Let's Start From the Beginning (A Very Good Place to Start)
Whitney & Aimee, Founders and Owners of DreamCatcher Curriculum, LLC
This is us! We are Aimee Gutowski and Whitney Srsen, two long-time friends and colleagues with unusual last names and much in common. We are both country girls, being raised in a rural setting (Aimee grew up near Mannford, Oklahoma; Whitney is from Greenland, Arkansas). Both of our families struggled financially and couldn't pay for college expenses. Both of us were the first generation in our families to attend and graduate from college. Whitney was fortunate to have the support of Upward Bound to assist her efforts in going to college and is a proud alumna of University of Arkansas (Woo Pig Soooie!). Aimee had a partial scholarship from the Cherokee Nation, of which she is a tribal member, to help pay for college expenses. She graduated from Oklahoma State University (Go Pokes!).
Something else in common? Careers dedicated to helping students achieve their dreams of attending college. Between us, we have over 23 years of teaching, higher education, and TRIO experience. Together we have racked-up thousands of college prep workshop/classroom presentations and helped hundreds of high school seniors make it to college. We have also both been mentors for National Student Leadership Congress in Washington, DC multiple times. This profession, helping students achieve a college education, is profoundly rewarding and we're committed heart and soul to this work.
In creating and designing workshops for students in Talent Search TRIO, we discovered another common passion: curriculum. I know it sounds odd, but designing college prep curriculum, with all the graphics, art design, fonts, and grammar? Well, it is just about one of our favorite things in the world. We could talk about fonts, design, and workshop ideas all day! That's admittedly a little weird, but it's sort of our thing (everybody's got something, right?). The two of us have been known to sit for hours at a time nudging text boxes and graphics this way and that until it looks juuuuuuust right.
“Design is a funny word. Some people think design means how it looks. But of course, if you dig deeper, it’s really how it works. ”
Over the years we've presented at various TRIO conferences at the state, regional, and national level. It was thrilling and truly validating to receive positive feedback about our curriculum. Although the presentations were intended as instruction, support, and coaching on how to develop curriculum and conduct workshops, we repeatedly received the same feedback: "Can we just buy this from you?" It became clear that programs with limited resources and staff (hello, TRIO!) do not have the time or ability to create curriculum from scratch.
And that brings us to now. Although we adored our work in TRIO and loved time spent in the classroom with students, we wanted to challenge ourselves to do more. What could we do to reach more students, benefit college access programs, and assist high school counselors? How could we best utilize our expertise, passion for curriculum design, and dedication to helping students achieve their dream of attending college? The answer was as plain as the writing on the wall (wink!)... DreamCatcher Curriculum, LLC.
“The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you are not going to stay where you are.”
The last sunset before becoming business owners with the official start of DreamCatcher Curriculum, LLC.
Perhaps the best thing about starting our own company was the reason WHY we founded DreamCatcher Curriculum. Because in the very beginning, as first-generation college-bound high school students, Whitney and I struggled just as much as the students we want to help. We know how hard TRIO/GEAR UP/college access programs and high school teachers/counselors work to make their students' dreams a reality. Why not make this important work a little easier? If we can help in some small way, then our venture will be worth it. There's no time like now.