We are excited to introduce to you Bex and Tanlyn, ENGLISH @ WORK’s newest AmeriCorps members. Bex will take on volunteer coordination and student support duties. Tanlyn will work as a full-time instructor as well help us with curriculum development and teacher support. Read more about their experiences below –
Rebecca “Bex” Rinas, AmeriCorps VISTA Volunteer
Bex is ENGLISH @ WORK’s third AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer. She comes to us after three years abroad in Germany and one year in Guatemala. She has always been interested in intercultural, lingual and historical education initiatives. She has gained experience in these fields by working on memorial site projects in Guatemala and Germany, teaching English for various organizations and working with deaf adults in a supportive employment program.
Bex has a degree from the University of North Carolina at Asheville in Communications. Now that she’s back in the United States, Bex looks forward to getting to know more about immigrant and refugee issues in Austin and supporting the community through ENGLISH @ WORK.
Tanlyn Roelofs, Literacy*AmeriCorps Instructor
Tanlyn is ENGLISH @ WORK’s 2011 Literacy*Americorps member. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Anthropology from Southwestern University and studied abroad in Utrecht, The Netherlands with the School for International Training. While in The Netherlands, she focused her studies on immigration and the Muslim Diaspora in Western Europe.
After graduating, she received a Fulbright Scholarship in Berlin, Germany. She had an incredible year teaching English to high school students in a predominantly Turkish neighborhood in Berlin. She is excited to be working for ENGLISH @ WORK as a full-time instructor and looks forward to getting to know the rest of the E@W family.