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Learning Spanish at Work—It Works! |
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Successful businesses know that the ability to communicate effectively with customers and co-workers results in improved customer service, higher employee satisfaction and increased productivity. With the surge over the past decade in the Hispanic population in the United States, more and more companies are providing both English and Spanish instruction at their places of business in order to increases effective communication. The Latin American Association has been offering workplace English and Spanish classes since 1994 at companies all over the Atlanta area including: Hewlett Packard, Homebanc, John Wieland Homes, Longhorn Steakhouse, the Red Cross, Stonecrest Mall and Amerimex.
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“Core to our mission, at the LAA we strongly believe that all immigrants should learn English for their and their children’s success, so we offer English classes at the LAA and in the workplace,” comments Edna Rodriguez, Director of Career and Education Services at the LAA. “We also encourage native English speakers to learn a second language as well if they wish to do so. Many companies find that it just makes sense: By offering Spanish classes to their employees, they can provide excellent customer service and targeted products to their Hispanic customers. This way, they can gain and maintain a competitive edge.”
Albert "Skip" Latson, Training Coordinator at Atlanta HIDTA has experienced the benefits of the program firsthand. “In our workplace a simple greeting in Spanish can make a huge difference in bridging the culture gap and establishing an atmosphere of cooperation. And in other areas—such as public safety—knowing Spanish may even make the difference in saving a life.”
The LAA’s workplace classes are fun and results oriented. “Our objective is to make language learning an enjoyable and productive experience,” says Holly Patrick, Manager of Language Programs at the LAA. “In our classes, we want to get students communicating as quickly as possible-- and have a good time while doing it.”
Our clients routinely comment on a job well done. “It has been a pleasure to work with the Latin American Association,” adds Adriana Gomez, Office Coordinator at Amerimex, a local telephone company. “It has been a great class. It’s relaxed and comfortable, which is a great thing for us."
All courses are designed based on the specific needs of each client. For more information about workplace classes, contact Holly Patrick at (404) 982-6894.
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For more information about workplace Spanish classes, contact Holly Patrick at (404) 982-6894.
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From the Director |
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This may prove to be one of the most difficult years for Georgia’s Latino families as the 2006 legislative session begins with talks of sweeping immigration reform. In recent articles in the Atlanta Journal Constitution as well as the Atlanta Business Chronicle, supporters of these bills are portraying immigrants as taking advantage of public services and their children as undeserving of a higher education.
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| I am perplexed as to why there is a perception that undocumented immigrants are accessing taxpayer funded services in record numbers to the brink of financial meltdown. By law, undocumented immigrants are not eligible for TANF, Medicaid, Social Security or other government benefits. U.S. born children that meet poverty guidelines are eligible for some basic services. Undocumented immigrants, by federal law, are eligible for only very limited emergency services, such as medical services. Considering that immigrants do some of the most dangerous work in the country, this is both humane and logical. |
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Consider the consequences should some of the current bills under consideration pass and it becomes illegal for social service and health organizations to provide needed services to this vulnerable group of immigrants. The result is an underclass that can be legally neglected and becomes further isolated from the general population, an unhealthy social environment from many aspects. Sadly, we are already seeing some disturbing trends. In the past year, on three separate occasions, patients recently discharged from area hospitals have been dropped off by taxi on our doorstep, one dressed only in a hospital gown carrying a bag with one shoe, without even a phone call from a medical social worker. According to a recent NPR segment, this has also been occurring in Los Angeles. In addition to the fact that all three patients needed medical follow up, the manner in which these patients are being discharged by hospitals is shameful and humiliating. Also, it is unjustified to blame the healthcare crisis on the immigrant population when overall, less than 60% of the general population has employment-based health insurance.
Leadership takes courage and I applaud Governor Purdue for publicly stating that he does not support denying access to higher education to undocumented students. I hope that each and every one of you thinks about the consequences of proposed legislation, and that you let your own moral and religious values guide you and not those of national anti-immigrant organizations that are leading some legislative campaigns around the country. May rational minds prevail.
-Maritza Pichón
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Corporate Partner: United Parcel Service
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"When the values and principles of corporations and communities are in lockstep...incredible things can happen." This statement by Mike Eskew, the chairman and CEO of UPS, emphasizes why the partnership between the LAA and UPS has been so successful. UPS is committed, as is the LAA, to enriching the lives of immigrants by creating healthy vibrant communities in part through its educational efforts. Together we create new opportunities everyday for the people we serve to achieve their dreams. |
| Geoff Light, VP of Customer Relationship Mgt of UPS receives Compañeros Award for Exemplary Corporate Leadership from Pichon and '03-'05 Board Chair Frank Ros. |
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For several years now, UPS has made generous and significant investments in the LAA and metro Atlanta's Latino community. They have been major supporters of our English as a Second Language program - a program that serves over 2,000 students a year. They are also dedicated supporters of our annual Latino Summit and Latin Fever Ball. In addition, they have been long term sponsors of our annual Compañeros Awards Luncheon, an event that recognizes community leaders for their support of the Latino community. In 2005, UPS received the Exemplary Corporate Leadership award.
We are deeply grateful for UPS for helping us strengthen our capacity to more effectively serve our community and fulfill our mission.
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Partnership in Action: Atlanta Legal Aid Society |
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| It is amazing what can happen when organizations join hands to work together. For organizations that are focused on helping the community, partnerships can greatly increase the power and reach of our work and can make things happen for our target populations that we may have thought impossible. However, good intentions are not enough to ensure a successful collaboration: In order to achieve impact, it is vital that the partners share a common purpose, have compatible ways of working, and keep the welfare of the community at the forefront. An example of one such relationship is our long-standing collaboration with the Atlanta Legal Aid Society (ALAS). |
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Donald Coleman and Maria Puche of Atlanta Legal Aid providing legal advice at the Latin American Association |
Atlanta Legal Aid, founded in 1924, seeks to provide the highest quality civil legal services to groups and individuals who are faced with economic barriers. Our partnership history dates back to 1985 when Atlanta Legal Aid, as part of a group of area pro bono attorneys assisting the Mariel Cubans detained at the Atlanta Penitentiary, approached the LAA staff to provide legal interpretations and resettlement logistics. With the subsequent creation of the ALAS Hispanic Outreach Initiative, a staff attorney provides clients at the LAA assistance on a variety of types of cases, including consumer issues, public benefits, and housing and family law cases. Because of its success, the partnership was expanded in 2005 to provide critical civil legal services to victims of domestic violence and to provide a Spanish-speaking attorney at the LAA’s Hickory Lake Outreach Center on a regular basis. Additionally, ALAS has provided LAA staff numerous trainings to allow them to spot legal issues that may arise with clients.
Through this partnership, legal services available to Hispanics have been greatly expanded. “ There is a huge need for legal services to Hispanics everywhere in the country, and Atlanta is no exception," said Steve Gottlieb, Executive Director of Atlanta Legal Aid. “Because of our great working relationship with the LAA and most importantly, our shared vision, we are able to serve a larger number of Hispanics in need of legal assistance. In addition, we are able to connect Hispanics we serve in our larger Hispanic Outreach Initiative with social and other types of services that the LAA offers. The community wins.” |
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Faces
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In this section, we highlight an LAA employee, volunteer or board member. |
 It’s five o’clock in the afternoon and office workers all over town are heading home to relax and forget about work for the night. But just about any day of the week, the LAA’s Yngrid Wessin can be still be found in her office, listening intently to a woman recount her painful story of abuse, processing the stack of paperwork necessary to help a woman escape her desperate situation, or calling around to find a shelter for a woman who has escaped her abuser but has no place to go. And later, when she is finally seen walking out the door, more often than not Yngrid is carrying a stack of legal documents to read at home, just to make sure she is on top of the constant changes in immigration law that can mean the difference between life and death for an immigrant who is a victim of domestic violence.
Yngrid works in the LAA’s immigration department as a paralegal specializing in assisting victims of domestic violence. Through a federal VAWA (Violence Against Women Act) grant, Yngrid helps victims obtain the residency status and work permits they need to become independent of their abusers and make new lives for themselves and their children. Yngrid says the job involves a lot of listening because, in order to show that her clients qualify for these documents, she must know their stories in detail. “You really become their confidant,” she says. “They are sharing their personal stories with you. They have to really trust you and sometimes that takes time. But it’s very important, because the more you know, the more you can help them.” |
Although she is only in her twenties, helping people is something that Yngrid has been doing for a long time. While in college in New York, she volunteered at an after-school program in the South Bronx. She also traveled to India and Jamaica to work with Mother Teresa’s organization, feeding the poor in these countries. After graduation, she did some tenant organizing work and after moving to Atlanta, she joined the Americorp Vista program. Through this program, she worked as the Youth Project Coordinator at GMAAC (Georgia Mutual Assistance Association Consortium) coordinating their after-school program for immigrant and refugee children. While there, she also volunteered in the adult English as a Second Language Program, and she found that many of her students had questions about immigration laws and documents. “It was the frustration of not knowing that really got to me,” she says. “I started to do research and to try to find the answers for them.” |
This desire to help immigrants get the information they need eventually led her to the LAA immigration department, where she has been working for five years. She finds inspiration in seeing women who were victims of abuse take the steps toward independence and better living situations. “Each little step is a victory,” she says. Eventually, Yngrid says she may become more involved in advocacy work, so that in addition to helping immigrants understand the laws that affect them, she may be able to help create laws that better serve them. |
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