Alma Muniz has lived in the United States for 18 years after moving from Jalisco, Mexico. When her daughters were young, she dedicated much of her time caring for them, which left her with little to no time to learn English. In these last 18 years, she has worked in the Food4Less meat department, where she cuts meat, takes customer orders, and resolves issues with deliveries. What she enjoys most about her job is preparing and displaying meat so it looks fresh and appealing for customers. She always tries doing her best and takes pride in her work.
Speaking English is important for her job because she often needs to communicate with customers and resolve issues over the phone. Before participating in the English Advance program, speaking English often felt intimidating. For Alma, pronunciation was the most challenging aspect of learning English. Alma found that even though learning English was difficult, it was not impossible.
English Advance has motivated Alma to continue learning English. She now feels more confident speaking English at work and can now understand conversations more easily. Alma notes that one of the biggest changes she’s noticed is that she is now less shy when speaking in English. She is also happy that she can better understand what her daughters are saying.
What Alma enjoyed most about the class was that every student had the opportunity to participate. This gave her and her peers the opportunity to practice their speaking and learn from one another. She also appreciated that the instructor was enthusiastic, supportive, and always motivated everyone to keep trying and continue learning. The instructor often reminded her class to never stay in the same place, to continue growing, and to reach for more. This is why Alma is now enrolled in English classes at her local community college.
English Advance helped Alma in many ways and learned a lot from the experience. Most importantly, it gave her confidence and motivation to continue improving her English. She encourages others at Food4Less to participate in English Advance because she believes the program can make a real difference in people’s lives.
The Forum would like to thank Tammy Flores, Workforce Advance Intern, for capturing this story.