Local English classes could lose funding
CAFÉ, an adult English-learner program, faces cutbacks depending on the state budget.
A chorus of voices echoes down the hall in the basement of St. Clement's Episcopal Church.
"The bus drivers are on strike," they chant in unison. The students make their way down the cover of the newspaper, reading off headlines and trying to make sense of them. Susan Poole, their English teacher, encourages them; this is just one of many free classes sponsored by a Capistrano Unified School District program called CAFÉ (Capistrano Affirms Family English).
Across the street, many of their children are being watched over by paid staff. It gives them peace of mind and lets them focus on their studies – but that may not last much longer.
Available for the past eight years, CAFÉ receives tens of thousands of dollars each year through a $50 million state grant: The Community Based English Tutoring program, or CBET, approved in 1998 for a decade.
That decade ended June 30. Currently, that source of funding hangs in limbo as Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger decides whether to renew it on an annual basis.
In the meantime, students and staff hold their breath in anticipation.
"If we were to lose the CBET program, we'd lose the bells and whistles (on CAFÉ)," said Virginia Burrows, coordinator of CUSD's English as a Second Language department.
CBET provided $184,000 in state funds for the district-wide CAFÉ program last year, Burrows said. The CBET monies pay for babysitting, support staff, books, materials and allow teachers to attend workshops and in-service training. Of those benefits, babysitting is likely to be cut if CBET isn't renewed, and Burrows worries that many students won't continue attending as a result.
CAFÉ also receives state funds for average daily attendance, and $340,000 last year in federal funds, she said.
According to Burrows, the program is more complex then basic ESL classes. It focuses on families, encouraging and providing simple ways for parents to teach their children English, and emphasizes practical life skills.
Susan Poole, a CAFÉ teacher, said those skills include health, family safety, housing and dealing with a landlord, and interacting with schools.
CAFÉ serves about 4,000 students throughout the district each year, Burrows said; for the past year, 621 students have been enrolled at San Clemente sites. Those currently include Las Palmas Elementary, St. Clement's Episcopal Church, and the Mendocino apartments in Talega.
While the majority of students tend to be Hispanic, other languages are represented besides Spanish, Poole said. Her 10-student class Tuesday morning included a speaker each from China, Japan and Iran.
For Poole as well, the potential loss of CBET funding is cause for worry.
"I know we'll continue to offer classes in ESL," she said. "We're concerned about those people who will not be able to come if they don't have someplace to leave their children."
Marta Magana, a student for three years, said the benefits of the program aren't just for her – they're for her son, as well.
"For me it's very important, because I help my son with his homework," she said. "I can help him and explain some things … They have programs to read to children and practice their English."
She said the majority of students have children, and the loss of a babysitting service would impact most of them.
A Japanese student, Ayako Washington, has been attending classes for about a year. She has an American husband, and wants to continue her studies to be able to speak with their child and get a job.
Her English is broken, but that doesn't deter her drive to speak. She was moved last year while watching the gubernatorial election on TV.
"One candidate, a guy: 'Here in states, speak English,'" she said, trying on her best faux-Austrian accent. "I agree. Someone come in Japan, I want to speak, wherever you come from, Japanese. That's why I try English hard myself. I try to learn stateside as much as possible."
