Linda Jilk - Middle School Language Arts

I graduated Cum Laude from Bucknell University in Pennsylvania in 1989 with a double major in English and Sociology and earned a Masters of Education in Teaching Students with Learning Disabilities (K-12) from Virginia Tech in 1995. I have worked in the field of education for more than 15 years. As a Language Fundamentals teacher for The New Community School in Richmond, I provided reading and writing instruction for youth in grades 5 through 12 with language learning disabilities. I have taught reading and writing, as well as GED preparatory skills and subjects, to both youth (adolescent boys at Elk Hill Farm in Goochland, VA, and teenage mothers in the SPOC Feeder Program in Chester, PA) and adults (participants in adult literacy programs and classes provided by the Center of Literacy in Philadelphia, PA; Literacy Volunteers of America in Christiansburg, VA; and Montgomery County Public Schools at Shawsville High School.) During my five-year tenure as Executive Director of the local affiliate of Literacy Volunteers of America, I developed and implemented new educational programs; trained and provided case management support to volunteer tutors; and designed curriculum to respond to the needs and goals of adults with low-literacy skills. I have enjoyed my work teaching math and Language Arts to students in grades 6-8 at Blacksburg New School since 2003.