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Meet Maureen |
     
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Thirty-four year old Maureen Rich is a very, very busy woman. A single mother of six children ranging from sixteen to three years old, Maureen is no stranger to hard work—in fact, she has held down a full-time job since she was seventeen years old.
Maureen took this year off to get her GED so that she could pursue her goal of becoming an emergency medical technician and, eventually, a career in human resources. On a whim, Maureen also signed up to participate in the Granite State Organizer Project. In her GSOP classes, Maureen learned how to effect change in her community through collaboration and leadership.
A long-time resident of French Hill, Maureen has seen the terrible effects of gang violence on her neighbors and even her own family. Using the skills she honed in her GSOP classes, Maureen began conducting surveys of other French Hill residents to search for a solution. With their input, Maureen came up with an idea: a Multicultural Youth Center to be located in Atherton Park.
Maureen has given several talks about her proposal and will be speaking again at an upcoming Crime Watch meeting in September. She has received overwhelming support, both from concerned individuals and organizations like the Nashua Soup Kitchen and local churches. She also expects to meet soon with officials from City Hall to discuss how to make the youth center a reality. “A lot of what I’ve learned,” Maureen says, “is how powerful peoples’ voices are.” |
| Meet Celeste |
In 2004, 47-year-old mother of three Celeste Lisi was laid off. Though she was able to find work at a hardware distributor, Celeste wasn’t satisfied; after a year there, she decided to pursue earning her GED at the urging of her daughters. “They were like, ‘Go get it, ma, go get it,’” Celeste says. “They were just bugging me or else they were going to beat me.”
“Algebra, geometry, that was challenging,” Celeste says. But with the support of her husband and children, she was able to earn her GED. Getting her GED, she says, opened a world of new career opportunities to her. Now, she loves her second job as a teacher’s assistant in GED courses at the Adult Learning Center. “It’s fun. You meet all kinds of new people,” says Celeste. Her experiences in the process of earning a GED allow her to connect with students on a personal level and to serve as an inspiring example of the benefits of getting a GED. “They respect me,” she says. “It’s like, ‘She’s gone through the same thing and now she’s here, helping us.’” |
| Meet Dameris |
To say that Dameris Crayton was culture shocked when she first arrived in the United States from her home country of Kenya twelve years ago would be an understatement. The grocery stores carried more food than she had ever seen in her life and the cold weather was alien to her; she laughs as she describes one winter night when she opened all the windows and doors in her home and turned the heat up in an attempt to raise the frigid temperatures outdoors.
Dameris found high school in America similarly difficult to adjust to. Accustomed to more one-on-one personal interaction with her teachers in Kenya, the heavily textbook-based education she received in America was ineffective for Dameris, and she dropped out. But she knew that without a high school diploma, her opportunities in the United States would be limited.
Then Dameris found the Adult Learning Center. “It reminded me of home very much,” Dameris says. “They are so caring. They want you to learn something.” Dameris earned her GED with the support of the Adult Learning Center and now works as a licensed nursing assistant, a medical interpreter and a caregiver for the mentally disabled at a nonprofit organization. Social activism takes up much of Dameris’ free time: she is an advocate for improving support systems for new immigrants in Nashua’s schools and is currently helping accommodate an influx of child refugees from war-torn Burundi |
| MEET JAIRUS |
Jairus Olocho, a shop-owner, lived in Kenya with his wife and 3 children. The poverty in his town in pervasive and in his desire to help, he and his wife volunteered at the local orphanage, which houses 400 children who have lost their parents to HIV, AIDS or war.
He came to the United States in 2008 after he won a green card in the immigration lottery. He had heard about the United States and opportunities for a better life through a friend in Nashua, who offered to let the family live with them while Jairus and his wife looked for work.
Jairus had completed high school in Kenya but wanted to progress in his education. He enrolled at the Adult Learning Center and earned his GED in just 3 months. (“It took the hand of God,” Jairus told his teacher.) He earned his LNA but in this economy has been unable to earn employment. His children, ages 12, 13 and 7 are doing well in Nashua schools.
Jairus recently spoke to a group of legislators who were visiting the Adult Learning Center and impressed everyone with his quiet determination, his love of the United States, and his gratitude to everyone who is helping him reach his goals. |
| Meet Angela |
Angela cites the Adult Learning Center as the critical element on her path to further her education. Says Angela, “it all started here.” Nine years ago, Angela began English for Speakers of Other Language (ESOL) classes, which led her to take and pass the GED, and then on to computer courses and the “Get Ready for College” program. These classes prepared her for her full course load at Nashua Community College. Although being a student can be hectic, Angela also finds all of her classes interesting. Her goal is to enter the Human Services field so she can help community “the same way that I was helped by the Adult Learning Center.” |
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| The Adult Learning Center |
4 Lake St
Nashua, NH 03060
Tel 603-882-9080
Fax 603-882-0069 |
40 Arlington St
Nashua, NH 03060
Tel 603-598-8303
Fax 603-598-0450 |
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