________________________________
Join in planning future conferences:
One goal of the T/MC
Conference is to create a community of people who learn from each other,
network, and collaborate to help volunteer-based tutor/mentor programs grow in
all places where they are needed. We encourage all workshop presenters,
conference participants and interested supporters, including business and
foundation leaders, to visit the DISCUSSION Section at http://www.tutormentorexchange.net/Partner/CC/egroups/egroups.htm
where you can join one or more groups in this community.
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