Rittenhouse: Free Library Offers ESL Conversation for New Americans

By Anh Nguyen for Philadelphianeighborhoods.com 2017

Philadelphia continues to lose its residents to the suburbs and other big cities, but the whole population grew by roughly 12,000 per year due to a steady stream of international immigrants, according to the Philadelphia Research Initiative. How to provide support and resources to new Americans is the question for every Philadelphian, and the Free Library at Philadelphia City Institute believes it has to start with language and communication skills.

Yaroub Al-Obaidi is an Iraqi refugee who arrived in Philadelphia in 2016. He started coming to the English as a Second Language (ESL) Conversation at the library since February 2017 to practice his speaking and listening skills.

“The benefit I gained is that I learned so many about the United States, common English words and accents,” said Al-Obaidi. “I learned about American lifestyle and culture and from other cultures as well. I also met new people and learn from them many things.”

The library’s central location is easily accessible for many employees and workers in Center City. Al-Obaidi goes to the ESL Conversation every week because his workplace is five minutes away. Many participants come from all walks of life, some work in the service industry while others are city employees.

Phyllis Yang, the ESL Conversation facilitator, is a physician at Philadelphia City Health Center. She volunteered at the library not long after she finished her residency at Penn Medicine. Drawing from her own experience as a first generation Taiwanese American, Yang understands the importance of language and assimilation for new Americans.

"I love to hear stories from the people coming to our ESL Conversation," said Yang. "Some are veterans, they came from the beginning, but we have new people come every time."

Margaret Triandafyllis, the librarian who led the Welcoming Week potluck at the library, shares this sentiment, because she grew up in Greece before moving here for college. The potluck was part of a nationwide campaign and weeklong event to welcome new immigrants and promote diversity between Sept. 14 and 23.

“The mission of the library is to advance literacy, guide learning and inspire curiosity. We want to be a welcoming and inclusive public space,” said Triandafyllis.

Many other cities’ public libraries have pioneered in providing the resources needed for the advancement of immigrants and refugees. Harris County Public Library in Houston, where Triandafyllis previously worked at, offers English Language Acquisition (ELA) programs for adults to help them attain “the basic reading and writing and/or spoken English skills they need to reach work, family and personal goals.”

“One limitation [we have] is the meeting space. We can have more ESL classes taught on different level of writing and reading, developing a more structured ESL program [as] plans to go forward,” said Triandafyllis.

For Al-Obaidi, the pursuit of knowledge has just begun.

“Personally, I like to join more classes about language and cultures. I can say Philadelphia is a rich city in terms of cultures, art and history,” said Al-Obaidi.