It makes me feel good to see that more people are involved in the Adult Education process.I have been involved in adult tutoring in Mathematics for about three years now at the Adult Education Department of Manatee Technical Institute in Bradenton, Florida.This has given me great personal pleasure and I often think I should have started this much sooner.I have discovered that many young adults lack the basics of Mathematics and liierature.We have tutors from all walks of life and all ages.I am 79 years old and I am laso one of the youngest tutors.I am always trying to recruit new members to our group.I have had great support from the Editors of the Bradenton Herald ,our local newspaper.I submit an article in the letters to the Editors section and usually we get about half a dozen new volunteers.
Most of the students I tutor are trying to get their GED diploma,but do not have the adequate background to follow the course.
I wish everyone who is involved or who wants to get involved in Adult Educaton success and enjoyment.I am more than willing to answer questions and those who live in our area,please come see us and you might want to help
Happy and prosperous New Year to all,Klaas Lindemulder
Email. klaaslind@aol.com

Count me in as part of your network. I am a businessman-educator doing much of my work on/off the Internet.

Dr. Gerry Pira

Philippines

http://community.adlandpro.com/go/autobuilder251

School will be starting all over the country in the next few weeks, which means that volunteer-based tutoring and/or mentoring programs are looking for volunteers. Most don’t have many advertising dollars, which makes it difficult to find volunteers. It also makes it difficult to support them and train them to be effective tutors/mentors.

In Chicago, I maintain a database of volunteer-based tutor/mentor programs and use poverty maps to show all of the neighborhoods where these programs are needed. Potential volunteers, donors, parents and students can use a zip code map to search for contact information for specific programs serving specific zip codes. This can be found in the Program Locator at http://www.tutormentorconnection.org

My goal is to recruit leaders from business, colleges, churches and other groups, who will use their own communications to encourage members of their network to find roles for themselves in different tutor/mentor programs around the city, and then will support the iinvolvement of these volunteers with their own networking and training activities.

Thus, if a bunch of retired teachers became tutors/mentors, someone would be hosting a page like http://tutormentorconnection.ning.com for them to share ideas with each other so that every week each volunteer goes to their tutoring site armed with the wisdom of the network.

If this begins to happen, volunteers from diverse workplace backgrounds will begin to be part of tutor/mentor programs in many high poverty neighborhoods, exposing kids to more different career aspirations, and also connecting the tutor/mentor programs to more channels of funding, leadership, training and volunteers.

As you encourage retirees to joing programs in Ohio and New Jersey I hope you’ll use this information as a resource, and that you and your volunteers will either connect with us in portals we host, or will create new spaces so we and others can learn from you.

Good luck to you. Let’s get the word out so more volunteers and youth are connected to positive networks by the end of September, rather than to negative networks which are too common for many kids, in many schools.

Daniel F. Bassill
President
Tutor/Mentor Connection
Cabrini Connections
http://tutormentor.blogspot.com

There are, after all, a lot of us out here with decades of practical experience in computer technology and other fields who would be happy to help pass on the knowledge but who have never taken teacher certification courses.  There ought to be some way to get us involved in the process, even if it’s only as a subject matter expert

I live in St. Louis, where I’ve been a computer technology professional for over twenty years, with hand-on experience with Windows Macintosh, and networking.  I’ve also been an actor, writer, and sound designer for over 30 years.  I’d be interested to learn whether or not there’s a place at the table for folks like me. 

I’m not ready to volunteer as a tutor. I am in my 3rd encore year as an elementary bilingual teacher. I have a PhD in economics. I believe that the educational system needs some tinkering. First, the salaries and career opportunities should attract a higher quality young college graduate. Second, the status of educators must be enhanced mainly through better pay but also through community support. Third, we must emphasis content knowledge starting in first grade particularly in math and science. Fourth, we should be able to attract the best educators to the most difficult inner city schools. Fifth, we must change or eliminate the testing system because of the way it reduces resources available for our best students (i.e., it tends to pull up the bottom and pull down the top). If I were writing a book on this I would try to list 10 issues. I’ll stop at five. I’ll bet that a group of educators around the country with credentials like yours could pull in some grant money to pay for someone to organize forums and products and, I guess, proactive "lobbying" in statehouses and Congress.

Dr Perusek
I think this is  a great idea to educate young adults to improve their chances in this world where the chances are very slim without a good education.We are doing a similar thing in Manatee County Florida.The Adult Education Department of  Manatee Technical Institute has a Volunteer group of retirees to tutor adult students the basics of Mathematics and Language so they will be able to complete the requirements for the GED tests.I have been tutoring Math for two years and I enjoy  it very much.I wish you great success in your project and like to see your progress in one of following articles.Good luck,Klaas Lindemulder’ Emailto:klaaaslind@aol.com.PS: For those members in the Sarasota/bradenton area I would like to urge you to help us tutor the young adults who for some reason did not get a Highschool diploma prepare them to learn the essentials of Math and English so they can complete the requirements for th GED certificate.There is no certification reqirement.Also there is no age limit.I am 78 and one of the youngest tutors.So wont you please help us.It will give you a lot of personal satisfaction.Call (941)751-7900,Extension 2174 and tell them you like to help.Just say Klaas send me.

I cannot afford to retire yet, but if this network paid me half what my current teacher’s salary is, I’d be willing to sign up!  I have over thirty years experience teaching in the primary grades, with three years of experience as a math resource teacher.  Anybody out there know how to get the ball rolling?

Could retired volunteers band together in the New York City to create more music education for children so they will learn to sing and play instruments? Something like "El Sistema" in Venezuela? I won’t organize it, but will help if contacted.

Vera Jiji

 Dr Perusek

I have read your comments with a lot of admiration for what you are doing.I have been tutoring adult students at Manatee Technical Institute together with about 40 other volunteers to prepare the students to be able to succesfully participate in  a Highschool Equivalent Course.These volunteers come from all walks of life and just enjoy helping some young adults who did not have the opportunity earlier in life to get that education.For those people who are intersted in this project I like to tell that there is no agelimit either.I am 78 and I believe I am the youngest in the group.

Again I enjoyed reading your article and I wish you a lot of succes.

Klaas Lindemulder Email:klaaslind@aol.com

Bradenton,Florida

I stand ready to help!

I have lots of experience training adults in all phases of computer technology.

I can organize a group in the Las Vegas, NV area to assist people learning more about computer technology, science &  math.

My email is coyoteman1@cox.net

I have been thinking about this very idea of establishing networks of retired educators to improve education for some time and am eager to connect with others in the NY-NJ area who have similar interests.I am a career educator who has worked at all levels in K-12 and university education as a teacher and administrator.

Please contact me if you would like to explore ideas.

Thank you.

 Jim Lerman

fuzing99812@mypacks.net