Lathan Ehlers
Updated 2:08 PM CDT, Wed November 1, 2023
Published Under: Careers DEI Employee Ownership Recognition
The VGM Language Learning Program, which launched in June, has 37 dedicated employee owners working toward mastery of either English or Spanish. Everyone in this first group has been making great progress in their goals. But there are 10 employee owners who are really throwing off the bell curve.
“VGM employee owners never cease to amaze me,” said Cassi Price, VP of Corporate Projects. “The dedication of our first group of language learners, and these 10 standouts in particular, is truly inspiring. And I can’t wait to see what else they can accomplish with this new language mastery.”
Learners are advancing through the self-paced program with graduation set for December. Individuals who are going above and beyond received a special gift as a thank you for their dedication and for Creating Their Future. They are…
All-Star Language Learners
- Stephanie Mangrich, Human Resources
- Heidi Burke, HOMELINK
- Damon Caple, VGM Fulfillment, Waterloo
- Betheny Miller-Stark, HOMELINK
- Alexandria Beganovic, HOMELINK
- Cody Baker, VGM Fulfillment
- Jhoanna Gonzalas, VGM Fulfillment, Phoenix
- MacKenna Potts, HOMELINK
- Josh Musgrave, VGM Fulfillment, Waterloo
- Kini Caraveo, VGM Fulfillment, Waterloo
Creating Their Future
Eliminating language barriers can have far-reaching benefits in an individual’s life. It can make day-to-day activities easier and help them better engage at work and within their community. And each of our language learners understands that potential.
"Understanding English is essential for my daily work and being able to communicate more effectively with my supervisors and team,” said Jhoanna Gonzales, Shipping Associate in VGM Fulfillment’s Phoenix facility. “But it’s also essential for gaining more opportunities for growth within the company."
Of course, the benefits stretch well beyond the individual. VGM is well-known for finding ways to help others. So it should come as no surprise that a big motivation for many of our language learners is being able to better support their fellow employee owners.
“I work with so many VGM employee owners and managers across the company,” said Stephanie Mangrich, HR Generalist on the Human Capital team. “Learning Spanish through this program allows me to help our employee owners through their HR questions, no matter their first language.”
Thank you to all our language learners for Making a Difference every single day!
Watch for more information in the coming months about openings in the VGM Language Learning Program. The goal is to have over 100 employee owners go through the program in the next two years!
The VGM Language Learning Program was funded in part by a State of Iowa Language Learners Job Training Program grant.
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