Jamaica Plain Community Centers
ADULT LEARNING PROGRAM
Jamaica Plain
Adult Learning Program Staff
Joyce Henderson, Director
Dr. Joyce Henderson joined the ALP community as Director in August, 2019. Joyce has worked as an Administrator, Director and Teacher in various educational settings from Harvard University to Bunker Hill Community College. She attended the University of Massachusetts, College of Public and Community Service, has a Master’s Degree in Administrative Education from Cambridge College and has completed Doctoral studies in Higher Education Administration from Northcentral University.
Email: joyce@jpadulted.org
Amina Hilowle, Assistant Director / Assessment Specialist
Amina is the current Assistant Director at ALP. She started as an AmeriCorps volunteer and was placed at ALP as her host organization. After finishing her service year with Americorps, Amina accepted a part time Administrative Assistant and Program Assessment Specialist at ALP. She has also taught the math numeracy classes. Besides English, Amina speaks Somali and conversational Swahili.
Email: amina@jpadulted.org
Phone: (617) 681-4174
Tomm McCarthy, Education Coordinator
Tomm McCarthy joined JPCC ALP as the Education Coordinator in August 2021. He holds a bachelor's of fine arts in English from The Evergreen State College and an MFA in creative writing and poetry from the University of Washington. With his background in writing, education, and production, Tomm is excited to offer continued support to the staff and students of ALP.
Email: alpedcoordinator@gmail.com
Mark Henderson, Volunteer Coordinator / Project Manager
Mark was born and educated in Massachusetts. He attended the Wellesley School System and Curry College. Mark worked in the banking industry for 29 years as a Project Manager. He then worked at City Year as a Uniform Fulfillment Manager responsible for outfitting City Year Corp Members nationally, South Africa and London. Mark is an advocate for civil, social and human rights and enjoys being involved in an agency that recognizes and accepts diversity.
Email: mark@jpadulted.org
Phone: (857) 230-0183
Cheryl Danzy, Curriculum Developer
Cheryl is excited about all of the great things happening at ALP! She holds a B.S., Human Development (focus on education/pedagogy) and a M.S., Policy Analysis and Management (program evaluation /planning concentration). Her previous experience includes serving as a teacher, curriculum writing, co-authoring publications about cultural competency, and consulting. In addition, she enjoys taking professional development in education so that she can stay abreast of best practices in the field. Cheryl has a passion for learning and looks forward to using her background to serve ALP.
Email: cheryl@jpadulted.org
Charles Ramsay, Technology Coordinator / Computer Instructor
Charles began his career as a Moderate Special Needs teacher for the Boston Public Schools. After 14 years in the classroom, he worked in a variety of administrative positions including Administrative Assistant to the Director of Special Education for the Boston Public Schools. He has extensive experience and knowledge in Secondary Education, Higher Education, Students At-Risk, Special Education, and Technology & Technology Careers. Charles has taught technology courses at several local colleges and universities. Charles holds a B.S. in Regular and Special Education from Boston University, a Master's degree in Administration/Management from Cambridge College, and a Master's degree in Educational Leadership from Northeastern University.
Email: charles@jpadulted.org
Phone: (857) 293-0996
Alondra Bobadilla, Administrative Assistant
Alondra Bobadilla is a recent member of the ALP staff. She is a student at UMass Boston majoring in International Relations with a minor in Spanish. Her background is mainly in arts and education programs with a concentration in creative writing. She has taught workshops, worked as a teacher’s assistant, collaborated with non-profits and other projects. She is currently doing a legal advocacy internship with the Student Clinic for Immigrant Justice.
Email: alondra@jpadulted.org
Phone: TBA
William Washington, Office Coordinator
Will earned a Bachelor's Degree in Business from Bradley University. After working in Michigan for 18 years, Will has spent the last 8 years as a member of the Jamaica Plain Community. In addition, Will assists in various classrooms and advises students on career and educational goals. William has been a volunteer with the Community Food Drive for the last 3 years.
Email: william@jpadulted.org
Phone: (617) 682-0729
Patricia Carrington, Assessment Assistant
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Pat graduated from JPCC/ALP in 1998. She began working for the Program that same year. Pat's journey at ALP started as a computer lab helper. She moved into the position of Computer Instructor. Currently, Pat has the position of Intake Coordinator and ADA Coordinator. She has enjoyed giving back to the ALP Community for over 20 years.
Email: pat@jpadulted.org
Phone: (617) 356-7102
Susie Foster, Basic ESOL Instructor
Susie started ESL teaching at secondary school level as a Peace Corps volunteer in Democratic Republic of the Congo (then called Zaire) in the 1970s. After two years in DR Congo, she was posted to Cameroon to be an ESL teaching advisor for a French-speaking province of that bilingual country. She has worked in international development with the World Bank, World Health Organization, and Boston University School of Public Health, where she taught global public health topics for 22 years. In addition to DR Congo and Cameroon, Susie has lived in London (UK), Geneva, Uganda, and Zambia. She has been a volunteer ESL tutor in several community centers in Boston. Susie likes to garden and kayak, and take care of her dog Claire. She is an Airbnb host, and also runs an electric bike tour of Boston through Airbnb Experiences in the summer.
Email: susie@jpadulted.org
Phone: (617) 858-1492
Rana Elbeih, College and Career Advisor
Rana received an Associate degree from Massasoit Community College, earned a Bachelor degree in Biology from the University of Massachusetts Boston, and a Master's degree in Higher Education Administration from Eastern Nazarene College. Rana has more than ten years of teaching experience and has worked as a mentor at Massasoit Community College. Rana enjoys helping others and she is passionate about assisting students to obtain success. Rana is very excited to be a member of the ALP community as a Student Advisor.
Email: rana@jpadulted.org
Phone: (508) 622-5654
Jessica Graziano, Morning Level 1 ESOL Instructor
Jessi has a Bachelor’s Degree from Carthage College where she majored in both Elementary Education and Special Education. After teaching elementary school for 3 years in Wisconsin, she recently moved to Boston and began volunteering with Boston Cares in their Allies for Immigrants program. She is excited to become part of the ALP and help students on their journey to learning English.
Email: jessica@jpadulted.org
Phone: (617) 299-0908
Valerie Thomas, Evening Level 1 ESOL Instructor
Valerie earned her Bachelor's Degree in English from Howard University. She went on to earn a Master’s in African American Studies from Columbia University. After working in New York for a few years, she moved to Georgia and began a career in education. She has spent the last 17 years in both K-12 and Higher Ed. She loves working with students in different ages and stages of life.
Email: valerie@jpadulted.org
Phone: (770) 686-7540
Surya Ishaya, Evening Level 2 ESOL Instructor
Surya has a background in the helping professions and has been an online educator for several years now. She has obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology at the University of Winnipeg, a Post-Graduate Diploma in Art Therapy at BC School of Art Therapy and has her TESOL certificate. She has taught ESL classes to adults, both individually and in groups, and has tutored in math and English. She loves assisting adults to learn and develop their English skills in order to achieve their goals and dreams. In her free time, she enjoys traveling and meeting people from other cultures, exploring nature, cooking and swimming in the ocean.
Email: surya@jpadulted.org
Phone: (515) 329-6040
Scott Anderson, Morning Level 2 ESOL Instructor
Scott Anderson is the author of two novels and two plays and editor of another book. He earned his Bachelor's from Rhode Island College in 2012. He is currently enrolled at Cambridge College in the M.Ed. in Counseling program. He is a father of two.
Email: scott@jpadulted.org
Phone: TBA
Rhea van der Horst, Morning Level 3 ESOL Instructor
Rhea joined the JPCC ALP team in September 2023. She has been teaching German in a Saturday immersion school in California since 2015 and enjoys collaborating with students of all ages and diverse cultural backgrounds. Born in the Netherlands and educated in Germany, Rhea studied Political Science and Philosophy at Ludwig-Maximilian University in Munich. Before relocating to the U.S., she worked as a journalist, creating travel documentaries and reports for German television audiences. After living in the Bay Area for 18 years, Rhea recently moved to Boston and is excited to share her passion for languages with the ALP students.
Email: rhea@jpadulted.org
Phone: (617) 299-0750
Dionne Douglas, Evening Level 3 ESOL Instructor
Dionne earned her bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Psychology from York University and her master’s degree in Adult Education from Yorkville University. She has also obtained a post-graduate TESL/TESOL diploma and has over 16 years of professional experience working internationally in Jamaica, Canada, and Tanzania. Her experience includes working as an English Instructor, Course Creator, Pronunciation Coach, IELTS and CELPIP examiner, Career Prep Trainer, Teacher Trainer, Corporate Soft-skills Trainer, and has been both the Dean and Head of a Training and Development Department. Dionne has a passion for helping multicultural and diverse audiences and is able to achieve this through her work as a virtual and international instructor. Her teaching motto is "Learning should be enjoyable, smile, laugh, and learn."
Email: dionne@jpadulted.org
Phone: (647) 490-2149
Meghan McBain, Morning & Evening Level 4 ESOL Instructor
Meghan was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia. She obtained a Bachelor's Degree in Fine Arts from the University of Georgia and a TESOL Certificate from Kennesaw State University. Meghan has always had an interest in other cultures and after receiving a TESOL Certificate, began teaching English as a Second/Foreign Language in Spain, the USA, and Chile. Meghan has been teaching students of all ages since 2013, and loves every second of it. Meghan has been introduced to many new cultures and customs, improved her Spanish, continued improving as an educator, and developed a whole new perspective on life.
Email: meghan@jpadulted.org
Phone: (434) 362-0669
Ingrid Pimsner, Morning & Evening Level 5 ESOL Instructor
Ingrid Maria Pimsner has been teaching for over a decade in various universities, nonprofits, and private academies. She has taught English as a Second Language for Lutheran Children & Family Service, Nationalities Service Center, Lernstudio Barbarossa Berlin-Tegel, and more. In addition to her Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) Certification, she holds a BA from the University of Pennsylvania and a MA from Maryland Institute College of Art.
Email: ingrid@jpadulted.org
Phone: (857) 285-3845
Gwendolyn Teutsch, Level 6 & CNA ESOL Instructor
Gwen comes from a background in public health and environmental education. She has been an educator for 4 years, teaching natural history to both children and adults. She graduated from Brandeis University with a Bachelors degree in Health: Science, Society, and Policy. Gwen is excited to be a part of the ALP team; this year she will teaching ESOL for CNA.
Email: gwen@jpadulted.org
Phone: (857) 321-8524
Mary Jones, HiSET Instructor
Mary Jones acquired a business degree and MBA from Missouri State University in Computer Information Systems. After working as a programmer for seven years, Mary started to teach business courses at a local community college and then HiSET classes at a local tech center while raising her family. In her free time, Mary enjoys family, exercising, and cooking.
Email: maryjones@jpadulted.org
Phone: (417) 413-4609