Select the search type
  • Site
  • Web
Search

Learning Ally Volunteer Nation logo

Volunteer Nation's Latest News

 

Stay in the know with your fellow volunteers and learn about current events happening in the Volunteer Nation

 

    

 

 

 

Volunteer Nation Blog

rss

Stay in the know with your fellow volunteers, read the latest volunteer spotlight, and learn about current events happening in the Volunteer Nation.


Digging This Weather

Quite literally. The groundhog saw his shadow, so we're in for six more weeks of winter. As much of the northern US deals with the snow, Learning Ally is looking at what our spring and summer will bring. If you missed the webinar about our direction for the organization in 2021 and beyond, you can find the recording on our Resources page. If you haven't checked in lately, I also recommend perusing the Learning Ally main webpage. We've redesigned our message for students, parents and teachers, so they can see our focus on helping students at the start of their educational journeys. A fence of stacked logs and snow-covered trees beyond.


New Textbook Training Coming in February


Whoa, that's this month! A revised and updated version of our textbook training program is now in testing on the training site. At first, we will be testing with current volunteers, but by mid-February we expect that these new lessons will replace the current ones for all incoming textbook volunteers, and current volunteers are welcome to try it out or cross-train. If you would like to get involved as a tester for the revamped lessons, please reach out to the training center staff: Russell Collins or Eleanor Cotton.


Let this also serve as a subtle reminder for any current trainees: If you are part-way through the current textbook training program, you might want to hurry up and complete your work. Alternatively, you could wait a couple of weeks and start over with the new lessons. We leave that choice to you, but make sure it's your choice, and not an accident!


Office Hours Meetings Changes


Last year we expanded our Training Center Office Hours program to two meetings per week to better manage the large influx of new volunteers. When the pandemic first drove volunteering indoors and online we were scrambling to keep up. Now we've reached an equilibrium with the new arrivals to book production teams, so we now have fewer attendees at each meeting and they are not providing the value they once did. As a result, this Thursday will be the last Thursday Office Hours meeting and we will move exclusively to having these meetings on Mondays at 1:00 PM Eastern. If it proves necessary to expand the program again we may add other times, but we also urge you to reach out to us through other means as well. Remember to email voltraining@learningally.org with your questions about the training program, vol-support@learningally.org for general help requests, and to join our Twist teams and channels for more help.


Congratulations to our recent training graduates


Becky C., Rick R., Lisa V., Hannah H., Derria M., Elaine C., Tiffany A., Tameka B., Nick V., David L., Jaymes P., Joshua H., Byron R., Jennifer A., Aditi V., Anjum M., Dana F., Victoria K., Sharon B-S., Joyce C., Angela H., Rizwana S., Victoria G., Maria M., Ava M., Jason O., Meredith P., Julia B.


Volunteer Spotlight: Valerie Fenwick

Valerie Fenwick smiling and facing the cameraFor over 70 years, Learning Ally has had the pleasure of welcoming volunteers to their mission and discovering what motivates them to donate their time and energy. Volunteers come to Learning Ally with a diverse set of experiences, skills, and reasons why they choose to make a difference in students’ lives. For Valerie Fenwick, a desire to learn, her generous heart, and a personal connection to the mission is what kept her volunteering for so many years. 

 

For most of her life, Valerie has been passionate about reading, literature, and acting. After spending several years doing community theater, her friends suggested she try industrials and voiceover work. In 2012, Valerie made the decision to join Learning Ally in the Palo Alto, California studio to practice voiceover. 

 

While Valerie initially joined Learning Ally because of a desire to learn, she discovered her reason for staying with the organization one year prior to doing voiceover work. In 2011, Valerie began losing sight in her right eye. For a while, her doctors were perplexed by the decline in her vision until a specialist determined Valerie had a rare autoimmune disease, Punctate Inner Choroidopathy. 

 

Using her background in technology and computer science—or as she likes to refer to it as her “nerd brain”—Valerie described her vision-loss as if she was losing pixels. The “pixels” were getting larger and larger, caused by inflammation on her retina that was nearing her central vision. Fortunately, Valerie regained most of her vision and is now in remission. Today, Valerie continues to use her ability to help others. She said: “Reading has been something I have done since I was so little and to be able to give back now, while I still have my vision, it’s such an honor for me to be able to do that.”

 

Valerie has given back to Learning Ally in countless ways. When working in the physical recording studios, Valerie willingly adapted to the technology and transitioned from studio to studio when needed. In 2017, when Learning Ally closed their studios, Valerie jumped on board to continue volunteering from home. Alexis Bourbeau, Director of the Literature Community and Audiobook Quality, described his experience working with Valerie: 

 

"Valerie is literally a perfect volunteer! The care and attention she gives her work is professional-grade, her communication with the staff and fellow volunteers is cheerful and consistent, and she's always living the LA value of self-improvement, eager to share and discuss ways to improve her process. Her work-ethic is also as heroic as the protagonists of many of her projects; she's our go-to narrator for those 600-page fantasy epics! Oh, and she’s a leading evangelist and fundraiser for the cause!”

 

This year, Valerie is closing in on donating 1,000 hours of service. She has narrated 38 books for Learning Ally, including Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life (Dork Diaries #1) with 282 pages and Winter: The Lunar Chronicles with 828 pages. 

 

In addition to volunteering, Valerie generously supports Learning Ally’s annual Building Books Campaign every year. Valerie uses her contagious energy to spread awareness and motivate volunteers to fundraise. She has even teamed up with her current and former employers to donate to the campaign through their matching gifts programs. By donating her time and energy, Valerie’s fundraising efforts have brought in $12,828 to Learning Ally.

 

Valerie’s unfailing dedication has made literacy accessible and equitable for thousands of students. Learning Ally is incredibly grateful for Valerie’s support and for the many other unwavering volunteers who work hard to improve the lives of students, parents and educators.