Meet Tasha Pierce Administrative Assistant for AdoptionLearningPartners.org  Please describe your position. I perform basic day-to-day administrative work for Adoption Learning Partners, The Cradle's e-learning website. We have courses for people in the process of adopting, as well as courses for people already parenting. In addition to offering 15 courses to Cradle families, ALP has over 130 adoption agencies in its Participating Agency Program around the country, Canada, and other nations. Adoption Learning Partners offers online learning to their clients and staff, as well as anyone who wants or needs training through our offerings. My responsibilities are to provide customer service for both the clients taking courses and the agencies. I also read course evaluations and issue certificates of completion. In the last year I manually issued over 19,000 certificates. Tasha Pierce helps out on a busy day in The Cradle NurseryWhat is a typical day like? I come in every day and start by checking messages and answering questions from clients. Typical tasks include reading evaluations, issuing certificates, and assisting in any ALP business that needs attention. What's the most rewarding part of your job? I really enjoy reading the stories that people include with the course evaluations, both personal family stories and individual children's stories. Some are stories and feedback from people who first thought they didn't need ALP courses. Sometimes people think because they have adopted before, the courses are going to be a waste of their time or funds. But after completing the courses they will say that they wish they could have taken the course years ago when they first adopted. They say that the courses will not only help with their soon-to-be adopted child, but also their current child they have at home.   What are your biggest challenges? My biggest challenges are the adoptive parents who feel they don't need training. The challenge for me is how to convey to them that the courses have substantive material and will be resources that can be used over and over again. Is there a particular case you may share that touched you? The first thing that comes to mind may seem like an unlikely choice at first, but my colleagues at ALP would understand why I view this particular case as such a success for our program. ALP has a course called Conspicuous Families: Race, Culture, and Adoption. I remember a gentleman whom I spoke with, who was taking the course and he was questioning whether he would be able to handle a trans-racial adoption. After taking the course, he realized he could not and decided not to pursue a trans-racial adoption. The Conspicuous Families course enabled him to realize this, which benefits him and the child he will adopt. He can now be sure he will be in a situation he is comfortable with and I think that's great! ALP is not all about hearing only the “happy ending” stories, but is about helping people to take the time to truly consider what they are doing and why they are doing it, and leading to the best way for them to proceed. Can you give an example of a time when you went beyond the normal expectations to serve a client? Many people who take our courses are under some time pressure to complete their training so that their adoption home study can be completed. I recall one woman who contacted me because she was having a difficult time printing off her certificates from online courses. She was very upset and as I listened to her, I realized that she was not talking about one of our ALP courses. She had no way of contacting the actual organization she was taking the course from, since her agency only gave her Adoption Learning Partner's information. I was able to go into the other program and forward the certificates to her agency for her. I felt really bad for her…you could tell she was down to the wire and frustrated. She was not one of our clients, but I understand how overwhelming these times are for adoptive parents, and I wanted to help put her at ease and make her feel like the world wasn't conspiring against her. I could do it…it was right there…so I helped her out. Where are you from and how did you come to The Cradle? I graduated from Hampshire College with a degree in comparative religion and theatre. I grew up in Evanston and, after years on the East and West coasts, live here now. To top it off, I am a Cradle baby! My parents took me home from The Cradle Nursery when I was one month old. I saw an ad for the ALP position and it seemed very interesting to me, even though I had no idea at the time that ALP was part of The Cradle. I finally found out when I looked into the position and then wrote a note to The Cradle letting them know of our past connection. I was thrilled to be offered the position, and have been here at ALP for just over a year. What do you like to do in your spare time? I like to go to poetry readings and theatre productions, and I love to perform myself. I enjoy hanging out with my nieces, nephews, brothers, and sisters, and all the times my family gets together.