In this new column of Literacy Minnesota newsletter, Inside Word, we’ll get to know our Board of Directors members.
This month we get to know Karin Goettsch, who serves on the Board of Directors and its Development and HR Committees.
How did you first become involved with Literacy Minnesota?
I received my Adult ESL tutor training from Literacy Minnesota in the mid-1990s, shortly before I entered my MA-TESL program at the University of Minnesota. I tutored at the Hubbs Center for Lifelong Learning and a couple of other St. Paul organizations. I was fortunate to be asked to join the Board in 2016 and have served on the Development and HR committees.
What is important to you about Literacy Minnesota’s work? What keeps you engaged with the organization?
All of us who are committed to Literacy Minnesota probably share the philosophy that education and literacy are critical pathways to greater success for individuals and our communities – more now than ever before. What engages me even more as a Board member is how welcomed I always feel by all of the staff at events and meetings. Even if we haven’t met, I feel like we have after what I learn from reading this newsletter and other updates.
What do you do in your life/work outside of Literacy Minnesota?
After 20 years of internal corporate work, I expanded my consulting/training/coaching business full-time (Global Collaboration Insights). My work includes strategic organizational and leadership development, collaboration on global virtual teams, effective communication, and cultural and emotional intelligence. I also teach at the University of Minnesota and Concordia University.
What’s the scariest thing you’ve ever undertaken?
My conference speaking has taken me to some interesting locations and I really miss travel this year. Four years ago my husband and I woke up at 3am in Cape Town and took a long bus ride out of town to Gansbaai (think Shark Week) to go shark cage diving. We got on the boat and out onto the beautiful ocean and I couldn’t believe I was actually going to do this. Unfortunately for us, the sharks decided they weren’t interested in showing up (off-season). We did get a 2-year rain check; needless to say, we weren’t able to make it back to South Africa to redeem it. So, it was the scariest moment that never happened!
