Jones Library ESL Center

CONTACT:

43 Amity St.
Amherst, MA 01002
413-259-3106
joneslibrary.org/esl/index.html

Bonnie Isman, Library Director

DESCRIPTION:

As everyone knows, Massachusetts attracts immigrants—not just to Greater Boston, but statewide. In 1985 the Jones Library in Amherst was concerned about better serving a new population of refugees who had come to make the Pioneer Valley their home but could not speak or read English. The Library secured a grant from the MA Board of Library Commissioners to create a simple but effective program whereby volunteers would be matched one-on-one with adult immigrants, many of them political refugees, to help them learn to speak and read English, to learn US customs and culture, and to become American citizens. Today the ESLC provides 320 volunteer hours weekly, with flexible scheduling and customized instruction to meet each immigrant’s needs: improving job or customer communication skills, getting a driver’s license, talking effectively to a child’s teacher, or becoming a citizen. They have helped over 3,000 immigrants with the naturalization process, with a 100% success rate; provided individual instruction to over 800; and received state and national awards and recognition for excellence. They are featured in a recent Carnegie Corporation report, “A More Perfect Union: A National Citizenship Plan” as a model library-based ESL/citizenship program. With a budget of only $30,000, here is simple grassroots philanthropy you can believe in and enjoy supporting.

(2008: HUMAN SERVICES: Well-Being: Education)