Sashay Goodletty is currently serving as a Florida Campus Compact AmeriCorps VISTA in an “I Have a Dream” Classroom in the Overtown area of Miami. During her tenure as VISTA, she has served her students, worked diligently to alleviate poverty and provided economic opportunity to an extremely impoverished area of Miami all while addressing The Corporation for National and Community Service’s priority area of Education. Her direct impact on The Dreamers in her classroom and the Overtown area of Miami are undeniable and stand as a testament to how VISTA Members are getting things done for America.

The “IHAD” Classroom to which Sashay is assigned currently serves 50 at-risk middle and high school students. These children were chosen 8 years ago by the program so that they would have a team to support their personal and academic goals and guide them into higher education. Sashay works hard every day to assure that the students have access to high-quality mentors and the resources they need to excel in their personal and academic lives. She strives to build relationships with community organizations and local universities to make sure that all of her Dreamers are at peak school readiness and are ultimately able to break the cycle of poverty.

On Monday, January 16 2012 Sashay organized a project which allowed the Dreamers to participate in the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service. She worked with City Year Miami, Miami Dade College and other community partners and National Service Organizations to coordinate a service event at Miami Northwestern Senior High School. The Dreamers spent over 250 hours creating a Reading Hallway at this low-income school. The wall was painted in vibrant colors to encourage students to read and promote literacy campus wide.

Many of the students at the high school are below the reading level for their grade. By contributing to an art project that promotes literacy, the Dreamers made a direct impact in their community by encouraging students who are below their grade reading levels to see reading as a fun activity, not just an intimidating skill to master.

The MLK Day of service is not the only project that Sashay has designed for her students while serving as VISTA. She has designed a number of creative and innovative projects to engage her Dreamers including a Community Farm Service Project designed to let students learn about the mechanics of agriculture located in the Little Haiti area of Miami, a program that allows the Dreamers to mentor younger students, and many more dynamic initiatives detailed on the Dreamer’s blog located here.

Beyond coordinating service projects that engage students in their communities while furthering their education, Sashay also contributes to the sustainability and long-term goals of her assigned “I Have a Dream” Classroom to assure the impact of the program after her year of service is complete. Her drive and determination are a fine example of the impact National Service participants have on impoverished individuals, families and communities and make her an excellent choice for the Corporation’s National Service Impact Awards.