My Nonprofit Reviews

I have tutored with them since 2008, subsequently became a mentor, and now I occasionally am asked to help with training of tutors. There are something over 800 of us volunteers, and the professional (paid) staff is, I believe, 4. Yet the organization works quite well. EVERYONE is dedicated, and hard-working, and smart. ALL the effort is directed toward the learners, their needs and their goals. My learners, in terms of their educations, have ranged from a PhD from Korea who badly needed English conversation skills, to native English speakers lacking a high school diploma and needing the credential and the supporting skills to get a job. All these learners want independence, success in work, and a sense of community. It is such a treat to work with them---definitely the most fun I've ever had at work.

I retired after 40 years working at the University of Michigan and immediately volunteered with Washtenaw Literacy. It is about the best thing I ever did. The agency has a small paid staff and then hundreds of volunteers. The staff train everybody and then rely on experienced tutors to help the new ones. The staff provide continuing professional development opportunities, and the collaboration between volunteers and staff is wonderful. I tutor both ESL and native-English-user folks, and on either side they can be young adults or senior citizens or anyone in between. Many of us have had the experience of a learner saying "you have changed my life." What could be more satisfying than that?

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