Literacy First

“Having the opportunity to be in the classroom and to be a tutor really had a big impact on me. It informed so many of my decisions, and I saw firsthand the need for bilingual and bicultural public servants,” shared one of our tutor alums, Aissa Olivarez.

Growing up in the Rio Grande Valley, Aissa spent a lot of time in schools since her mother was a school administrator, but she didn’t always see herself working as an educator. It wasn’t until she attended UT and had the opportunity to serve as an AmeriCorps Volunteer and Literacy First tutor in 2008 that she realized her passion for working with young students. After graduating, she decided to get her alternative teaching certification and taught in Austin ISD for five years.

Eventually, Aissa decided she wanted to do more to address gaps in access to education and other public resources, which she noticed while working as a teacher. One of her student’s experiences with immigration stuck with her, and she decided to leave the classroom to pursue law school with a focus on immigration law.

Aissa now lives and works in Wisconsin and serves the community as an immigration lawyer and nonprofit leader at the Community Immigration Law Center. She credits her time with Literacy First for helping her become a successful nonprofit leader. “Literacy First was a program that led us and treated us well. The leaders there really cared about what our passions were. It gave me a great experience and paved the way for me to become the leader that I am in the nonprofit world.”

Thank you, Aissa, for your AmeriCorps service and continued community leadership as a public servant!

While our tutors teach students how to read, they often learn valuable lessons from their students in return. Charleye, a former tutor, worked with an eager-to-learn student named Damien. One day during their lesson, Damien made a mistake and Charleye noticed that his attitude quickly changed from excited to deflated.

Charleye adapted to Damien’s needs and began incorporating daily affirmations at the start of their lessons. This practice helped Damien build confidence, and he started talking to himself with more positivity. Charleye shared that “although he had difficulty reading, Damien remained his joyful and confident self. Damien taught me to always smile, talk nicely to myself, and never give up.”

Read Charleye’s full reflection on working with Damien on our blog: https://ow.ly/p4Cf50Z6Mxb

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