ABE/GED classes are located at the Salt River Career Center
ABE/GED registration and testing is located at the Accelerated Learning Academy Campus (ALA) behind the old elementary school on Longmore and McDowell
ABE/GED Office Number (480) 362-2130
The Salt River Education Department offers ABE/GED classes to all community members interested in obtaining their GED. Classes are offered daily and students are able to pick from 3 different time blocks to best meet their needs. Time offerings are 8am-11am, 11am-2pm, and 4pm-7pm. Adult Education Teachers work with each student to develop an individualized educational plan based on student placement scores and the student’s needs to help them progress through their GED tests and obtain their diploma. Instruction is available through a variety of formats that include computers, textbooks, small group, peer tutoring, and 1 on 1 tutoring. Anyone interested in attending the ABE/GED classes should contact (480) 362-2130 or come to the Accelerated Learning Academy Office (Longmore and McDowell behind the old elementary school) to pick up an application. Class sizes are limited and openings are filled on a first come first served basis.
Erica Litz, GED Instructor
I have been an Adult Education Specialist for the ABE/GED Program for 10 years. I have a B.S. in Business Management and a MFA in Creative Writing from Arizona State University. I have taught English for local colleges and have held an Arizona Adult Education Certification since 1995. I am a published poet and my first book length collection will published in 2009. I am also a member of Pen American Center, VALUEUSA.org, NAMI, and the Arizona Association for Lifelong Learning, the Barefoot Foundation, and MADRE.org.
Andrew Price, GED Instructor
Biography: I have worked in the Salt River Community Since 1989. There have been a lot of changes since then. Education staff consisted of 45 to 50 employees at that time. The medicine wheel was a student recovery program, through Mesa Schools. Then Desert Eagle was set as a charter school which was a bridge to the new high School. I’ve seen 3 presidents that were part of the growth of education on the SRPMIC. A lot of community members have graduated and are working through the tribal entities. SRPMIC has also been reaching and coming to par economically with the outside world. Education will always be an essential part of the progress as it expands in all facets of tribal growth and sovereignty. I have 5 children and 5 grandchildren and the last one is Akimel O’odham/Dine which raising the par of responsibility even more.
Philosophy: I believe we are made of the soft red earth, and we see the moment the creator sends light to our eyes. We have survived watching nature through the wind, animals, and the universe to name but a few. Mountains hold the dreams and songs that heal our spirit, body, and soul. Our language is the existential breathe that bears that we are. Paradigms and numerical analysis have a hard time trying to define us. We are indigenous and sovereign. The past, present, and future are one continuance cycle like a ring.
Education: Haskell University, Associate of Arts 1987. ASU teacher program for math teacher 1986
Yolanda Ruiz, GED Instructor, Corrections
My name is Yolanda Ruiz and I am the GED Instructor for the Salt River Department of Correction’s GED program. I have been here in this position since January 14, 2008. Some of my duties include small group and tutoring instruction in all the 5 subject areas of the GED testing series. Through assessments, instruction and testing, the students in this program have an opportunity to move forward in their education. The previous 8 years, I worked for the Schools and Community Relations Division of the Salt River Education Department as a Counselor.
My education consists of an A.A. Degree from Mesa Community College, a B.A. Degree from A.S.U. and ongoing graduate courses at N.A.U.
I am a certified Adult Education Teacher and appreciate the opportunity to work here in this community.
One of my personal goals is to learn to speak the language of the community. So far I can sing “This is the Day”, say good morning, good afternoon, how are you? And where are you going. So, in the years to come, I hope to add to this vocabulary.
