Literacy Live!

Catherine Ludwig: My AmeriCorps Experience

Throughout my year with the Literacy Council of Northern Virginia I have learned so much about teaching, my students’ lives, and ultimately, about myself.  The most rewarding thing has been to see my students improve, progress at LCNV, and graduate from our program. I have several students who have graduated, but have kept in touch with me about their future plans, including one who plans on taking nursing classes in the fall. I am so proud of my students, and their dedication to learning a scary and challenging language while pursuing their dreams in a new country.

The upcoming year holds many changes for me as well as my students. I will be moving to Turkey to complete a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship. I will be teaching English at Usak University and I am grateful that my AmeriCorps year has prepared me well to take on this task. I will be taking with me a great appreciation for patience in teachers as I myself will begin learning a new language in Turkish. This year has also helped me determine my focus for graduate school, which I plan to pursue upon my return from my Fulbright. I plan on attending a graduate program in International Studies with a concentration in International Development. After hearing my students’ stories about their home countries, and learning about the various economic and social problems that exist, I now want to study ways to alleviate those problems.

I hope the new group of AmeriCorps will have an equally transformative year of service and that they will continue to have a profound impact on our students. I plan on returning after my year in Turkey to volunteer with the ESOL classes again – I’m sure my students will hold me to it. Hopefully I will be able to volunteer teach at Lincolnia next summer and into the school year so I can continue to play a role in the betterment of our students’ lives.

Catherine K. Ludwig
AmeriCorps ESL Instructor
Literacy Council of Northern Virginia
2855 Annandale Road
Falls Church, VA 22042
(703) 237-0866 x 117
www.lcnv.org