It didn’t seem like much to ask. Rosemary Bonner* only
wanted to read bedtime stories to her new baby granddaughter.
However for Bonner, the task was nearly impossible since she
only had a second grade education and could not read more than
the most common words.
Her granddaughter was all the motivation Rosemary needed though, to enroll in
a program sponsored by her employer. As a custodian in UGA’s Department
of University Housing, Bonner was eligible to access literacy teachers and a
support network so that she could learn how to read – and she would be
paid for her time and effort.
There are approximately 26 students each semester who consistently attend Department
of University Housing’s Adult Education program with more who drop in for
classes for a couple weeks at a time. An instructor from Athens Technical College
teaches classes four days a week in subject areas like English as a Second Language,
computers, reading, math/life skills and GED preparation. Some employees who
speak Spanish tutor others who want to learn to speak that language. The students
also produce a monthly newsletter called LINKS - Learning is New Knowledge and
Skills to practice and showcase their reading, writing, and computer skills.
“We want our students to succeed at whatever level they want to succeed,” explains
M. Keener Scott, Associate Director for Staff Development. “We don’t
impose our values on them. We just embrace their values and help them reach their
goals. If they want to learn to read to their granddaughter, we help them to
do that. If they want to learn to balance their checkbook, we help them do that.
If they want to develop their skills further and get their high-school equivalency
degree, we help them do that too.” Scott has a Ph.D. from UGA’s Department
of Adult Education.
The program is offered to all Housing employees from maintenance and custodial
staff to support and professional staff. They are allowed two hours during each
forty-hour workweek to take classes in a dedicated adult education classroom
on the bottom floor of Creswell Hall. This location also helps ease the burden
for those who rely on public transportation because they are already on campus
for work.
“The work release time just makes sense,” said housing director Jim
Day. “Helping our employees to succeed in their personal life makes their
work life less stressful. They make fewer mistakes, take less time off, and increase
their productivity. The return on our investment in these employees is increased
many times.”
* a pseudonym
Building the New Learning Environment
The new learning environment is an academic and intellectual
community on the campus of the University of Georgia humming
with the vibrancy of the true college experience—bright
and talented students working with brilliant faculty formally
in the classroom and informally over a cup of coffee or lounging
in the greenspace which stretches from one end of campus to
the other. It is a place which recognizes that new information
technologies are transforming traditional academic disciplines
and embraces those opportunities. |
There
are approximately 26 students each semester who consistently attend
Department of University Housing’s Adult Education program
with more who drop in for classes for a couple weeks at a time.
