Partners Plus Staff

Michael Thomas, Sr, Director

Michael Thomas, Sr. is the Director of Partners Plus at the University of Michigan-Dearborn and teaches business courses at Henry Ford Community College. He joined the University of Michigan-Dearborn in 1994. Partners Plus is designed to assist underrepresented students who start their education at community colleges hoping to meet academic requirements to enter into various degree programs at the University of Michigan-Dearborn. The uniqueness of Partners Plus is that it helps develop students' critical thinking and professional leadership skills as they move towards a bachelor degree. The program offers academic advising, developmental workshops on a variety of topics, leadership training, mentoring, tutoring, financial literary programs, and scholarships...

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Khristian Joy Alexander, Assistant to the Partners Plus Program

Khristian Joy is a Partners Plus Alumni, having graduated from Henry Ford Community College in 2007 with an Associate’s Degree in Business Administration and also in 2008 with her Associate’s Degree in Accounting. Khristian is thankful for the opportunity to be able to give back by committing her time and working with the Partners Plus Program. She is a wonderful example of the results of the Partners Plus Program.

William (Bill) Breger, Accounting Tutor

Mr. William Breger is our Accounting Tutor. He has been with the program for eight years. Mr. Breger received a B.S. and M.B.A. from the University of Detroit. He has taught at Henry Ford Community College, Wayne County Community College District, Schoolcraft Community College, Davenport University and Baker College. Mr. Breger also owns his own accounting practice.

Brandon Rucker, Math Tutor

Mr. Brandon Rucker graduated from the University of Michigan-Dearborn in 2001 with a Bachelor's degree in mathematics and minors in psychology and statistics. He is currently a member of Delta Sigma Phi fraternity. Mr. Rucker believes that students should have an open mind when attempting a problem whether it is math or life. He enjoys helping students overcome their fears and excelling in mathematics.

Keith Williams, Science Tutor

Mr. Keith Williams is our Science Tutor. This is his second year with the program. Mr. Williams is well-known as both a scientist and an educator in the sciences. His investigations in science have yielded two U.S. Patents and one World Patent. As an educator, his interests have led to the production of a dissertation in educational evaluation and research, which focused on the assessment of pre-college students in the urban areas and how they learn science and mathematics. Mr. Williams has tutored or taught science for more than 15 years at the pre-college and college levels. Mr. Williams believes that students get out of tutoring what they put into tutoring. To maximize the tutorial experience, students need to come on a consistent basis and put in the work.

LaKeyla McCaskey, Math Tutor

Ms. LaKeyla McCaskey graduated from Wayne State University with a Bachelor’s in Mathematics and will complete her Master’s in Education in 2009. She has a natural ability to excel in Math. This ability grew into a love to teach others. She taught herself Algebra in the 4 th grade, and excelled in Math from that point. She began working in the Department of Mathematics for the Emerging Scholars Program as a student assistant and tutor. She then went on to be a Teaching Assistant , a College Instructor for the Math Corps program, and the program coordinator for the E.S.P. LaKeyla joined the Partners Plus staff in 2007. She believes all students can excel in Mathematics.

Dana Dacres- Math Tutor

Dana Dacres graduated from The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor in 1999. Dana enjoys teaching mathematics. She has experience as a Program Coordinator for the Math Corps Summer Camp and the Math Corps College Success Center. Dana also is available to tutor Spanish.

Pattie Jones, Co-op Student

Pattie Jones is the current Co-op for Partners Plus. She is a 4.0 GPA student at Henry Ford Community College in the Paralegal program. Pattie is a member of Phi Theta Kappa and participates in the Honor’s Program. Ms. Jones balances her time between the Partners Plus office and being a full-time student and mother.