VISTA of the Month/Mar. 2010

March 2010:  Genevieve Ray/Turning Pages (TP) 

1. Where are you from?  My heritage is Irish and Texan, but I have roots in Maine, Ohio, and Michigan.
 

2. What were you doing before becoming an AmeriCorps VISTA? I was working in a pediatric endocrinology research lab at the University of Michigan. 

3. Why did you join AmeriCorps VISTA?  I wanted to work directly with people, not just their cells. I wanted to make a difference now, rather than 20 or 30 years down the road, as is sometimes the case in medical research. 

4. What are your duties as a VISTA?  I recruit, train, and match volunteer tutors with adults who are working on their reading, math, computer skills, or English as a new language -- I’m a matchmaker. I leverage human resources and sometimes financial ones as well.

5. What are your goals from your year of service?   To see an impact. To develop myself professionally and as a person. To meet and talk to as many people as possible.


6. What are your plans after your year of service?  I would like to go back to school to study Public Health.

7. Any special accomplishments?   We have seen a significant increase in the number of learners served and volunteers matched. We have formed a family literacy partnership with Tutor Eau Claire, serving parents of children in the after-school program. I have learned so much about education in South Carolina and about adult education. I have learned the correct usages of the term “ya’ll.”

Genevieve is currently the volunteer coordinator at Turning Pages. She is also writing a grant to upgrade the technology in the computer lab and updating the Turning Pages website. To get involved, contact her at 803-240-2441 or literacycolumbia@earthlink.net.