Program helps students learning English online

Just two months after Carlos Silva Gomez and his mother arrived in the United States from Guatemala, the new life they were creating was turned upside down.

With just a few days’ notice, 11-year-old Carlos’ school, Columbus Global Academy, a place for students who are learning English, was ordered to close in March 2020 due to the emerging COVID19 pandemic. All of his classes moved online.

The home where he and his mother live with an aunt, uncle and cousins became his classroom.

But Gomez, a sixth-grader, quickly fell behind, his mother, Nora Elizabeth Gomez Godínez, 35, recently recalled through a Spanish-speaking interpreter. Blocked by a language barrier, the family couldn’t figure out how to access his classes or get help. And they were frustrated.

That all changed when

Godínez connected with Veronica Ochoa-Morales, who also speaks Spanish, over the phone and Zoom.

“I knew, even without meeting in-person, that she was a good person. I could trust her,” Godínez said of Ochoa-Morales, who was interpreting. “Now my son is happy. He has access to his classes and access to his teachers. I feel very happy with that.”

Ochoa-Morales is one of seven bilingual liaisons working with Columbus City Schools families this school year to get them connected to online learning.

The Columbus school district provided Ethiopian Tewahedo Social Services (ETSS) with $100,000 from its general fund to hire the liaisons and support the program. The nonprofit social-services organization helps immigrants and refugees gain self-sufficiency and has worked with district families for years.

Other partners also helped launch the new program, including the city of Columbus, which provided ETSS about $262,000 from its federal coronavirus relief funds, said Matthew Smydo, the city’s interim education director.

Liaisons have already made contact with 1,300 households, either by phone or visiting, said Jennifer Drury, who oversees the program.

The liaisons, who are native speakers, speak Spanish, Somali, Maay Maay (Mai Mai), Arabic, Nepali and Kinyarwanda.

They say their role is much more than just providing translation services. It’s about establishing relationships.

“We not only speak their language. I think we speak their culture. We understand their needs,” Ochoa-Morales said. “We really understand each other.”

Adapting to online learning has been a struggle for many families, even for those without language and other barriers.

The district provided Google Chromebook laptops to students, but some families aren’t familiar with how to use the technology. If they don’t understand how to access the “parent portal,” they’re unable to communicate with teachers, view a student’s grades and log their attendance.

With a language barrier, the issue is exacerbated, said Alesia Gillison, chief engagement officer for Columbus City Schools. The system has a built-in translation option, but that isn’t the same as speaking to a real person, she said.

Connecting with English-learning families has been a priority for the district since before COVID-19, Gillison said.

“We want them to feel like they are a part of Columbus City Schools, and it’s not that they’re sitting on the peripheral,” she said. “Especially during this pandemic period, we want everyone to understand that we’re here for their support.”

Data suggests the efforts are working. At the beginning of the school year, the online attendance rate for students learning English was 63.7%, quite lower than the rest of the district’s students, which was 72.2%.

By December, that gap had narrowed and their rates were the same, at about 71.7%.

ETSS, which has a staff that speaks more than 30 languages, has also opened four learning-extension centers that provide between 100 and 200 students with daily in-person supervision and academic help. Its after-school tutoring program has shifted online, serving about 300 students, said Seleshi Asfaw, the nonprofit’s founder and executive director.

With students scattered in their homes throughout the city, parents who don’t speak fluent English are often struggling just as much as students.

“In addition to adjusting to American life, they have to assist students or help students adjust to a school system they’re not really familiar with,” said Amanuel Merdassa, director of youth services for ETSS.

That was true even before the pandemic when students were attending school in-person, Merdassa said.

“Some parents say, ‘I can’t contribute. I don’t know what I’m doing,’ ” he said. “‘I want to help my child, but can’t.’ ”

Maka Hussein, 18, a senior at West High School, said a bilingual liaison recently made it possible for her mom, who speaks Maay Maay, and her school counselor to have a conversation about her upcoming graduation.

Hussein didn’t realize the school had been calling her home because her mom had been answering the phone.

Liaison Maggie Mohamed bridged the gap.

“Before Maggie reached out to me, I was struggling,” Hussein said. “Now I’m on a better path when it comes to school. I have no questions or anything. I’m just grateful she came to me and helped me.”