Empowering adults with the literacy skills to thrive as workers, family members, and citizens.

Aaron Gutzke greeted the ATLAS staff for a recent visit at the ThinkSelf offices in St. Paul. We were welcomed into a beautiful, inviting space with a wall of vibrant plants along the window. ThinkSelf is an organization that makes warmth and belonging a priority for its learners, and Aaron is at the center!

ThinkSelf’s mission is to offer resources, education & support to Minnesota Deaf, DeafBlind and Hard of Hearing adults seeking full access to options for learning, safety, justice, employment skills, and community. We see Aaron and his staff at professional development events often; they are frequent attendees at ATLAS offerings. But we didn’t realize just HOW MUCH ThinkSelf does, and with what challenges!

The work Aaron and his team are doing in adult education is exceptional, serving students who are not only working on literacy, math, and career preparation, but also doing it without full hearing. Sometimes students are learning to sign for the first time as adults. In addition, Aaron explained about the other arm of the organization that focuses on advocacy. ThinkSelf does extensive work around domestic violence, a complex and critical issue in the deaf community.

Aaron is a generous colleague and clearly a gifted manager! He pieces together funding and resources for ThinkSelf under extraordinary odds, lifting up a highly marginalized group of learners. This is work that deserves the spotlight!

Thank you, Aaron, for all you do.