A resident of Greeley since 1981, Julie raised both of her children here. She has a master’s degree in special education and a school administrator’s license. Julie taught in Greeley at Scott Elementary, Brentwood Middle, and University schools for a total of 22 years. She is currently the Dean of Students at Windsor Charter Academy. Julie is passionate about literacy which makes Right to Read the perfect organization for her to support.

Jane Derk, Ph.D., Licensed Psychologist, began her career in California receiving a Master's degree as a School Psychologist, therefore, understanding many factors which interfere with education and literacy. From there, she moved to Massachusetts, received her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology, and practiced as a Psychologist in private practice in Cambridge, MA, and in a state mental health clinic in Plymouth, MA. Since moving to Colorado in 1986, she has been a stepmother, a mother, and has established her Private Practice in Psychology, with a primary emphasis in psychological evaluations, court evaluations, expert witness testimony, and psychotherapy of children, adults, and families. She also teaches educational classes required by the Court on parenting issues. Now that her children have moved on to college, she has time to devote to other community causes, two of which are literacy and immigration issues. Jane says she's "happy to be on board."

Tom Selders served as Mayor of the City of Greeley from 2003 through 2007, having previously served as a City Council Member from 1993-2001. He earned his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Chemistry from the University of Colorado at Boulder. Tom was in the US Navy and earned the Navy Achievement Medal for his service in Vietnam. He began working for Big R Manufacturing & Distributing, Inc. in 1967. As an owner of Big R from 1986-2001, Tom served as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. He currently owns and operates Greeley Computer Services and is also an independent investment representative. He was previously a member of the United Way of Weld County Campaign Committee and the NCMC, Inc. Board of Directors. Tom has been married to Sandra for over 40 years.  They have two adult sons and four grandchildren. He enjoys running, mountain climbing, and biking, and has completed five Ride the Rockies bike tours. 

Paulette is a retired teacher.

Nancy was originally from Brownsville, Texas, and was raised in Colorado. She graduated from Valley High School in 1994. After working for several years, Nancy studied business at Aims Community College. She lives in La Salle with her husband, daughter, and son. She enjoys going for walks, cooking, entertaining, and spending time with family and friends. "I feel very happy and lucky to be working with Right to Read. It has made a difference in my life."

Cindy grew up in North Carolina where she graduated from Duke University with majors in Ethics and Art. She headed north to Boston for graduate school at Tufts University/School of the Museum of Fine Arts and earned the most fun M.A.T. ever by teaching, painting and reading novels. After teaching in Boston, Mexico, North Carolina, and Japan, she has landed in Windsor, Colorado, where she lives in and works on an old house with her husband, three kids and many smallish animals. For fun and sanity she plays outside -- hiking, skiing, canoeing, or digging -- works on art projects, and writes letters on paper. Teaching at Right to Read is an ideal job for her; she gets paid for work that she loves and believes in.

Pete earned his B.A., M.A., Ed.S., and school administrator's license from the University of Northern Colorado. He taught English at Windsor High School for 22 years and worked as an administrator in the Weld Re-4 School District office for another 12 years before his retirement. Now Pete enjoys spending lots more time with his wonderful wife, Colleen, and enjoys his new hobby, playing classical guitar. He loves to read and to play with technology as well. But teaching classes for Right to Read is one of his greatest joys. "What could be better than getting to explore the varied and exciting world of language together with such dedicated adult students? I learn much more from them than they do from me."

A native New Yorker, Mary Kay has lived in Greeley since 1990. She has an undergraduate degree in Sociology from the University of Delaware. Teaching has always been her passion, whether it was fostering life skills in adults with disabilities or teaching alcohol education to DUI offenders. Mary Kay is thrilled to have the opportunity to teach ESL and is in awe of the commitment and motivation of her students. When not spending time with her loving husband and three terrific children, she loves to read and hike, do yoga and crossword puzzles and sell handmade baskets from Rwanda in the hopes of someday visiting that inspiring country. 

Nancy earned her B.A. from the University of Northern Colorado and her M.A. in Anthropology at the University of Hawaii. That international community experience led to a variety of international experiences. She lived and worked in the Philippines for approximately 17 years where she coordinated a cross-cultural training program for Canadian and Filipino development workers, indexed books for the International Rice Research Institute, and set up an international school library. She lived and worked in Nigeria for 7 years where she did indexing for the Oxford University Press and taught in a parent cooperative school. Upon returning to live in the U.S. she became involved with Right to Read and has taught ESL for over 12 years. Now she also teaches the Bridge classes. She enjoys walking, hiking, reading, and chatting with friends over coffee. “I love my adult students who are so committed and dedicated to learning. They are the reason Right to Read exists, and we are fortunate to have the opportunity to learn from each other.”

Yendra earned her BA in Biology in 2002 from Milligan College in Tennessee. She worked as a naturalist and educated others about the world around us. Through many different twists and turns she ended up working as a librarian before finding Right to Read. Yendra has always been passionate about literacy and teaching; working with Right to Read is a natural and happy fit! Outside of work Yendra loves the outdoors and spending time with her wonderful husband and son.

Originally from Texas, Marisol moved to Colorado more than 15 years ago. She studied Business Organization at the Devry Institute of Technology in Dallas, Texas, before moving to the Denver area. She enjoys working out and spending time with family. Marisol was a homemaker for eight years and began working with the Right to Read program during the Spring 2008 semester. She loves working with people and enjoys the process of learning. For Marisol, the Right to Read program has ignited a true passion towards education.