Taneka Booker and Project Rise

When Taneka Booker walked through Shoestring’s doors earlier this month, she didn’t need any introduction to the space. Booker may be a new employee, but she’s also a longtime Shoestring parent! At the onset of the pandemic, Booker decided to make a career change to early childhood education and enrolled in Hinds Community College. When staffing spots became open in our Project Rise afterschool program, we felt she’d be a great fit.

“This job has been a blessing,” says Booker. “It’s helped me so much with my studies already.”

Booker is currently studying to become an elementary school teacher, and has a special place in her heart for inclusion and working with exceptional education students. Booker is one of our “floaters,” which is a teacher’s assistant who goes to any teacher in need of an extra hand tutoring a child, sanitizing an area, or facilitating a game.

Booker thinks her new role as a floater at Operation Shoestring has been going great. She’s energetic, caring, and loves hanging out with the kids in Project rise. Of course, there’s one kid who is her favorite above the rest–her eleven-year-old son! Booker takes so much pride in seeing her son Jason learn and grow in confidence every day. “The environment here is so friendly, and the building is very nice,” explains Booker.

“The students are so pleasant. My son is crazy about Operation Shoestring. He loves attending.”