Monday, July 20, 2009

New class fills void for immigrants

These classes are helping immigrants fill the gaps in their knowledge of English, reading and math. - - Donna Poisl

by Cindy Gonzalez, WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

Noe Avalos came to this country with a second grade education.

He didn’t speak English and hadn’t learned to read or write in his native Spanish. It didn’t pose too big a problem at his first packing house and production jobs, but now Avalos has his own business and feels inadequate when he can’t fully communicate with a customer.

So at age 47, he’s going back to school.

He and his wife, Angela Meza, will be among the first participants in a program the local Mexican Consulate and United Methodist Church are launching in Omaha.

The first of its kind in the consulate’s Nebraska-Iowa region, the Plaza Comunitaria (Community Plaza) offers a different twist than some better-known English as a second language programs.
Click on the headline to read the rest of this story! This is only a small part of it.

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