Helping Migrant Farmworkers and Families Learn English
CiTi BOCES Migrant Education Tutorial & Support Services (METS) program recently started a weekly English Class for migrant students and parents. This unique class is held via Zoom each Wednesday evening with the goal of helping migrant farmworkers and their families improve their listening, speaking, reading and writing skills. The class is a direct result of a request from the METS Parent Advisory Council (PAC). Parents shared at a PAC meeting that they were very interested in learning English but due to their work schedules, child care responsibilities, and transportation challenges it was very difficult for them to attend in person classes.
In the METS class students are able to choose between 3 class levels (Basic, Intermediate, and Advanced) being offered simultaneously in different Zoom breakout rooms.
The opening class of the 24-25 school year featured a welcome and motivational talk from Dr. Alfredo Lopez. Dr. Lopez is not only an OB/GYN with Upstate University in Syracuse, but he is also a former migrant farmworker and an avid supporter of the METS program and the students and families the program serves. Dr. Lopez helped get the class off to a great start and through the first two weeks a total of 38 students have participated. Students are excited about the opportunity to improve their English and appreciate being able to study from home, often after a long day of work on local farms.
The Oswego County Early Childhood Alliance facilitates cross-sector engagement and collaboration to build a stable, comprehensive, and effective early childhood system of care that supports young children ages birth to five and their families in order to thrive. The Oswego County Early Childhood Alliance is funded through an American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant that was awarded by the Oswego County Government.
Help Me Grow is a system model that has been implemented in over 130 communities across the United States. Oswego County Help Me Grow launched on May 7th, 2024 and supports families with children ages 0-5 by providing caregivers with referrals to community resources and services, offering free physical and social-emotional developmental screenings, and providing families with ongoing support. Oswego County Help Me Grow is funded through the New York State Office for Children and Families (OCFS) (subcontracted through Docs for Tots) as well as the Health Foundation for Western and Central New York (HFWCNY). Click here to learn more: https://helpmegrowny.org/oswego-county/
Also find Oswego County HMG on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556424504705
OCHMG is affiliated with Oswego County Early Childhood Alliance in partnership with LCOC
Talking is Teaching: Talk, Read, Sing (TRS) is an initiative of the Clinton Foundation that develops materials and resources that encourage parents and caregivers to enhance their child(ren)’s early literacy skills by simply talking, reading, and singing to them while completing daily activities like playing outside, taking a bath, or grocery shopping. The TRS Oswego County community campaign is funded through the Oswego County Community Foundation (OCCF).
Click here to learn more about this campaign: https://www.oswegocounty.com/news_detail_T17_R3196.php
Talk, Read, Sing- Oswego County is affiliated with Oswego County Help Me Grow/Oswego County Early Childhood Alliance in partnership with LCOC
As of October 31, 2024:
3,378 children are active in the program
During October 2024:
100 children registered
69 children graduated
Since November 2018:
7,013 children have registered
3,117 children have graduated
159,957 books have been delivered in Oswego County!
Contact Andrew for more information to register or donate! iloc@oswegounitedway.org
Sidney Carter
What is your community organization, how long have you been there and what is your job title? I joined the team at Integrated Community Planning of Oswego County, Inc. in November of 2023. I coordinate the agency’s newest division; the Oswego County Early Childhood Alliance (OCECA). The OCECA has three current initiatives including Oswego County Help Me Grow, the Oswego County Diaper Bank, and Talk, Read, Sing: Oswego County.
What organizational accomplishment are you most proud of for our community? My proudest organizational accomplishment is the Oswego County Diaper Bank. In early 2024, when building out our resource and service directory for Oswego County Help Me Grow, we identified a gap in our community; there were no resources available for families who were experiencing a diaper need. The OCECA took it upon themselves to address the gap and write for funding, resulting in a $2,500 Health and Wellness Award from Excellus BlueCross BlueShield as well as $15,000 from the Richard S. Shineman Foundation. With the funding to support its implementation, the Oswego County Diaper Bank officially launched on June 17th, 2024, providing families with up to 50 diapers per month, per child, while we support them on their journey to stability and, eventually, independence.
What would you like to see next for our community? The next thing that I would like to see for our community is an Early Intervention Playgroup. One of the major challenges for parents and caregivers with young children in Oswego County is getting their child connected with necessary service providers due to the lack of providers in our community. The OCECA would like to implement a monthly Early Intervention Playgroup where families who have children on the wait list to receive services are able to come to a safe space where they can speak to a professional while their child participates in activities that enhance their development.
What's the title of the last book you read? The last book I read is a collection of poems describing motherhood titled “My After All” by Jessica Ulrich.
What brings you joy? The thing that brings me the most joy in this life is my two year old son, Myles. I love watching him grow and learn new things every single day.
Would you like to get involved? Click here to contact us.
Where can you find us?
Visit our website at: https://www.literacycoalitionofoswegocounty.com/
