We’re halfway through May and one step closer to meeting our $7,000 birthday campaign goal thanks to a generous matching gift from Blake and Ana Magee. With two matching gifts now in place, the last missing piece of the puzzle is your contribution. Help us make English language proficiency a reality for hundreds of immigrant and refugee workers in Austin and Central Texas.

Donate once and see how your donation transforms!

Not convinced?

Meet Antonia Frias. Learn about her life before and after the ENGLISH @ WORK class at the Hilton Garden Inn.

Here it is, folks! The first student video of ENGLISH @ WORK’s 2012 Birthday Campaign! We start it off with three wonderful Bhutanese students – Kul, Keshav, and Ramesh. Tune in as they tell us about their journeys from a refugee camp in Nepal to the housekeeping department at Seton’s University Medical Center Brackenridge.

The three of them credit ENGLISH @ WORK with improving their workplace language skills, as well as inspiring them to get their GEDs and apply to Austin Community College. From the moment we met them, we have been impressed with their thirst for opportunity and it is no surprise to us that they have been doing so well. They have paid it forward in their own community by forming the Austin Bhutanese Youth organization, a non-profit that helps Bhutanese refugees celebrate their culture and adapt to their new lives in Austin.

We hope you enjoy their stories. And remember, donate to ENGLISH @ WORK so we can continue to help other refugees get the workplace language skills they need to sustain their families in their new home. Last week you helped us raise $500. Let’s go big and shoot for $1,000 this week! All of your donations are matched by the Charles and Betti Saunders Foundation. Donate today!

Are you bilingual (Eng/Span), a community organizer, and have experience working in immigrant populations? Apply for our AmeriCorps VISTA position! Volunteer will be spearheading a student mentoring program. Great opportunity to make a difference in the Austin and Central Texas immigrant ESL community.

Application deadline is May 25th. For more information, contact our Program Manager, Bekah Schmidt, at bekah@englishatwork.org.

The Maudie’s restaurants are some of the coolest places in town and one thing’s for sure, this awesome team of students and their supervisors brought a new level of cool to E@W during the six months they studied with us. Fifteen of Maudie’s hardworking and fun-loving employees graduated from the program on a hot and windy Texas afternoon last week. It was the perfect occasion to sit down with our students (and some of Maudie’s famous salsa!) and reflect on all the reasons we loved working with everyone at Maudie’s Tex-Mex. Here’s what we came up with:

• These guys were our first students to start their own class Facebook group.
• They know how to have a good time – and invited us to their kids’ birthday parties!
• We got to dance to Grupo Fantasma at their Christmas party.
• Our students who work at the bar encouraged us to celebrate National Margarita Day – and we were happy to oblige.
• They put up with the E@W paparazzi and made it on to our X-mas Greeting!

Maudie's graduating class!

And that doesn’t even touch on the great work these students did in class. Tanlyn, E@W’s amazing Literacy*Americorps volunteer and our teacher in the Maudie’s class, shares her thoughts on leading this great group of students through the E@W experience:

It was a real pleasure teaching this particular group of students. They all were highly motivated and had the greatest attitude both toward work and to learning English. This was my first class to teach at E@W so naturally I was a little nervous at first. But as soon as I had spent one or two days with the guys, I felt right at home. Whether we practiced a dialogue or worked on pronunciation, the Maudie’s students always had something to add that got everyone laughing. We wish them all the best!

A big thank you goes out to Maudie’s Hacienda for hosting the graduation fiesta, to the GM’s and support staff for their endless encouragement, and here’s an even bigger thank you for our most recent grads – it was truly an honor to teach, laugh, and learn with you. Congratulations!

Orlando

Spoiler Alert: Keep your eyes peeled for news on two Maudie’s students whose leadership is making a big impact at the restaurants. Juvenal, we’re so proud of you for stepping up to train new Maudie’s employees – in English! And Orlando, we can’t wait to come visit you at the bar so we can toast your 10-year journey from bar back to bartender. Way to go, guys!

More photos from graduation!

Greetings, ENGLISH @ WORK family! This is Maile, E@W’s Founder and Executive Director.

Today is May 1st. May is a big month for us here at E@W. Why, you ask? First of all, it marks the beginning of great swimming weather in Austin. (Who doesn’t love that?) Secondly, it’s the month that many countries of the world celebrate International Workers’ Day.  But most importantly for E@W, May is the month that we celebrate our birthday. And this year we are turning 7 years old!

In the last 7 years, we have met over 700 immigrants and refugees who needed work-based English skills in order for their families to survive and thrive in the United States. Many of these individuals have incredible, inspiring stories. We’ll be sharing some of their stories with you this month through short videos. Getting to know our students and telling their stories is one way you can celebrate E@W’s birthday with us.

Another way to celebrate with us is to make a donation. In honor of our 7^th year, we are going to raise $7,000 in May. All of these funds will go back into E@W’s workplace English program. And just so you know, $7,000 is about what it costs us to run our 6-month program for 20 participants at one partner business.

What’s even better is that this year the Charles and Betti Saunders Foundation is matching all donations we receive during our birthday month. So if you think about it, it’s like we’re already half-way to meeting our $7,000 goal. We hope you’ll join in! Thanks, and happy May!

- Maile

Make a safe and secure donation through PayPal

 

Still need to make plans for the weekend? E@W’s students have you covered!

Come celebrate the Nepali New Year with E@W and the Austin Bhutanese Youth organization this Sunday, April 15th from 4-7 pm at the North Austin Event Center (10601 North Lamar Boulevard  Austin, TX 78753).

It will be a particularly exciting day for us since the organization is led by 3 E@W graduates – Kul, Keshav, and Ramesh who studied with us at University Medical Center Brackenridge. Their dedication to the class was inspiring and we can’t wait to see what they’ve continued to inspire by creating this new youth organization. (Fun Fact: It’s no surprise this group of friends has put their commitment to education and community involvement into action – Kul was Ramesh’s teacher in Nepal!)

Now here are the event details in their own words:

Austin Bhutanese Youth cordially invite your warm presence to a program to motivate, inspire and support the rising Bhutanese Youth in Austin.Austin Bhutanese Youth is organizing a typical Nepali cultural program on April 15th 2012 (Sunday) with a view to celebrate an auspicious Nepali occasion “The Nepali New Year 2069 B.S.” Your presence would be highly supportive to make this program a great success. Thanks.

Thanks for the invitation, guys, and congratulations on organizing what’s bound to be an awesome event. Happy New Year!

An oldie but goodie! Taken by Gopal, an E@W student, who snapped photos of his Nepali friends enjoying the festivities at the 2010 World Refugee Day.

Links to information on Bhutan and Nepal:

A great interactive site with info on Bhutanese refugees and the “Land of Happiness.” http://www.bhutaneserefugees.com/

UNHCR briefs on Bhutanese resettlement in Nepal (http://www.unhcr.org/4aa641446.html), and from Nepal to other other countries (http://www.unhcr.org/4e4bea789.html).

Austin, take note! Here’s a fascinating article about Bhutanese refugees taking on life in Madison, Wisconsin. http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/bhutanese-refugees-from-nepal-to-madison/article_2afd2734-7e6b-5780-ae7d-41c3bcf051b5.html

Juan, Omar, and Nahú

We finished up classes this week at Maudie’s TEX-MEX. It was a sad day for us, but we can’t wait to see the guys and their families so we can all celebrate on graduation day! Stay tuned for a wrap up post!

We have a summer opening for a Communication & Development Intern!

Communication and Development Internship
June – August 2012
10-15 hours per week – Unpaid

Job Description

The Communication & Development Intern will be a crucial member of our small staff and will help to implement current communication and development strategies. Position reports directly to the Development Assistant.

Essential Job Functions

• Help create content for our website, newsletter, and marketing materials
• Update social media platforms weekly (Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr)
• Manage our email marketing list, including growing distribution
• Take photos/video at our student events and in our classes
• Research potential funding sources (grants, sponsorships, and more)
• Help to manage our Salesforce database

Qualifications

• Familiar with WordPress, Tumblr, and other social media platforms
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Office and/or iWork’s Pages
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Junior or senior student at a four-year college or university or a recent graduate
• Ability to work independently
• Detail-oriented
• Passion for social justice for local immigrant and refugee populations
• Extra points if you are familiar with Photoshop, InDesign, and with movie editing software!
• Double extra points si hablas español!

How to Apply

Please send your resume, cover letter, and other relevant information (portfolio, writing samples, etc.) to Kassie Navarro at kassie@englishatwork.org. Please subject your email as “Communication & Development Internship.” Deadline for applications is May 14, 2012.

Last week the White House released a presidential proclamation recognizing Cesar Chavez Day 2012. The most poignant part of the proclamation is where President Obama states -

On the 85th anniversary of Cesar Chavez’s birth, we are reminded of what we can accomplish when we recognize our common humanity. He told us, “We cannot seek achievement for ourselves and forget about progress and prosperity for our community. Our ambitions must be broad enough to include the aspirations and needs of others, for their sakes and for our own.” As we honor his broad ambitions and expansive vision, let us pledge to stand forever on the side of equal opportunity and justice for all.

We, our, and all. Even with Cesar’s lifetime commitment to advocacy and social justice, it’s never been about him. It has always been about others. It’s a legacy that must be observed.

So join us as we celebrate Cesar’s legacy tomorrow (Saturday) with others at the Si Se Puede! March starting at 10am at the Terrazas Branch Library and ending at 1pm at Austin City Hall. Afterwards, we’ll be at his birthday celebration at Rabbit’s Lounge on east 6th starting at 2pm. There will be free food and music!

Nos vemos? Hope so!

Read about love, student accomplishments, and more!