From volunteering to serving: My AmeriCorps journey

By Ty’Shaun Jackson, AmeriCorps volunteer coordinator and former tutor with Reading Partners Tulsa

While in high school, I was invited to intern at a local elementary school as a first-grade teacher’s assistant. In this role, I could take time from my regularly scheduled duties to volunteer as a tutor with Reading Partners. I gladly accepted the offer and completed the steps to become a weekly volunteer.

When the time came for the first session, I was so excited! I had no idea what to expect when I walked in and waited for my AmeriCorps program coordinator to pick up my student. I was sitting there wondering which student I was going to get.

When my student first walked into the room, he was shy. But who can blame him? I was just a stranger to him and just someone he would see walking down the halls. We introduced ourselves, and then we talked and talked and talked. We hit it off from the very start! Seeing his smile as we spoke or when we finally figured out how to sound out a word was special to me, and we went through the whole school year growing together. He would grow his love of reading, and I would grow my love of teaching. 

Ty’Shaun (right) and Madi (left), another AmeriCorps member serving with Reading Partners Tulsa

I soon graduated from high school and found myself in a hard place with no direction in life. Then I remembered I had advice from my AmeriCorps program coordinator to apply for a year of service with Reading Partners. Ms. Kim always spoke very highly about Reading Partners and all its benefits. I decided to apply and just throw my hat in the ring. I wanted to get my foot through the door and begin my journey in the education field.

I applied to become a Reading Partners AmeriCorps volunteer coordinator. I picked this role because I wanted to try something with which I was unfamiliar. I knew I would have to face the challenges of socializing with unknown people. The best part of being a Reading Partners AmeriCorps volunteer coordinator is going to events you would not even imagine going on in the community and interacting with people from all walks of life.

I plan to serve another year as an AmeriCorps member, but this time, I plan on attending a community college concurrently. I plan on getting my associate’s degree in the science of mathematics. I want to become an AmeriCorps program coordinator for my second year of service and utilize all the opportunities given to me. I found the way now, and I want to become a teacher in the future. Reading Partners taught me how to plan for the future and properly adapt to situations I wasn’t unprepared for.