LYNN — State and federal funding for English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) courses has not kept pace with growing Hispanic populations in gateway cities, including Lynn, a recent report from MassInc stated.
According to the report, for every 1,000 non-English-speaking residents in Lynn, there are only 10 state-funded ESOL seats available.
Danya Smith, the policy director for Mayor Jared Nicholson’s office, said that in 2023, the city completed a workforce-development plan and recognized that the lack of available English-learning courses for the city’s growing Hispanic population was an issue.
“There are significant waitlists for folks to get involved,” he said, adding that the waitlists are consistent with what was reported by MassInc.
He said since the city completed the study, the mayor’s office has been convening frequently with the school district and local ESOL providers to strategize ways to increase English-language-course availability for adults, as well as for the increasing student population who need English-proficiency training.
“This is something the city and the Lynn Public Schools and our nonprofit providers have certainly been aware of and are working toward increasing,” Smith said.
Pathways Executive Director Josh Shepherd said the organization works with more than 300 adult students each year. With the city’s resources, he said, Pathways is trying to expand its availability.
Pathways is one of Lynn’s ESOL providers that receives funding from the Department of Early and Secondary Education to run its courses. Courses run nine hours a week and are offered 18 times throughout the year.
Shepherd said the organization also works with the district to provide ESOL training to immigrant students in high school to ensure a smooth transition from their schools in other countries to their schools in Lynn.
He said a lot of the adult Pathways students are immigrants who already have high-school diplomas and college degrees, and could be easily employable in their desired fields if they had more English proficiency.
“They just need English skills, and they already have the skills or the desire and they can fill a lot of these gaps in employment,” Shepherd said.
He added it “makes almost too much sense” to financially support ESOL training, because providing access to it will open opportunities for non-English speakers to pursue jobs in their desired professions, which will then help the economy.
Pathways recently received $50,000 in American Rescue Plan Act funding from the city to run a course targeted toward 17-24-year-old ESL learners.
“The need is staggering,” Shepherd said. “With the adult classes, these are people who want to be here, want to work, and they have ability. They need English and support. We help them get a better job, get into college or a training program.”
The MassInc report estimated the local economy of the city would gain $100 million more annually if each non-English-speaking resident was able to increase their English proficiency by one level.
Smith said diversity is one of the city’s greatest strengths, and that as it continues to become more diverse, the responsibility is on the mayor’s office to support its residents.
“We will continue to do whatever we can in partnership with whoever we can to increase these services for our residents,” he added.
