Welcome D'Real Graham and Frances Martin, Two Shiny New 826michigan Staff Members!

September 7, 2012 | 826 Blog Post

Friends, we could NOT be more excited to announce the addition of these two wonderful people to 826michigan’s small-but-not-that-small-any-more-yay staff.

Frances Martin, who is joining us as Volunteer Coordinator, will be a familiar face to many of you. In the time we’ve known her, she’s been a volunteer, an AmeriCorps member coordinating In-school Residencies, and the Interim Program Director while Program Director Amy Sumerton was on her maternity leave earlier this year. In her time as Interim Program Director, she (VERY) successfully oversaw the publication process for this year’s major project, What to Call the Place I Call Home: Voices of 26 Ypsilanti Middle School Students. Frances holds a Master’s in Social Work from the University of Michigan.

We’re also thrilled to welcome D’Real Graham, who as Program Coordinator will run our after-school writing and tutoring program at Ypsilanti Middle School and lead Drop-in Writing sessions for youth at all of the Ypsilanti District Library branches. A lifelong resident of Ypsilanti and alumnus of its public schools, D’Real is deeply involved in the community. Since graduating from Ypsilanti High School in 2005, D’Real has worked as a Lead Preschool Teacher at Detroit’s Bright Horizons Inc., instructed informal science workshops at the Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum, mentored, and provided retention programming with “College is my Future” for Ypsilanti/Willow-Run 8th Graders. D’Real is chair of the City of Ypsilanti Parks and Recreation Commission and is also on the ballot in November’s election for the Ypsilanti School Board.

Please join us in welcoming Frances and D’Real to 826michigan’s staff! With these two on our team, the future is looking BRIGHT.


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