The Literacy Center

Our Dedicated Staff
	Carynn Davis, Executive Director cdavis@thinkliteracy.org Carynn has been in Arizona for over 13 years and is happy to call Flagstaff her home. She earned a Master’s degree in Teaching English as a Second Language in 2008. Carynn has been a certified English, Spanish and ESL instructor and previously taught at Winslow High School. She has also taught for NAU through the Four Corners/Upward Bound program and in the Program in Intensive English. One of Carynn’s passions is to travel, spending time all over Southern Spain, and parts of France, Morocco and Holland. She has also visited Germany and parts of Mexico. Many years ago, Carynn was a Literacy Volunteer and almost 2 years ago, she accepted the position of managing and directing The Literacy Center’s (TLC) programs. In April 2011, Ann Beck announced her retirement as Executive Director of TLC and Carynn graciously accepted this position. She looks forward to continuing the organization’s mission of eradicating teen and adult illiteracy in Coconino County.
	Jessica Clark, Outreach Manager jclark@thinkliteracy.org Jessica Clark grew up living in and loving beautiful Flagstaff and its residents. She is thrilled to give back to her community as The Literacy Center’s Special Assistant. Jessica received her BA (2009) and her MA (2011) in English from Northern Arizona University, where she also taught English composition and was president of the Organization for Graduate Students of English. She plans to use the organizational and planning skills she gained at NAU to help make TLC an even stronger force in the community. When she’s not at The Literacy Center, Jessica is doing web writing for the university, playing in her garden, or spending time with her friends, family, and dog.
	Jenelle Caines, Program Manager jcaines@thinkliteracy.org Jenelle Caines grew up and attended college in Southern California, obtaining a B.A. in English Literature from Westmont College. In 2006, she had the opportunity to work as an intern for 826 Valencia—a literacy and writing center created by author Dave Eggers in San Francisco. There, she gained a great deal of experience teaching students of all ages, helping create writing programs, and learning to love the non-profit sector. She moved to Flagstaff three years ago and had almost given up on finding a job in the non-profit world when she stumbled upon The Literacy Center online and was soon after offered the position of Program Manager. She hopes to bring a creative spirit to The Literacy Center and all of its facets, matching volunteers with opportunities that utilize their unique skills and experiences in the best ways possible. When not at work, you can usually find Jenelle in the kitchen, concocting all manner of culinary creations.
	Aubrey Brennecke, Education Assistant abrennecke@thinkliteracy.org Aubrey Brennecke is originally from San Diego, California and first came to Flagstaff in 2004 to attend Northern Arizona University. She received her B.S. in Public Relations and a minor in Spanish in 2008. She is currently pursuing a Master’s in Speech Pathology at NAU. Aubrey first started at TLC as a volunteer teacher for the Health Literacy Class from 2010-2011. She became the Educational Assistant at TLC through AmeriCorp in October 2011. She is passionate about contributing to people’s lives in a positive way, and feels that this position is a perfect place for her to utilize her abilities. In her free time she enjoys singing, travel and enjoying what the beautiful northern Arizona outdoors has to offer.
	Lillian McWilliams, Literacy Rehabilitation Coordinator lmcwilliams@thinkliteracy.org Lillian McWilliams is the coordinator of The Literacy Center’s Partnership for Literacy Rehabilitation which utilizes volunteers to teach literacy to the juvenile detainees, the adult incarcerated, and the newly released. She is working with the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office, Adult Probation and several community based projects offering literacy to a population whom may otherwise have little opportunities to learn to read. Ms. McWilliams helped pioneer the field of jail site diversion in the San Francisco Bay Area from 1968-1988. She worked in partnership with many of the local city, county, and state penal institutions as a liaison to community-based drug rehabilitation programs, which assisted teen and adult male and female inmates in their recovery efforts. Now, she brings her familiarity liaising with penal systems to Flagstaff to help improve literacy levels for the incarcerated and probationers so they can develop productive lifestyles after improving their reading skills.
	Isela Ramirez, Office Assistant iramirez@thinkliteracy.org Isela Ramirez is from San Luis, Arizona and graduated from San Luis High School. Isela works as an Office Assistant through work study. She currently attends Northern Arizona University pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in Secondary Education-Mathematics, and a minor in Spanish. She hopes to meet many tutors and learners.
	Jesus Garcia, Office Assistant jgarcia@thinkliteracy.org Jesus Garcia is from San Luis, Arizona and graduated from San Luis High School. Jesus works as an Office Assistant through work study. He currently attends Northern Arizona University pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management and Marketing, and a minor in Spanish. He hopes to work with new people and meet the tutors and students.
	Joni Goblet, Volunteer Librarian Joni Goblet is a longtime native of Flagstaff though she is originally from Wisconsin. Joni has been working with books in one capacity or another since the age of 13 when she began volunteering at the Flagstaff Public Library. Joni has also worked as a library page for four years and as a Book Buyer at Bookman's for three years. She currently spends her time volunteering at the Flagstaff Public Library and at the Literacy Center. In her spare time Joni is working on a novel and enjoys reading, drawing, listening to good music and playing with her dogs, Sherlock and Fang.
	Lynn Hartman, Website Manager www.thinkliteracy.org Lynn moved to Flagstaff with her husband in 2007, after working as senior editor for a major publishing company in California. In 2000, she earned her BA in Global Studies in one of the first accredited online degree programs through National University. During her 20-year career in publishing, new technologies began to transform the printed word to digital communication. Lynn pioneered projects to move textbook information to the Internet, developing websites for students and teachers in the classroom. She began working as a volunteer tutor with the Literacy Center when she retired to Flagstaff, and soon began working to update and redesign TLC’s website. Reading has always been Lynn’s favorite occupation. She is continually excited to be able to volunteer her time contributing to literacy and learning so that others can enjoy the pleasures of a good book, (whether it's print, e-book, or online).
	Ann Beck, PhD., Advisor Ann Beck is a long-time Flagstaff resident. She earned a Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics from Northern Arizona University in 1994. Over the years she has taught for the English Department at NAU and organized classes and programs on the Navajo Nation and Hopi reservation for NAU’s off campus programs. She is a certified Montessori classroom teacher. She began her tenure as Executive Director of Literacy Volunteers of Coconino County in November 1999 and recently retired on March 31st of 2011.