United Way Executive Director Frances Dalbey, ESL and Bilingual Coordinator Vicky Peterson, Director of Community Outreach David Gish, and United Way Board Member Kalena Crossley.

English as a Second Language classes for parents are right around the corner, thanks to a collaboration among Greenville ISD, the Greenville ISD ACE Program, and the United Way of Hunt County.

The classes are being offered through GISD's Parent University, and the goal of the program is to help parents increase their English fluency and to instill a love of learning both at school and at home for everyone in the family.

"When you have a family that values education for everyone, it's a life-changer for both our students and their parents," said Vicky Peterson, Mental and Wellness Head Start Coordinator, Bilingual Parent Liaison, STEM and ESL teacher. "It is our hope that many of our parents will go on to take the Graduation Equivalency Diploma (GED) course, which will help them get better jobs. It's a win-win for everyone."

An informational meeting for the ESL Class will be held at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 2 at the L. P. Waters campus. Parents will take an assessment to determine where their English proficiency and the class that will best serve them. ACE will provide childcare for children ages 3-12, provided on a first-come, first-served basis with a limit of 30 children total. 

ESL classes will be held from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays beginning Tuesday, Oct. 9 and will continue for six weeks. Peterson will be teaching Level 1, and Romina Wallace, second-grade bilingual teacher at Bowie, will be teaching Levels 2 & 3. Both the classes and the childcare are free.

The United Way of Hunt County donated $1,350 toward the purchase of new books and CDs for the ESL class.

"We're really excited to be building a partnership with GISD and to be able to support these wonderful programs," said United Way of Hunt County Executive Director Frances Dalbey.

Thank you, United Way of Hunt County, for your support for Greenville ISD!