The Language of Food
The Language of Food Event, June 5, 2024
On Wednesday, June 5, 2024, ENB held our 5th annual Language of Food and we are excited to share the highlights with you! The event was an awe-inspiring experience for all of us at the Exchange Conference Center to hear from the viewpoints of policy makers, educators, and the immigrant learners themselves.
The room was captivated from the start! Ivan Jusino, ENB career coach, touched our hearts with his story of assisting newly arrived immigrants through ESOL classes in shelters across Massachusetts. "One of the best parts, as a coach and teacher," he shared, "is when you get the ‘aha moment’, when you see the student, and they get it, and their face lights up."
We also heard from Roberto Santos, the cook supervisor at Volante Farms, who has personally witnessed the transformative power of English classes in his kitchen. He is proud of the cooks he oversees as they evolved from not knowing how to read recipes to being able to read them with confidence and to communicate effectively with their managers.
It was followed by a panel discussion on how ENB is partnering with the state to tackle current immigrant crisis at the emergency shelter across Massachusetts. ENB Executive Director Claudia Green called the response an 'all-hands-on-deck' when tasked with lauching 16 programs in a month. ENB delivered the 'impossible' and now, we have 14 sites and enrolled 1,063 students. To be exact, we turned a ballroom or conference rooms at hotels serving as emergency shelter into English classes with computer labs. Challenges such as space, internet, childcare... make it very hard for these residents to learn English but there's also amazing opportunity for us to pilot a creative hybrid program using Burlington English together with once or twice a week in-person classes and volunteers. "It's also a great opportunity for the state to see how to implement a program like this and to tab into all these employment-ready residents for the state's needs in the labor market," said Claudia.
Cristina Aguilera Sandoval, Executive Director of the Office for Refugees and Immigrants, underscored the program's potential to fulfill workforce demands in Massachusetts. "The intention behind all of this is humanity," she stressed.
Let us extend another warm round of applause to the 17 TESOL graduates! We had a great honor to have Wyvonne Stevens-Carter, Adult Education State Director of the MA Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, present the certificates to all of our graduates!
The Language of Food Event, June 28, 2023
June 28, 2023 - Our Language of Food event featured a powerful panel discussion on immigrants' journey in the food industry, particularly restaurant ownership. Recognizing the important role of an immigrant workforce in this field, we were delighted to provide this platform for stories from panelists - Nivia Piña, owner of Doňa Habana Restaurant, Hélder George Brandão of Estella, and Mayra Molina of Delicias Salvadoreñas who is a graduate of ENB’s English for Immigrant Entrepreneurs course.
"I feel proud of me, because now I speak English.
It's not the best English, but I understood much;
I speak better (English) because of the English classes,"
Mayra Molina, Delicias Salvadoreñas
After working 16 years at her restaurant, Mayra purchased the business and has been leading its growth ever since. Mayra's story highlighted the barriers related to limited English skills and how she and other immigrants overcame the obstacles and reached their goals. "When immigrants succeed, we all succeed," stated Cristina Aguilera, Executive Director of Massachusetts Office for Refugees and Immigrants, who also joined the event.
The Language of Food Event, June 29, 2022
English for New Bostonians’ loyal friends shared the universal language of food at the opening of our 20th Anniversary Event Series, Language of Food last night. The seaside event was a splendid success as guests enjoyed this moment of illuminating the creativity, work and impact of ENB that has enabled 20,000 people over 20 years to transform their lives in their new homeland!
Two ENB alumnae shared their journeys from learning English to creative careers – both related to food! Food, whether growing it, packaging, selling, or serving it, provides many new immigrants a beginning to career pathways here in the U.S.
Nefisa Siraj owns Cini Coffee and graduated from an ENB English for Immigrant Entrepreneurs class. Her coffee by the pound sold like hotcakes at Language of Food after she made an expert pitch to the audience about the culture, care and love with which she roasts and packages fine beans from Ethiopia.
Gary Diaz, Head Chef at Tony C’s, and his team took an ENB English for Restaurants class in the midst of the pandemic. Gary told the crowd that English classes not only enabled him to communicate better at work and outside of work, but are part of the company’s strategy to build loyalty and thrive in an environment that’s taken a toll of restaurants. “Trust your staff,” he advises employers, “give them opportunities to grow, teach them English!”
