Helping kids learn ‘part of our DNA’ at Epiphany Education Center

Detroit — Sr. Alice Baker, IHM, and Sr. Marie Cyril Delisi, IHM, stayed busy when they “retired” 10 years ago, and plan to keep it up when they “retire” for a second time this spring.

After their original retirements from teaching in 2006, they started the Epiphany Education Center, which provides tutoring for children of low-income families in Detroit.

This year, as Epiphany celebrates 10 years of service and roughly 300 children served, the sisters have decided to step back — a bit. They intend to hire a paid executive director to guide the center, but they certainly plan to remain present.

Sr. Baker, for instance, is a member of the IHM Peacemakers, and has been involved in social activism for years — something she plans to continue during this second retirement-of-sorts.

“We’re like the energizer bunnies,” said Sr. Baker. “It’s part of our DNA; we love being with the kids.”

“We’ll still be around,” said Sr. Delisi. “We don’t have to be administrators but we’ll certainly be available.”

She and Sr. Delisi currently volunteer in their roles as co-directors, so having a paid position for someone to fill both of their roles seems smart. They are currently considering candidates.

Sr. Delisi said they know it is “very important” that they “bring new life to the center. A difference is always a refresher; new life, new ideas.”

“God willing, this will continue,” said Sr. Baker.

 



Helping kids

Epiphany’s home is in the Samaritan Center, a resource and education center on Conner Avenue for local neighborhoods.

Currently, the Epiphany Education Center has 10 tutors and 15-18 students, with an average of 15-20 kids served each school year, which for the center is October through May. They also have a summer program for two weeks in August.

The volunteers include fellow IHMs (Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary), Dominican sisters and laypeople.

The program emphasizes reading and math, with enrichment at the end of the sessions during the August program. Sr. Delisi said they address grades 1-8 with open hours on Monday through Thursday, and the kids are tutored two days a week.

“Also, students take a book home at least monthly,” she said.

Sr. Delisi said Epiphany works with elementary and middle school, not high school, “because we feel critically that they be on-task and on their grade level, hopefully, before they enter high school.”

The math instruction is largely basic math. Sr. Delisi expressed concern for modern children’s reliance on calculators, which “have not given children the skills needed to be able to add and subtract within a minute.”

She and Sr. Baker know. They are both veterans of the classroom, with the school experience between them adding up to more than 100 years.

Sr. Baker is quick to add that they do not call Epiphany a school: it’s a ministry of the nonprofit Detroit Catholic Pastoral Alliance, and relies on donations.

Sr. Delisi noted they’ve worked in numerous schools of the Archdiocese of Detroit, especially in the city of Detroit: “This is where our heart is.”

“We knew there was a need and wanted to try to fill the need if possible,” she said.

 

Generous support

Most of the children are from Detroit’s east side, but thanks to word of mouth, kids have also come from other parts.

A key element is that all instruction given by the volunteer tutors is one-on-one. Sr. Baker said the students’ schools often have after-school programs, “but most are group activities which do not necessarily address the unique differences a child may have in that subject.”

“That makes it very critical for us to address whatever the problem is for a child, and be able to work on it,” she said.

The sisters expressed appreciation for the many volunteers who help throughout the year, including a woman who paid for a field trip in honor of her late husband.

Grants from the Adrian Dominican Sisters and the IHMs were helpful in getting Epiphany off the ground in the early years.

And seven religious sisters — four Adrian Dominicans and three IHMs — were involved in founding the center, but other local religious have also left their mark.

“Adrian Dominicans, IHMs, Sisters of Mercy and Home Visitors of Mary have all volunteered in our center,” said Sr. Baker. “A Sister of St. Joseph began her own program in southwest Detroit based on (our) center.”

The sisters also credit their religious communities for supporting them in the endeavor.

“Our IHM community has consistently affirmed our presence and ministries in Detroit because this city is a very important part of our history, from our very beginnings in 1845,” Sr. Baker added.

Bro. Francis Boylan, CSC, a Brother of the Holy Cross who helped found the Samaritan Center, “has given us his support,” said Sr. Baker. “He knows how important education is.”

 

Learn more

The Epiphany Education Center is located at 555 Conner St., Suite 3258, Detroit, MI, 48213, in the Samaritan Center. Call (313) 267-1830, email at [email protected], or visit epiphanyeducationcenter.com.