Santa's Elves By Greta Coakley

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This program potentially reduces the time for Mathematics Master's students to obtain High School certification from 3 semesters to one extra summer internship.
I am quite excited about this and believe that this program could become a national model.  We will try to obtain additional special graduate assistantships for it. ?
     With the help of Andre House in Phoenix, a generous outpouring of financial support and presents, and a group of “elves” to diligently wrap all the goodies, last semester's Adopt-a-family Christmas program was a tremendous success.  For those of you that caught a glimpse at the office tree in the weeks before Christmas, it should be no surprise that it took four vehicles and a number of anxious volunteers to haul the gifts to the Rivas family who received our presence with smiles and open arms.    Little Michelle clung timidly to her mother as we paraded in and out the front door, leaving armloads of groceries and packages of all shapes and sizes underneath the family's artificial tree.  Despite a slight language barrier, their extreme appreciation was communicated through dozens of surprised grins and a hundred broken thank-yous as the toys, clothes, house wares, and bicycles literally filled the entire living room.  A huge thank you to all the faculty, staff, and students who took a little bit of extra time last holiday season to brave the mines, fight the crowds, and open their wallets and hearts for a family plagued not by fault but circumstance.  As a fellow “elf” and volunteer, I can assure you that all your kindness and generosity did not go unappreciated!