A Bridge to Community;
Language as Passport…
Picture yourself in a strange new land where nearly everyone speaks a different language than you. You may be unable to find medical help, transportation, or a place to stay. Now, imagine how much more comfortable you would feel if you had a partner who could help you learn the native language. Since 1985, Literacy Council of Nevada County has helped hundreds of adults learn English, bridging the gap between them and their community. We’ve partnered many, many students with volunteer tutors, and now we’ve changed our name to Partners in English Language Learning, PiELL or Partners for short. We believe this better describes our mission and distinguishes us from other programs which focus on literacy. Our mission is to help English language learners become thriving members of our community by offering one-on-one language tutoring and building bridges that foster cross-cultural respect, understanding, and friendship.
We at PiELL are very excited about our new name and other changes, as well. We have been experiencing a growth in client interest that now needs to be matched with more volunteer tutors. We always have learners waiting for tutors. Our clients come to us with a feeling of urgency; they want to become more proficient in English as soon as possible in order to better themselves at work, at school, or to be able to speak with their children’s teachers. We have over 45 volunteers who are partnered with a student (sometimes two); they are selfless, generous people who donate their time willingly every week. PiELL’s waiting clients need more Nevada County residents to give an hour or two a week to help bridge the divide, so they may flourish in our community.
Our new name brings other changes as well. We have a new web site: www.piell.org ; thanks to Bev Stout who volunteered her time to create it; and a new email address: admin@piell.org . In October, we will hold our Annual Meeting and name a new President, Judi Kreinick. Judi will be stepping in for our outgoing President, John Jessup, who gave two years of dedicated service, and who will be continuing as a Board Member and Tutor. Judi has been a Tutor for many years, and is also one of our three Resource Tutors. A Resource Tutor is a volunteer tutor who has years of experience with our program and acts as a mentor for our new Tutors.
We recently held our 2008 fundraising campaign. With the growth in demand, so comes an expansion in expenditures to fulfill our commitments to our clients. Our vision is to provide the tools necessary for our students to have a voice in our community. We will be offering training for volunteers on September 13th, 20th, and 27th (must attend all 3 days). To volunteer or donate, please call our Program Coordinator at 274-8428 or send us an email at admin@piell.org.
By Donna Cobb
Program Coordinator, PiELL
