magazine - De La Salle Institute

faith, service & community
4 Faith, Service & Community
Fulfilling Their Mission
of Excellence in Adult Education
Mission Year is a yearlong urban ministry program focused on
Christian service and discipleship. Simply put, Mission Year
volunteers commit to the command of Jesus “to love God and
love people.” So it was that Emily Alberghini and Ben Pitzen
applied to be volunteer teachers in De La Salle’s Tolton Center,
from which they would receive their Mission Year Service. Today,
Emily and Ben are fulltime Tolton staff members.
Ben Pitzen grew up on a farm in Iowa. When he graduated from
Northwestern College, where he studied Religion and Youth/
Adolescent Studies, he felt called to serve in a context different
than his own. He remembered the Mission Year representatives
who visited his college and applied. Pitzen was assigned to
Chicago’s West Side and given the task of finding a place to serve.
He literally walked the streets and came upon the Tolton sign
outside of the Legler Library.
Pitzen came in to learn about this adult education program, spent
a day observing, and asked to volunteer. During that first year,
he taught ABE/GED math in the morning and also worked in
Tolton’s English as a Second Language Family Program in Early
Childhood. Pitzen returned to Tolton as a member of LVAIL
(Literacy Volunteer for America in Illinois) and taught ESL to
adults in the evening at Toman Library, in addition to continuing
his first-year duties. Today, Pitzen is an ABE/GED Math Instructor
at the Legler Library and Earle Elementary. He is also performing
administrative duties.
As for his greatest challenge as a Tolton instructor, he is quick
to cite his adjustment to a wide variety of student skill levels,
abilities, needs, and learning styles. While there have been
obstacles to overcome, there also have been moments of joy that
have occurred in his time at Tolton such as adults who overcame
negative experiences, those who have earned a GED and children
who thrived and are now succeeding in kindergarten.
“Serving at Tolton has helped me realize how blessed I am to have
received a quality education,” Pitzen said. “And it also helped me
realize how I am called to share it with those who have not had
this opportunity.”
Like Pitzen, Alberghini, also participated in the Mission
Year program. When Alberghini graduated from Boston
College with a degree in elementary education, she wanted to do
something different.
Alberghini learned about Mission Year from a table that was set
up at a music festival that she attended. Alberghini planned to
volunteer in some form of education for a year and then return
home to Maine and begin a career in elementary education.
Alberghini’s plans changed, however, as Mission Year assigned
her to Chicago where she met Pitzen, who told her about the
interesting place he had found at the Legler Library. Pitzen
referred Alberghini to Tolton and she began teaching language
arts to adults and assisting in Early Childhood/Family Literacy.
In January of her first year, Alberghini switched to ESL Family
Literacy at the Toman Library where her bilingual skills were put
to good use with her considerable gifts enriching both the ESL
Adult and Early Childhood programs.
Today, Alberghini teaches ESL to immigrant adults at two Tolton
sites – La Villita Christian Church and Our Lady of Tepeyac Head
Start. In addition, she also participates in grant writing. Teaching
ESL classes provides Alberghini the satisfaction in knowing that
she is assisting immigrants in their quest to learn English and
feel at home in a new land. This is especially meaningful for
Alberghini as her grandfather came to the United States from
Mexico more than 50 years ago.
In her heart, Alberghini knows she is called to be a teacher and
that her experience at Tolton will enrich her vocation in education
– wherever it may lead.
“I thought I loved education because I love kids,” Alberghini said.
“But now I know I just love education. Witnessing someone of
any age ‘get it’ makes all the effort worthwhile.”
Emily Alberghini
Ben Pitzen
ryla
Rotary Youth Leadership Award
When the local Chicago Near South Rotary Club was seeking
to sponsor deserving high school students for a leadership
training opportunity, De La Salle was atop their list. For the
second consecutive year, two Meteors received the Rotary Youth
Leadership Award, which sponsors high school students to attend
a weekend-long experience complete with leadership training,
workshops, keynote speakers and learning through service.
The 2010 RYLA participants, Katie O’Leary ‘12 and Chandler
Bramwell ‘13, traveled to Lake Geneva one weekend in October
for an experience that changed their lives. The De La Salle
administration helped identify these Meteors as worthy candidates
for the training; both Katie and Chandler are wonderful students
and already exemplify leadership potential. However, neither the
students, faculty, nor the parents could not have anticipated the
impact that the RYLA weekend had on those young leaders. Like
many RYLA participants, the students embark as somewhat shy
and hesitant individuals, only to return completely transformed
into excited, motivated leaders ready to take on bigger challenges
In the fall of 2010, Mayor Daley – a member of De La Salle’s
Class of 1960 – was awarded the Urban Land Institute (ULI)
J.C. Nichols Prize for his ability to bring his intertwining priorities
to fruition. He is only the second mayor so honored in the
award’s 11-year history.
The award includes a $100,000 annual prize, which honors
ULI founder and legendary Kansas City, Missouri, developer
J.C. Nichols, and recognizes an individual whose career
demonstrates a longtime commitment to the highest standards
of responsible development. Mayor Daley chose to split the prize
into $25,000 donations to four Chicago organizations including
De La Salle Institute.
Mayor Daley received the award at a luncheon held at the Art
Institute of Chicago. Representing De La Salle at the luncheon
was its president, Fr. Paul Novak, OSM.
“De La Salle is deeply honored and grateful to be honored by
Mayor Daley in this fashion,” Fr. Novak said. “Our school is built
upon the precepts of faith, service and community and I believe
Mayor Daley recognized this as something that runs in
and eager to seek out future opportunities to expand themselves
and their knowledge and skills. The sponsoring Chicago Near
South Rotary Club proudly invited Katie and Chandler to present
about their training experience during the January 19th meeting
held on IIT’s campus. The power of transformation was clear,
for De La Salle and Rotary International, and both are excited to
continue the partnership and maintain the RYLA tradition that
benefits everyone in our community.
Mayor Daley Receives J.C. Nichols Prize
Shares Prize with Alma Mater
concurrence with his beliefs in the field of secondary education.
“On behalf of the 1,200 young women and young men who
call De La Salle home, as well as our faculty, staff and alumni,
we thank Mayor Daley for the exemplary kindness and generosity
he extended toward his alma mater. Everyone at De La Salle
congratulates Mayor Daley
on receiving this most
prestigious accolade.”