NORTHWEST Community College has joined with two Terrace agencies to use a federal grant to offer an ESL course giving students linguistic and practical skills for finding work.
The course will help students with limited English navigate the
Canadian employment system, learn about their community and improve
their language skills. Lessons will include various field trips and
guest speakers.
The two local agencies are Skeena Diversity and Literacy Terrace.
“Northwest Community College has run a successful ESL program in
Prince Rupert for a number of years. At some point, we’d like to
replicate that program in Terrace and this course is just one step in
that direction,” said college official Lianne Gagnon this week.
Literacy Terrace has run an ESL Language program with local volunteers
as tutors since 2005.
According to Murray George, the program’s coordinator, "Many of the
immigrants to the Terrace area bring with them a tremendous amount of
skills and abilities but may be lacking in either the specific English
skills they need to continue their chosen careers in Canada, or simply
have not learned how to seek jobs here. ESL for Employment will help
immigrants who may have less than fluent English skills do just that.”