Guest Post: Why Dawn Sarli is Outstanding
[Editor's Note: Two or three weeks ago, we found out that Dawn won the 2009 Governor's Award for Outstanding Community Service, which honors individuals, groups, and businesses that best exemplify the spirit of volunteerism and community service in Vermont. The five criteria for the award are Achievement, Community Need, Special Aspects, Ongoing Involvement, and Impact.
[The following is the nomination letter written by Dawn's boss and friend, Jesse Pyles. Jesse didn't tell us he was nominating Dawn, so when he called to congratulate her on winning the award, she was like, "What award?" I want to thank Jesse for nominating my lovely bride, and for giving me permission to repost his letter here.]
In her nomination of Dawn Sarli for the national Spirit of Service Award last year, Dr. Susan Sutheimer, then Director of Service-Learning at Green Mountain College (GMC), wrote:
More than anyone in Poultney, Dawn joins the college and the community together; she is an amazing relationship builder. She knows that partnership success depends on strong connections, and she has worked hard to establish herself as a reliable resource in the community.
Dawn’s talents as GMC’s K-12 Outreach Coordinator through Vermont Campus Compact’s (VCC) AmeriCorps*VISTA program were apparent to all who worked with her and were rewarded, in part, with a permanent position in the Poultney Schools as their Challenge teacher.
From August 2006 to August 2008, Dawn was the primary contact for college programs that partnered with area schools. She coordinated Service-Learning partnerships between GMC faculty and Poultney schools staff, identified and directed resources needed on either side of the college gate, and was integral to planning teams that considered service-related educational programs for students of every age in Poultney, from kindergarten through college. Dawn is an alum of the college and was the first VCC VISTA to focus on K-12 outreach.
As director of GMC’s Poultney Partners Mentoring Club, Dawn secured $2,500 in grant funding to ensure the program’s success, and connected the program to a regional mentoring network. She redesigned the club to introduce group mentoring, and ran weekly afterschool sessions during the college semester matching 15-20 college mentors with as many elementary school children. Additionally, Dawn placed 10 to 12 college student and community leaders with Vermont Achievement Center to develop and implement afterschool programs for Poultney Elementary students — including baking, photography, recreation, farming, and others. She regularly connected these leaders to funding opportunities, and offered a grant-writing workshop to support their efforts.
Dawn’s work with area schools has had a tremendous impact on GMC’s Service-Learning program. In addition to other faculty support, she recruited five faculty new to Service-Learning to partner with school teachers through history, ceramics, sociology, acting, and women’s studies courses. Dawn worked with school district and college personnel to develop a college prep course for high school students, and to redesign the secondary science curriculum.
As a VISTA, Dawn sat on the high school Wellness Center Committee, the Career Development Committee, was a regular contributor to our Town-Gown Committee, and worked with several area leaders to create an “Affordable Green” Earth Fair that highlighted the economic benefits of environmentally friendly consumer choices — an event being repeated again this year.
Dawn consistently went beyond the demands of her VISTA workplan to support community endeavors. She volunteered with the local Girl Scout troop, became an active member of the Poultney Rotary, participated in the campus Women’s and Gender Events committee, and co-instructed a philosophy course on altruism.
In a special way that eludes many in a temporary position, Dawn has become a community fixture; clearly taking pride in knowing that her work as a VISTA was building up her community.