Helping the Helpers
Denise Blouin and Rhonda Kiser offer Windows 7 training

For over 45 years Catholic Charities of Baton Rouge has continuously provided assistance to those who seek help in the Baton Rouge community. While helping over 115,000 people last year alone, the not-for-profit organization still feels they have not reached their full potential. Staff computer skills are indispensable to the agency's efficiency, as it must keep updated information on hand for each individual seeking assistance. The more quickly data can be entered and processed, the more they can help. When an internal study revealed only half of Catholic Charities 100 employees considered themselves "basic users" on the computer, the agency looked for help within the community to broaden their computer knowledge.

Rhonda Kiser, Manager of IT Training, and Denise Blouin, Senior IT Training Analyst, focus on making computer programs understandable to all Turner users. When they learned of Catholic Charities' needs, they adapted an in-depth training plan and manual based on company training materials. Rhonda and Denise, with help from 20 TEAM Turner members, started with a two month, 12-course session about Microsoft's Windows 7 and its uses for Catholic Charities. Later, they began a course centered on proficiency in Microsoft Office 2010 programs, including basic and advanced sessions of Word and Excel, a basic session on PowerPoint, and a session on Outlook. "Every class has been helpful," Catholic Charities Coordinator, Brennan McAdams, said. "Even the people who considered themselves savvy felt they learned from Denise and Rhonda's help."

Rhonda said, "This would not be possible without help from TEAM Turner. TEAM Turner members assisted at the training sessions to assure that all participants stayed on track and completely understood all the material."