Congo refugee finds home in ESL program

By Daniel Carapetyan and Georgina Hallowell
Bengal News West Reporters

War moved 21-year old refugee Ygeutte Rudahindwa from Democratic Republic of the Congo to Uganda at the age of 10 where she stayed for 11 years, attending high school, before feeling unwanted and running into problems with people in the refugee camp.

Rudahindwa has found a home in Buffalo and has spent the last six months at the Herkimer School on 228 Albany Street learning English.

The Adult EducationDivision of the Buffalo Public Schools offers a variety of classes in about 30 locations throughout the city. Herkimer School is one of the 12 locations offering English classes like Rudahindwa’s. High school equivalency and vocational programs are housed in other sites. 

Buffalo’s number of English Language Learners has surpassed the total enrollment of the Buffalo School District for the past eight years., according to New York State United Teachers.

Rudahindwa, an exceptional student currently placed in an advanced level class at the Herkimer School, has only been here since September and has grasped the fundamentals of the English language. She speaks four other languages such as French, Mashi, Luganda and her native language Swahili. 

The Herkimer School has a partnership with Catholic Charities of Buffalo, one of four resettlement agencies in Buffalo. Catholic Charities offers the facility and Adult Education Division supplies the English learning classes.

Doreen Regan, English as a Second Language coordinator of Adult Education Division and English teacher is impressed by Rudahindwa’s growth being enrolled in this ESL program for such a short period of time. Regan worked there for 25 years and was a director for six years.

The Herkimer School teaches students that from all over the world. Most of the refugee students are from Congo, Somalia, Sudan, Iraq, Syria, Nepal and Burma. The immigrant population at the school is from China, South America and Puerto Rico.

 “It’s a real privilege because you get to learn (about) students from around the world and help them create inspiring work,” said English teacher Maria Eley,said.

As Mayor Byron Brown said in January, Buffalo is a refugee resettlement city. These people traveled across the world to join a community they can call home and these programs make sure to foster a sense of belonging, Regan said.

“It’s very important to feel comfortable, at home and to not feel threatened. A lot of our students have post-traumatic stress disorder, they’ve come from war-torn countries, been through a lot of trauma so we try to create an environment where they feel safe and wanted,” Regan said. 

Catholic Charities offers an eight-week cultural orientation class called ‘Newcomer” where students learn how to navigate the city and get adjusted before they transition into ESL classes..

“I was kind of nervous and scared because everything was new. The teachers were new to me but when I started, the teachers were nice because they know me. They’re so cool,” Rudahindwa said.

Rudahindwa, on  the program going beyond English language skills:

Upon entering the program at the Herkimer School, students get pre-tested and placed in classes based on their English proficiency level. They are tested to measure their progress before they can move to the next level of learning.

There are several factors that are important to learn English. Age and background information are the two most important, as they are the main things that will help someone learn English more quickly. However, if the student doesn’t come from an educational background, a new language would be harder to grasp, Regan said.  

 “On average it takes three to five years to have conversational English and it takes five to seven years to have academic English. It can be a seven-year process to really become proficient in being able to handle college level material,” Regan said. 

Regan said assessment advisement instructors act as career advisers at the program who help them find employment. They are assigned case managers through their resettlement agencies who help them deal with personal issues.

The Buffalo school district is looking for multilingual teacher aides and Regan is looking to give Rudahindwa an opportunity to find employment at one of these places because she enjoys working with kids.

The name Ygeutte means, “found,” in Swahili and true to her name, not only has found a home but a possible future.

Saturday’s a school day at Lafayette H.S.

By Jillian Leblanc and Christina Stuart
Bengal News West Reporters
          Students from grades 7 through 12 rushed through the big wooden doors of Lafayette High School to get ready to participate at the Saturday Academy.
          As kids signed in at the front table, they received a free breakfast and sat as they waited patiently to start learning on this Saturday morning. 
          Volunteers from all over Western New York set up and got the classrooms ready for activities. Lafayette High is one of the four Community Schools in Buffalo that are open on Saturdays for activities such as sports, music and cooking classes. High School students are able to take SAT prep classes on Saturdays to help prepare for the standardized test.
           The Saturday Academy at Lafayette started in October and will be held every Saturday throughout the school year from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. The Saturday academy helps the kids to learn even on the weekends.
           “Kids that attend the Saturday Academy tend to also attend school and vice versa,” said Zena Mtiranyabigara, Community School navigator. “So we want to connect the students during the week to the Saturday academies and also the academy activities that we go over on Saturdays give them their community achievement during the week.” 
           The Saturday Academy is not only for students, but it’s for the parents and the community as well. Parents are invited to parent learning courses that are open to everyone in the community.                     
           Volunteers come in to help out the kids during the Saturday academy activities. Diana Leiker, a deacon with the Episcopal Diocese of Western New York said St. Peter’s Episcopal Church and at St. Benedict’s Roman Catholic Church came together to help the refugees feel that this is a place where they should feel safe.
           “The whole premise to give refugees a place to practice English and meet some everyday Americans in a non- threatening environment,” Leiker said.
           Leiker and her volunteers feel the need to meet with these children and to get to know one another. The volunteers prepared lunches for the children at the academy and created a game so everyone could get a chance to talk to one another by asking them a question.
            “What we want to want to do it let the refuges know they’re welcomed and give them a chance to meet some people,” Leiker said.
           The Saturday Academy is free and it is encouraged for families to come and participate. The kids that participate are from all over Buffalo, and not just the West Side. Free transportation is given to the kids who lived too far away to walk to Lafayette High.
           “Sometimes we also have parents who come for activities that involves parents and also the community members so this is open for everyone, the students and the parents,” Mtiranyabigara said.
           The academy is a place for students to learn new languages and Lafayette has many students who speak different languages. Lafayette High Principal John Starkey spoke over the loud speaker during the academy in different languages for all students to understand.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KvT1TYLzNe8 

           Buffalo School teacher, Evelyn Arent, said that teaching is her passion and the kids mean a lot to her.
            “These kids are learning English and they are in high school,” Arent said. “They’re struggling but they are willing to learn.”
           Arent said that the program for the kids focuses on their culture and finding their identity. The community involvement is one of the reasons why the Community Schools run today. The faculty, volunteers and the families and all work together to make the children’s time at school fun on a Saturday.