Tabor Expands Partnership with New Bedford’s CEDC

Recently, Tabor Academy has expanded its collaboration with the Community Economic Development Center (CEDC) based in New Bedford. Each week throughout the school year, a group of Tabor students travel to New Bedford to provide English tutoring to members of the community who have immigrated to the United States.

The CEDC is a nonprofit organization that, according to their website, “fosters economic justice in the local economy through people-centered development.” Among many things, the CEDC provides opportunities, resources, and networks to those needing help becoming a part of the local economy. Specifically, the organization focuses on economic development, community building, neighborhood improvement and public policy.

The CEDC works largely in part with immigrants from Central America, many of whom have limited knowledge of the English language. Because of this, everyday activities such as finding jobs or housing, using public transportation, or filling out government paperwork can become a significant challenge. This group is the focus of the English tutoring provided by Tabor students.

The program began under the leadership of Jonathan Sirois, a Spanish teacher at Tabor, who was looking for a way “to foster better and more meaningful relationships with the local community.” The program began with weekly visits to New Bedford on Thursdays after extra-curricular commitments in the afternoon, but due to recent success, they have added a trip on Tuesdays as well.

During the hour-long tutoring sessions, students will work with the community members individually. Starting with a baseline discussion from a worksheet, the conversation expands based upon specific ability levels or needs. Whether the community members are teenagers new to the language or people applying for United States citizenship after decades living in the country, everyone is there to develop a basic understanding of English.

“They are all extremely friendly and they tell you their story before and after moving to this country,” said Tabor sophomore Christopher Mills.

The ability to develop knowledge of language goes both ways in this partnership. For students like Mills, this tutoring program not only provides the opportunity to meet people from the local area that they would never have the chance to meet otherwise, but also gives them a chance to improve their Spanish. The ability to have actual conversations with native speakers, says Mills, allows him to improve substantially in a short amount of time.

Though this program provides great opportunities for Spanish-speaking students, the partnership with the CEDC is open to all students at Tabor. While the growing success of the program has allowed it to expand to a second day of the week, the core members of the tutoring group hope it will continue to grow and gain popularity among Tabor students. Since students can go and tutor as many or as few times as they wish, it provides a flexible way to expand upon the boundaries of Tabor’s campus and community.

This tutoring program with the CEDC is one of several reoccurring community service efforts pursued by Tabor students on a weekly basis. Each week, Tabor students volunteer with things such as Sunday school, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Sunday Supper, and more. Additionally, there is an ever-changing list of opportunities for students to give back to the Tri-Town and South Coast communities.

The school regularly hosts events for the Special Olympics, including the Special Olympics Polar Plunge event on January 22.

Twice a year, the entire Tabor community comes together to complete dozens of volunteer service projects across the region in the “Day of Service.”

By Jack Gordon

 

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