VISTA Projects
2010-2011
Matthew Wampler's VISTA projects-
XCELL Mentor Program – Coordinating the second year of a program funded by a Tennessee Board of Regents Access and Diversity Grant. The program is an educational mentor program for English Language Learning and/or Hispanic students in area high schools. The program has expanded in scope and application under Emily Goepel and summer VISTAs to maintain sustainability
ESL Expansion in Johnson City- Coordinating churches and community institutions to address the need for adult English education in the Johnson City / Tri-cities area.
Corazon Latino – Developing and assisting with the coordination of a Latino themed arts festival in downtown Johnson City.
Assisting in the Expansion and Coordination of ETSU Service-Learning – Collecting data for a variety of Service Learning programs at ETSU. Assuring the sustainability of the Language and Culture Resource Center as an integral part of the ETSU experience. Expanding access to the XCELL program, Corazon Latino and other service learning options in the Department of Literature and Language.
2009-2010
Emily Goepel's VISTA projects -
Reading is Fundamental - Coordinated the RIF Family Literacy event in October 2009 for Hispanic elementary school children and their families. The event, which took place at Cherokee Elementary School, offered parents strategies on increasing family literacy and becoming more involved in their children’s education. Over 150 free books were distributed to attendees.
Cultural Outreach: Education and Health - Coordinating a multi-dimensional, interdisciplinary summer course to be offered as a collegiate parallel the ETSU Migrant Education Program.
XCELL Mentor Program – Launching and coordinating the first year of a program funded by a Tennessee Board of Regents Access and Diversity Grant. The program, which expands on the mission of Hispanic Student Day, is an educational mentor program for English Language Learning and/or Hispanic students in area high schools. This program is a collaborative effort between King College, Milligan College, Northeast State, and the community organization Puertas Abiertas a la Comunidad Hispana (Open Doors to the Hispanic Community).
2008-2009
Abby Johnson's VISTA projects -
Graduate Certificate Program in Translation and Interpretation - Researched and promoted the development of a program to train bilinguals in the methods and terminology of medical translation and interpreting.
Spanish Class at Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church - Taught a second-semester beginning Spanish class to adult community members.
Spanish Tutoring - Taught Spanish to a mother and her four year-old son.
2008-2009
Whitney Ramey's VISTA projects -
Reading is Fundamental - Coordinated RIF event in October 2008 for over 100 members of the local Hispanic communities.
Diversity in East Tennessee - Coordinated ETSU interdisciplinary summer course for the summer of 2009.
Website Development for LCRC - Helped LCRC student workers with the new LCRC website.
XCELL Mentor Program - Took the lead in writing the proposal for a 3-year collaborative TBR Access and Diversity grant, which was awarded to the LCRC in March 2009. The purpose of the program was to expand Hispanic Student Day to include a mentor program for area junior and senior English Language Learning and Hispanic students.