Success Story: Meet Brisa

By her mid-20s, Brisa had lost hope. She worked hard in everything she did, from school to job to family, but still she could not seem to reach her goals. As happens to many in our community, the very institutions meant to help her were, instead, further destabilizing her and her family to the point that Brisa gave up. Then, she found Live & Learn. With Live & Learn’s help and her hard work, Brisa is now thriving, and she is focusing her career on advocating within schools for change on behalf of children growing up in circumstances like those

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Covid-19 Deepens the Digital Divide in Arizona

Covid-19 Deepens the Digital Divide in Arizona When schools moved online, Covid-19 deepened the Digital Divide in Arizona almost overnight. With the possibility of school continuing online for the fall 2020 semester, the digital divide threatens to become an even bigger obstacle for low-income students. Live & Learn women enrolled in Maricopa Community Colleges and local universities have overcome significant obstacles to get to a position of pursuing post-secondary education. Many had dropped out of high school as teenagers. Many had never known anyone who went to college. When college classes moved online mid-semester due to Covid-19, most of these

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Continued Support from the Arizona Community Foundation

This month, the Arizona Community Foundation’s Covid-19 Community Response Fund provided $13,400 to Live & Learn. This is in addition to support from the Arizona Community Foundation in April (read about it here). With this second wave of funding, Live & Learn can continue to mitigate the devastating effects of the pandemic on low-income women in Maricopa County. Covid-19 continues to pose serious challenges to women in our community. As stress and anxiety increase, women’s mental health is in jeopardy. Live & Learn program staff are working hard to ensure women are receiving the mentoring and emotional support they need.

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Female Entrepreneur Elected Live & Learn Board Chairperson

Susanne Johnson was unanimously voted to serve as Chairperson of the Live & Learn Board of Directors in November 2019. Ms. Johnson is an inspiring entrepreneur with an admirable work ethic and a passion for what she does. She is currently the founder and owner of Verbena Sky, but she began her career in banking and auditing, followed by several years building digital products at technology companies. Then, Ms. Johnson founded her own company, inspired by a desire to boost women’s confidence. VerbenaSky.com Verbena Sky is an online accessory business that showcases a wide variety of jewelry, bags, and home

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