Asia Calcagno, MFA
Director of Programs at Young Chicago Authors- Claim this Profile
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Bio
Credentials
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Professional Educator License
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Experience
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Young Chicago Authors
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United States
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Civic and Social Organizations
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1 - 100 Employee
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Director of Programs
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Sep 2022 - Present
-Directs the artistic vision, strategy, recruitment, and calendaring for our in-house writing, publishing, and performance based programs which reach over 1000 students annually -Synthesize qualitative and quantitative program data to guide the narrative, program recruitment, and marketing strategies for our organization -Direct the annual Rooted and Radical Youth Poetry Festival vision, communications, and recruitment which averages 40 events and serves over 500 constituents -Serve on the YCA leadership team guiding organizational strategy, professional development, cross-departmental programming and city-wide partnerships Show less
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Oak Park and River Forest High School
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Oak Park, IL
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Assistant Spoken Word Educator
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Aug 2016 - Present
-Support a community of 50+ youth writers by providing individualized written and verbal feedback to support their development as poets and performers -Designed and facilitated a highly-level culturally relevant poetry workshop to a group of skilled writers -Contribute to the welcoming and safe environment to encourage young writers to participate in the literary environment -Serve on YCA's leadership team and support the guidance of marketing, communication, and cross-departmental duties Show less
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826CHI
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United States
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Non-profit Organizations
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1 - 100 Employee
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Director of Programs
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Aug 2020 - Oct 2022
-Serves on 826CHI’s leadership team and collaborates with Executive Director to lead a staff of 12, implement strategic vision, coordinate budgeting processes, identify strategies for growth and development, and cultivate an organizational culture of effective cross-departmental collaboration -Directs the program team in recruitment processes, data collection processes, and culturally relevant curriculum initiatives, professional developments, and calendar year planning of five core programs -Strengthens the impact and effectiveness of in-schools programming coaching program staff and teaching artists, data synthesis and reflection, and securing and sustaining partnerships with Chicago Public Schools principals and educators -Leads a data-informed priority enrollment neighborhood alignment, community partnership alignment, and school partnership processes annually to advocate for the organizational mission of providing quality and culturally responsive literacy programming to high need Chicago communities Show less
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The Posse Foundation
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United States
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Non-profit Organizations
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200 - 300 Employee
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Trainer
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Mar 2018 - Aug 2020
• Coach high-performing student leaders to achieve holistic success in higher education by facilitating 8 months of pre-collegiate workshops focusing on leadership development, cross-cultural communication, and team dynamics • Manage healthy and effective partnerships with constituents from 3 university partners and counselors from over 20 high schools by utilizing data to understand the unique profile of each institution and consult on issues related to culture, recruitment, retention, and re-entry processes •Provide individualized coaching and facilitate professional developments to university constituents to advance mentorship skills and establish understanding of diversity, equity, and inclusion as it relates to social issues in higher education •Manage the writing program for 120 incoming college students by revising and building curriculum and resources for staff and volunteers, supporting the recruitment of year-long coaches, and facilitating trainings for coaches and staff Show less
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Genesys Works
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United States
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Professional Training and Coaching
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500 - 600 Employee
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Program Coordinator
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Aug 2016 - Mar 2018
• Facilitated 3 months of workforce training for over 20 high school students and assessed their performance to ensure proper job placement in year-long internships • Managed partnerships with 10 businesses by performing monthly site visits, resolving workplace conflict, making data-informed decisions to improve internship experience, and performing individual coaching and professional development to supervisors and interns • Facilitated and developed curriculum for weekly College and Career Connections classes to interns to ensure success in planning and preparing for postsecondary endeavors • Designed year-long enrichment curriculum and professional developments and trained staff how to implement workshops and utilize supplemental materials • Designed the first ever writing assistance program which included curriculum intended to enhance students' college-level writing skills, writing in the professional setting, and volunteer writing and resume workshops Show less
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Muchin College Prep
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Chicago
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English Language Arts Teacher
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Jul 2014 - Jun 2016
•Exposed 9th graders to all genres of writing including narrative fiction, personal essay, persuasive/argumentative, editorial, blogging, e-mail writing, and response to literature with a mindset around appreciating all forms of writing and gaining a deeper understanding about writer’s purpose •Fostered an inclusive and respective writing culture where students value working towards the goals of learning to love the writing process, appreciating grammar, and comprehending the purpose of all forms of writing •Differentiated instruction, modified assessments, conducted small group instruction, and implemented teaching and behavioral strategies to meet the individual needs of students with diverse learning abilities •Utilized data to track student progress and exceeded the school’s 3 point goal by reaching over 5 points average classroom growth every year on quarter interim assessments Show less
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Connecticut College
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United States
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Higher Education
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700 & Above Employee
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ALANA Coordinator
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Aug 2013 - May 2014
-Coordinated the ALANA (African, Latino/a, Asian, Native American) Program by managing over 30 Big Sibs and 40 Little Sibs, planning events, communicating information to staff and students, and training Big Sibs to become effective mentors to incoming first year college students -Assisted the Unity House directors in developing, organizing, and implementing effective multicultural education programming -Directed students to effective resources as they became oriented to the college setting Show less
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Diversity Peer Educator
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Jan 2013 - Feb 2014
-Chosen from a large pool of competitive applicants to collaborate with student organizations to raise awareness of equity and inclusion issues throughout the institution-Designed and facilitated workshops to engage students and faculty in critical dialogue and develop tangible outcomes to resolve campus issues -Engaged in weekly workshops to further my professional development around culturally relevant topics, current college climate, and develop facilitation skills
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Education
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Bennington College
Master of Fine Arts - MFA -
2014 - 2015
Dominican University
Teaching Certificate -
2010 - 2014
Connecticut College
Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), English/Language Arts -
Dominican University
Community
