Indianapolis native Christina attended Pike High School’s special education program. The program served many students with a wide range of special needs and taught necessary life skills such as grocery shopping, cooking, laundry, and basic arithmetic. However, there were simply not enough resources to meet each student’s individual needs and literacy skills were not the number one priority.

Christina left that program with an understanding of how to get by but lacked some of the skills she needed to truly thrive. “Even though I liked my teacher and learned how to do things, it made me sad that I could not read story books to my nephews,” she says. “Instead of helping them learn, we would just play.”

Ready to take control of her destiny, Christina enrolled with Indy Reads to gain the literacy skills necessary to achieve her goals and to help her nephews learn the importance of reading and writing. 

The journey to literacy is not easy, but Christina takes everything in stride. “What I like about Indy Reads are the teachers and the tutors,” she says. “And Indy Reads is helping me to read better.” She is currently building up her skills to take the written test to attain her driver’s license.

Christina’s instructor, Sarika, has also made note of her progress. “Christina is a pleasure to have in class,” Sarika says. “She is a very motivated learner and builds positive relationships with her tutors. She works very hard in class and her consistent progress shows it. I am lucky to have her in my class!”

Indy Reads is proud to partner with IndyGo to support students in the Community Classrooms program. Watch for more student stories in each month’s newsletter, and catch Routes 19, 38, or 39 to visit Indy Reads at the Central Library, or Routes 11 or 21 to visit Indy Reads Books! All route and trip information is available at indygo.net.