LEWISTON – Outgoing Lewiston Adult Education Director Betty Gundersdorf, 60, who’s been assistant director since 1985 and director since 2004, was called a lot of things at her retirement party Friday.

One description dubbed her, in Arnold Schwarzenegger style, “The Collaborator.”

From the Shipyard Lounge at the Colisee, Adult Learning Center Coordinator Anne Kemper said she counted 96 organizations that Gundersdorf collaborated with. “And I’m sure I left some out.”

The organizations ranged from the Abused Women’s Advocacy Project to Falcon Shoe to Manpower to the Russell Park Manor. Working with area companies, Gundersdorf brought classes to places such as Falcon Shoe, Supreme Slipper, Knapp and Acorn.

Gundersdorf was responsible for bringing more than $1 million in grants to the city, and found creative ways to help people improve their lives, Kemper said.

One was the certified nursing assistant program. If you go to an area hospital and meet medical technicians, chances are some started out in the CNA program, Kemper said. Gundersdorf started parenting programs. She led what’s now the annual “Ready Read” initiative, encouraging adults to read 20 minutes a day to preschoolers to help them ready for kindergarten.

Since 1985, 5,201 people have completed their high school education through Lewiston Adult Education, “and Betty has almost shaken all those hands,” Kemper said.

One of those hands was Joan Poulin, who was in the audience. Poulin graduated from Lewiston Adult Education in 2006. “I was working at the shoe factory, and they laid me off after 33 years,” Poulin said. “I said, ‘Well, it’s time to go back to school.’ … Now I’m a volunteer English teacher” helping immigrants learn English.

Like others, she praised Gundersdorf as a good and caring leader. If Poulin needed help as a student or volunteer, “I’d talk to Betty. Betty took care of it.”

A graduate of Oklahoma City University and a native of Oklahoma, Gundersdorf came to Maine with her husband, John, in 1978. Gundersdorf had taught middle school English and French.

“I stumbled into adult education because it gave me the opportunity to work part-time when I had young kids,” she said. She soon discovered she loved working with adults.

Many come to adult education in transition, she said. They often need a high school education or new skills to advance in the workplace. Many immigrants come to learn English. Others come for fun, to learn a new hobby or new skill.

“It’s so gratifying to stand out in the lobby in the evening and greet people walking into classes,” Gundersdorf said. “People braiding rugs with suitcases of half-finished projects they want to show off. People coming in to learning to speak French because they’re going to France.”

Teaching adults is gratifying, she said.

“Adults are so quick to tell you their learning is transforming their lives,” Gundersdorf said. “Or they’re quick to tell you what we’re not doing right, what we need to change.”

In 1991 at the age of 44, Gundersdorf was diagnosed with life-threatening breast cancer. She went through two years of treatment, and came out with a new appreciation for life, she said. “I’m very, very pleased to be here.”

Gundersdorf’s retirement plans include a trip to France with her husband, followed by frequent trips to Chicago and Philadelphia to visit her children. “Then I’ll decide what to do with the next chapter.”

Among the gifts Gundersdorf was given was a charm bracelet with a single charm. On one side it had the initials LAE. On the other side it reads, “You made a difference.”