Starting in January of 2015, I began volunteering at The Dowd Education Center. I decided to get involved with The Semester of Service Project through the Scholars Program and The Dowd Education Center was where I got placed. Last spring, I was in the third grade classroom helping the students with their homework. I enjoyed my time at The Dowd and the kids so much that I decided to spend some time there over the summer and this entire school year as a reading mentor for two girls. Each week, I go and read with the girls to work on their fluency and comprehension skills. I have built friendships with these girls as well as some of the other students at The Dowd. I enjoy having conversations with them about what is going on in their lives’ and I enjoy answering their questions about my life and college.

     From my time at The Dowd so far, I have definitely learned skills and tips that are important to keep in the front of my mind both for both now and in the future. The most valuable piece of advice I have received is that consistency in these kids lives’ is the most important thing because it is not always in their lives’ as much as it should be. Whether it is in the discipline, the daily routines, or the volunteers showing up, consistency is very valued at The Dowd. By showing up weekly, I have been able to build relationships with the kids and earn their trust. This is beneficial because the conversations become more authentic and my time there is more purposeful. Something else I learned from this experience is patience. The kids at The Dowd have a lot going on in their life outside of their school work, more so than other children their age. Sometimes, getting them to focus on the task at hand is challenging but I’ve learned that the best way to deal with this is through a softer tone and a request for them to respect you. The agenda doesn’t always go as planned and learning to role with how the student is feeling that day as long as it is not at the expense of respect (which The Dowd works very hard to instill in the children), is an important skill I have learned.

     One of my favorite quotes is from Mother Teresa in which she states, “In this life we can not do great things. We can only do small things with great love”. I haven’t changed the world with my service project but I have been a mentor for two little girls who are advancing in their literacy skills through our weekly time together and who have someone to talk with about life. Hopefully, I have also been a positive light for other students at The Dowd by being someone who cares about them as a person and by telling them that they can all go to college. I have met some incredible staff members who have demonstrated what sacrifice looks like in a number of different ways, especially with their personal time. Due to this service learning project, I have gained insight into what working in a non-profit organization looks like and how to relate to children from a different upbringing than what I had. The kids at The Dowd have inspired me because despite great adversity in their life, they are happy, well-behaved, thankful, and hard-working.

For my Informational Interview, I chose to ask insight from the Curriculum Coordinator from The Homeless Families Foundation.  Her name is Erin Priest and she is a wonderful, talented, and hard-working woman.  I chose to interview Erin Priest because of the relationship I have built with her over the past year of volunteering at The Dowd Education Center and because she is someone I look up to.  Erin works extremely hard to make sure that the children at The Dowd Education Center, part of the Homeless Families Foundation, receive the assistance they need with reading and school work so that they do not fall behind.  Erin also has taught in the Columbus City School District and as a place I might hope to teach someday, I wanted her to share her wisdom with me from the real life experience of teaching.

As I mentioned above, Erin is the Curriculum Coordinator at The Dowd Education Center.  However, Erin states, “…as is the reality of any nonprofit job position, that doesn’t even begin to cover what I’m responsible for. The main roles I fill are: helping Beth to navigate and understand the education requirements of our grants, helping staff (both on the Dowd side of things as well as the housing portion of HFF) to serve our families and students when there is a question about any aspect of education (IEPs, grades, summer school requirements, testing, etc.), aiding teachers in understanding the Columbus City Schools curriculum requirements and state standards so that they are able to teach lessons and provide support for what their Dowd students are learning in school and expected to know for testing, assessing all students enrolled at The Dowd in reading achievement 3-4 times a year and providing intervention for the lowest performing students, and maintaining and growing the main and classroom libraries. I also am a member of our leadership team (one of three full-time employees for The Dowd) and am responsible for any duties that may involve”.  Needless to say, Erin has truly dedicated not only her time but her complete heart to her position.  Even when the kids who attend The Dowd Education Center have days off, Erin is always there trying to prepare materials or organize the books in the library for the children.

I asked Erin how she got to be where she is today, and she said it was a very difficult but necessary path.  She started out in psychology as an undergrad at The Ohio State University and eventually switched to education.  She fell in love with her classes and she was intrigued with the modern education world and its problems.  Erin then went back home to grad school to receive her teaching license and then became a substitute teacher in Columbus City Schools.  Next, she had her own classroom in Columbus City Schools for three years.  She said that these were the toughest years of her life.  She was constantly in an uphill battle.  A lot of the challenges came from her not being able to have the flexibility to teach the students what she thought they really needed.  Erin stated that “I was driven by a passion for my kids and the desire to help and elevate the ones that no one else thought could learn”.  With her deep passion and with no room to deviate from the structured lesson plans, Erin decided she wanted to leave and go somewhere where she felt like she could work to her full potential.  The Dowd Education Center was looking for a part time Reading Intervention Specialist at the time and Erin was fortunate enough to get the position.  Two years ago, a new director of The Dowd Education Center came on board and asked Erin to take on the position she has now.  Without the eventful road to her current position, Erin says, “I wouldn’t have the knowledge I use every day to help our kids and parents navigate such a ridiculous education system, I wouldn’t have the background I needed to understand the kids and parents I work with at The Dowd, and I wouldn’t have the relationships I have to stay connected to what’s happening in education”.

Lastly, Erin was very kind to provide me with some advice.  She told me to not limit what I think about when it comes to the careers in education.  She mentioned that becoming a teacher is not the only option.  Erin said, “…you can work in the private sector and help write text books or curriculum, you can work for the state and do something with ODE, you can teach, you can see what local nonprofits are doing with education and take that route, you can teach at the college level, there are million different things. I would say find a few that intrigue you and go visit people who do that. Talk to someone who does that job or even shadow them for a day. Also, don’t be afraid to be open to possibilities you can’t even imagine right now”.

The final words Erin said were these.  They are truly inspiring and I can only hope to be as passionate about my job in the future as she is about hers.

My Question: Why do you do what you do?

Her Answer: “Because I can’t imagine living a life where I’m living for me. Don’t get me wrong, I do a lot of things because I enjoy them or because they’re what’s right for my family, but I can’t imagine my life not serving a purpose greater than myself. Society as a whole likes to pretend an entire population doesn’t exist because it’s hard to see and deal with human suffering. The issues of homelessness, poverty, racism, human trafficking, etc. are tough things for people to imagine, so they choose to ignore them. I believe everyone deserves to be seen. I believe every child deserves to know they are important and capable. I don’t want to be a voice for those without one, because then I’m assuming I’m more capable then they are. I want to teach those whose voices have been hidden that their voices are important, valid, and important. I want to teach our kids they have every right anyone else does, they just may have to fight a little harder for them”.

In conclusion, this informational interview was very helpful and I definitely want to continue to pick people’s brains who have more knowledge and experience than I currently do.