Population Served:
8,200 Project Contact: Judy Oliver Project Title: ALA (in Spanish – wing) to the American Dream Project Description: Our Hispanic population is growing each year and we are beginning to build a liaison with the Hispanic Community and the library. We currently provide computers for public use and many Hispanics use them frequently. Although we have DVD’s, we do not have any Hispanic titles and have few Hispanic materials, no periodicals, and no music. Although we do visit Hispanic families in our Summer Outreach, we would like to expand this and create an off-site Story Hour (similar to our Prime Time Program) in the community for parents and children. We will also provide books and other materials for these families to continue to embed a lifelong love of reading and use of the library. |
 |
Notable accomplishment, promising practices, or human interest stories: We learned that the first night of the program went over very well with the participating families. We had three other sessions for a total of four weeks. The first evening we opened the evening with an inflatable for the children to play on while the parents were visiting with one another and registering. Each evening we served ice cream or a frozen treat and then settled in to read a books on such themes as on the first presidents of the United States and of Mexico, the wars the two countries had been involved in and how they gained their freedom The books were in English and Spanish. After the readings, the participants discussed both books and expanded on the topic of the evening. The theme of the books enabled the participants to learn more about their own country (Mexico) and the United States.
Key lessons learned: This was a very successful program and we are continuing to work with the ESL/Literacy Coordinator for the County. We are currently hosting GED classes every Tuesday evening at the library, and continue to get materials in Spanish for our patrons. We recently purchased laptop computers with web cams on them to enable our Hispanic community to interact with their families in Mexico. We have many Hispanic families who come to the library frequently. They are very comfortable in our midst.
Advice for other libraries serving adult English language learners: We have found a great deal of success working with the county Literacy Coordinator who is Hispanic and has a very good relationship with the Hispanic Community in our county. We believe that has been the key to our success.