IN THIS ISSUE: Amy's Ramblings ESL Updates Tip of the Month Volunteer Spotlight October's Vignette Giving Thanks Bits and Pieces Hogar Staff: John Odenwelder Program Director jodenwelder@ccda.net Education Services: Amy White Group Manager awhite@ccda.net, x235 Cindy Brown Manager cbrown@ccda.net, x250 Kristen Gasimov Manager kgasimov@ccda.net, x249 Diana Gibson Manager dgibson@ccda.net, x239 Erin Maradiegue Manager emaradiegue@ccda.net, x251 Jorge Membreño Manager jmembreno@ccda.net, x231 Sheila Sullivan Manager ssullivan@ccda.net, x238 Phil Spencer Manager pspencer@ccda.net, x243 Legal Services: Michelle Sardone Group Manager msardone@ccda.net Ximena Caceres Paralegal xcaceres@ccda.net Nancy Carbajal Receptionist ncarbajal@ccda.net Dan Macguire Staff Attorney dmacguire@ccda.net Enrique Vargas Paralegal evargas@ccda.net Social Services Department: Dawn Dumas Manager ddumas@ccda.net, 703-443-2481 Hogar Immigrant Services 6201 Leesburg Pike Suite 307 Falls Church, VA 22044 (T) 703-534-9805 (F) 703-534-9809 www.ccda.net If you would like to have this newsletter sent to a different e-mail address or if you would like to unsubscribe from the mailing list, please e-mail emaradiegue@ccda.net.

Amy's Ramblings Striving for success without hard work is like trying to harvest where you haven't planted – David Bly The cool, crisp air and the changing of the leaves alert me that autumn is upon us (that and my calendar tells me). The coming months are some of the best – and no, not just because October happens to contain both my birthday AND Halloween. There are many approaching holidays (Veteran’s Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas), as well as the presidential election. All of these make for wonderful opportunities to share our culture with our students. If you’d like some pointers on how to build community in your classroom, be sure to check out Hogar volunteer Connie Holtz and her training “Creating a community in the classroom.” Also, please see below for the remaining trainings of the Fall Training Series! The Hogar Legal Services department is seeing many clients renew his or her TPS (temporary protected status) from El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua. What is TPS? It is a “temporary immigration status granted to eligible immigrants in the United States who are temporarily unable to safely return to their home country because of ongoing armed conflict, an environmental disaster, or other extraordinary and temporary conditions.” Think you know someone who needs to renew his or her TPS? Please send them on over to Hogar! They can make an appointment by calling our main number. It is vital to all immigrants that their paperwork is in order. This month there’s a story about Federico, a man who has been unrightfully detained by Immigration and the struggle he and his family are facing. When finding resources for our clients during tough financial times, Hogar Social Services is not taking “no” for an answer. They have managed to connect food suppliers with other non-profits in the area to ensure there isn’t a shortage during these difficult times. How on earth does the Western Regional Office manage to do all this good work? With volunteer help, of course! Check out our Volunteer Spotlight this month of Diane Reed, a committed volunteer making a difference in Loudoun County. Lastly, but certainly not least, we’d like to welcome Jorge Membreño to the Hogar team! Jorge is the newest member of the Education Services team and we are delighted to have him with us. See more about Jorge below (and take a look at his picture to see his secret obsession). Thanks for all that you do! Abrazos, Amy White Group Manager, Education Services ESL Updates Don't Miss The Last Three Trainings Of The Semester! There is still time to sign up for one of our teacher trainings! Be sure to sign up soon, as spaces are limited. To sign up for any of the following trainings, please contact Erin Maradiegue at emaradiegue@ccda.net. In your email please include your full name, phone number, the name of the training you would like to attend, teaching site (or organization name if you are not a volunteer with Hogar Immigrant Services). Trainings are $15/person for non-Hogar volunteers. Attendance at a training will count towards your 4 hour per year training requirement. We look forward to seeing you there! Motivation and Goal Setting Trainers: Erin Maradiegue and Phil Spencer Saturday, November 8, 10:00 am – 12:00 pm Hogar Immigrant Services Office, Falls Church 6201 Leesburg Pike, Suite 307 Falls Church, VA 22044 Our students have busy lives-work, family, and the trials of a new country are in constant competition for their attention. So how do you keep the majority of your students coming back class after class? Discover ways to motivate your students to return every week by discussing their goals for learning English and incorporating them into your lesson plans. Creating a Community in the Classroom Trainer: Connie Holtz Saturday, November 15, 10:00 am- 12:00 pm Hogar Immigrant Services Office, Falls Church 6201 Leesburg Pike, Suite 307 Falls Church, VA 22044 Create a community within your classroom by teaching in a non-traditional, student-centered environment that makes students feel “safe” and leads to more peer-to-peer interaction. Building community in our ESOL classrooms helps learners feel more comfortable with each other, aids in retention and makes a teacher's life easier. So how do we do build community with all the diversity in our ESOL classes? What works at different levels for different cultural groups? Find out from ESOL veteran Connie Holtz. Connie has been teaching with Hogar for over 5 years and has developed some wonderful techniques to build a strong sense of unity in the classroom. Wreading and Riting! Trainers: Cindy Brown and Diana Gibson Saturday, November 22, 10:00 am - 12:00 pm St. Rita Parish Center 3815 Russell Road Alexandria, VA 22305 Many students do not like to do reading activities in class because it takes time away from speaking. However, a job application, a short article, song lyrics, a passage from a novel, an advertisement – all these are great ways to practice reading and writing skills while introducing new topics for discussion and study. We will present helpful tips to incorporate reading and writing into your lesson in a way that students can enjoy. ______________________________________ Meet The Newest Member Of The Hogar Family Jorge Membreño is the newest team member on the Hogar Immigrant Services staff. Jorge grew up in Manassas but moved to Sterling before heading off to Christopher Newport University. He graduated with a major in psychology and a minor in music. While at CNU, Jorge pursued a Personnel Psychology track and conducted university research under related fields. His education experience includes teaching math remediation to middle school students performing below the county standard and substitute teaching for Suffolk County Public Schools. He was also a member of CNU’s IV Christian Fellowship Worship Team, Jazz Choir, and Chamber Choir, with which he toured Austria and Italy. After graduation, Jorge moved back to Northern Virginia and worked for a tutoring company as an academic coordinator and personnel recruiter before joining Hogar in mid-October. As a former ESL student, he is very eager to help our students and give back to the community. Tip of the Month Connecting with the Kinesthetic Learner In a classroom, it is often easy to plan activities for visual and auditory learners. We can think of many examples of visual aids and oral drills, but how can we help the oft-neglected kinesthetic learner? Most people have a very vague idea of appropriate activities for the kinesthetic learner, and only know that they involve movement or physical games. Bear in mind that no one person fits one learning profile 100%, so all students can benefit from the conscientious inclusion of kinesthetic learning activities. For a quick introduction and assessment of your learning style, please check out Appendix D of the Hogar Teacher Toolbox, or take the same short quiz online: http://www.georgebrown.ca/saffairs/stusucc/learningstyles.aspx The following is a list of tips, tricks, and activities with a strong kinesthetic component for you to try in the classroom. Incorporating realia, or real-life objects, into the lesson is one of the easiest ways to appeal to kinesthetic learners. For example, when learning classroom words, show students pens, pencils, and erasers. Use empty cereal boxes and other food packages to go “shopping” and practice food and money vocabulary. Bring in winter clothes when teaching about the weather or seasons. Take a mini field trip! If you can’t bring realia into the classroom (or if you think your students could use a break from those four walls), take your students out into the real world for some hands-on learning. This could be going out to the parking lot when they’re learning about vehicle vocabulary, or going to the local drug store when learning about health and safety. Students will remember it much better than just talking about it. Have students use their bodies as much as possible. This is especially easy to do when teaching the parts of the body (Teacher Toolbox, p 63), but there are other games and songs that are helpful as well: Charades Simon Says Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes The Hokey Pokey Any kind of role playing activity Acting out action verbs like kick, run, etc, as they are taught Relay races Flyswatter or Circle-It games to review vocabulary (Teacher Toolbox, page 64) Tossing a ball around to call on people Guess the letter/word on your back (Teacher Toolbox, p 66) for lower levels Avoid a lecture style class where students sit still and listen to the teacher the whole time (students should be doing most of the talking anyway!). Have students stand up and switch partners often for dialogues. You can number students off, have them grouped by birthday, favorite kind of music, t-shirt color, etc. Just keep mixing it up! “Walk-and-talk” activities are especially helpful (see Teacher Toolbox, Appendix E for lots of charts to photocopy and use). Along the same lines, don’t just tell students how to do things—show them! Demonstrate first, then let a student hold the pen while you talk him or her through an exercise or a game. The student will feel more empowered and will learn better at the same time. Think of ways that students can physically manipulate grammar. Cut-up sentences and dialogues are a perfect way for students to physically move the pieces of a sentence around until they make sense. You might also try using cards with the root of a verb and have additional cards for tenses and endings. Have students match tenses with endings and use them to create complete sentences. Walk s ed ing One fascinating way that the concept of physically manipulating the sentence structure has been developed is in the teaching of English to hearing impaired or deaf students. Manipulative Visual Language pairs certain shapes and colors with different grammar functions to visually and physically demonstrate grammar rules in a very hands-on way. Students can rearrange the different words and concepts in the form of blocks or magnets. Learn more at http://www.green-bridge.org/ When asking students’ opinions in class (or when giving multiple choice questions), use the “four corners” technique. Write the 4 possible responses to a question on sheets of paper and post them in the four corners of the room. As you ask each question, have students stand under the paper with their response to physically represent their answer or opinion. This not only forces a student to commit to an answer (you can’t stand in two places at once!) but it also can divide students into groups for additional discussion or debate. Students should be aware of their physical comfort level and biorhythms in order to take full advantage of classroom time. This may mean they learn best in a morning class, or they may need to have something to eat or drink to keep their energy levels high. The physical arrangement of the classroom may also affect learner comfort, so play with different chair settings if you can (and remember to leave the classroom the way you found it!). Students may also benefit from a relaxation or breathing exercise to center themselves mentally and physically at the beginning or end of class. Incorporating kinesthetic learning activities can be a refreshing change of pace. It may help you reach out to certain students who don’t respond well to traditional classroom activities. When presented with a variety of activities and options, students learn what works best for them. Try out some hands-on, kinesthetic activities in the classroom this month and see what happens! Volunteer Spotlight Perhaps the best adjectives that describe Diane Reed, volunteer at Western Regional office of Catholic Charities, are “warm”, “hard-working” and “compassionate”. These are just a few of the words that the other volunteers came up with when asked about Diane. Diane Reed was born in Northern VA and raised in Rockville, Maryland. She attended the University of Maryland for college and graduated with a degree in Business. Ms. Reed went on to a successful career as a financial analyst. She eventually retired in 1985. After retirement, Diane renewed her commitment to the Catholic Church and to her faith. She currently serves as a lector, Eucharistic minister, choir member, cantor and money counter at St. John the Apostle Church. She is also a member of the diocesan St. Therese Vocation Society and the world-wide Apostleship of Prayer. Additionally, she teaches ESL to three Spanish students, ages 18-75. Diane states, “I am on a life-long quest to teach myself Spanish.” She also enjoys gardening, reading, scrapbooking, and the Redskins. Of the Redskins, she proudly boasts, “I am a 50+ year fan”. Perhaps one of her greatest affections is placed with her rescue pets. She loves her shelter pup, JJ, and rescue kitties. After reading the above, one might wonder, “when does Diane have time for the Western Regional office?” She is a consistent, timely and dependable member of the volunteer staff. She comes every Monday and Tuesday, working between 6 and 8 hours a week at the office. She states, “I am so excited that the diocese has a presence in Leesburg where we can help those in need. It’s great because I don’t have to travel a long distance to be a part of something so wonderful.” Diane is willing to take on additional office responsibilities and new tasks with excitement. When asked about her faith Diane states, “I strive to make my faith, my Church, and my relationship with Jesus the most important focus of my life and of each day and moment.” She says that she treasures the richness of the Catholic faith, especially the sacraments, and is so glad to be part of the Catholic Church. Diane’s family includes her beautiful, one year old godchild, Isabella, her church family, her many friends and her volunteer associates. The Western Regional office is so blessed to have Diane as part of the office. Thank you Diane for your unfailing commitment and your compassionate heart! October's Vignette On September 23, 2008 one of Hogar’s star students, Blanca Yolanda “Yoly” Lopez, was sworn in as a US citizen at the USCIS district office in Fairfax. For Yoly the occasion marked the end of a long process that began when she came from Colombia as a visitor seven years ago. She came to the United States knowing that opportunities for work were better here than in her country and also because she found that here she was around “good and educated people.” Yoly’s accomplishment made her one of 36 Hogar citizenship students to pass their exams since July of this year. More notably, she was the first student to successfully complete our newly implemented citizenship class at Christ the Redeemer Church in Sterling. Since the fall of 2004 Hogar Immigrant Services has been preparing students for the US Naturalization exam and interview. After completing beginner level English classes, or demonstrating at least low intermediate level proficiency, students are eligible to enroll in an intensive course that is a hybrid of ESL instruction and citizenship exam preparation. Until recently these specialized classes were only offered at the Hogar office, limiting access to those students who are within traveling distance of Falls Church. However, in September, as part of a larger effort to extend Hogar services to more outlying areas, the citizenship class was duplicated and taken on the road to Christ the Redeemer Church in Sterling. Classes there are three nights each week and will last for 15 weeks for a total of over 60 hours of instruction. Yoly stated that her teachers in Sterling, Stefan Giede, Barb Zicari, and Jessica Rothfuss, were fun and very patient. She felt well-prepared to answer questions about her application, including all the “have you ever…” questions, and to answer the five or six civics questions that were chosen for her at random from the list of 100. Yoly first entered Hogar’s program as an ESL beginner student and completed two sessions of English instruction before enrolling in the citizenship class. She wanted to become a citizen in order to vote and was able to register only a few days before the October 6 deadline in Virginia. Her other motivation for naturalizing was to petition for her 27-year-old daughter and two grandchildren to join her in the United States. She will be traveling to Colombia soon for the first time as a US citizen. Congratulations, Yoly! Don’t forget to fill out an absentee ballot before you leave!! ______________________________________ The Human Cost of Immigration Enforcement Contributed by Richard P. Quintana, Parishioner of All Saints Catholic Church and Dan Macguire The crack-down on illegal immigrants in Prince William County continues. County officials insist that the crack-down is fair and without prejudice. In response to concerns about profiling and fairness the county implemented a policy to check the immigration status of all individual taken into custody for suspected criminal activity. Yet, the county’s efforts to crack-down on illegal immigrants are getting mixed reviews. Some see the crack-down as a great success. Others see the negative side of the crack-down. Many businesses are beginning to feel the pinch as legal and illegal immigrants are leaving the county. The Hispanic community’s perception is that law enforcement officers are seeking out Hispanics without justification. Families can suffer the hardships of separation when a family member is arrested and detained for months without being released on bond to look after their families. One could argue that undocumented immigrants bring these problems on themselves by coming here illegally. Even so, the separation of families for months on end shows a lack of concern for the welfare of families (especially those with children). On the other hand, not all immigrants in detention are undocumented. Some legally documented, hard working immigrants are being caught in the net and their families are suffering the consequences. One such legal immigrant is Federico. 'Some legally documented, hard working immigrants are being caught in the net and their families are suffering the consequences.' Federico has been a legal permanent resident (LPR) in the United States since 1990. LPR status is one step away from receiving citizenship. Until recently, LPR status had allowed Federico the right to work and stay in the United States permanently. He is married to Maria, has 4 children - three are American born. He is the family’s only wage earner and has worked for the same construction firm for several years. He and his family attend All Saints Church in Manassas. In August, Federico and his wife were on their way to a parent-teacher conference with their daughter’s kindergarten teacher. Federico stopped the car to let his wife take a telephone call. She stepped outside to take the call and avoid children’s chatter in the car. Federico, noticed they were about to be late for the conference and pulled her back into the car. A driver in a passing vehicle saw Federico pulling Maria back into the car and called the police. On their way to the conference, Federico and his wife were pulled over, and Federico was taken into custody and charged with assault and abduction despite objections from Maria that she had not been assaulted and was in no danger. Federico was held in the Prince William Detention Center for nearly two months before his case was heard. With the help of a volunteer attorney the charges were dropped after the hearing. Unfortunately, this was just the beginning of Federico’s detention story. Federico was never released from custody, but rather he was transferred to immigration custody in July. To this date, Federico is still detained at the Farmville Detention Center, a for profit facility in central Virginia, for an assault conviction stemming back to 2002. At the request of a fellow All Saints parishioner, Catholic Charities Legal Services filed a motion for bond, asking that the immigration judge release Federico so that he could return to his family and his work pending the outcome of his case. Even though immigration charges against Federico were not filed at the time of the bond hearing the Department of Homeland Security refused to release Federico on bond, and the Immigration Judge was powerless to render a decision in his favor. Homeland Security is determined to detain and deport Federico for the assault crime that he was charged with over seven years ago – a crime that he claims he did not commit. In 2002, Federico took his lawyer’s advice and pled guilty to the charges with the understanding that he would be given a suspended sentence in lieu of a supervised 2 year probationary period. He accepted the plea bargain without understanding the far reaching immigration consequences. Six years later, Federico finds himself detained at the Farmville Detention Center and faces the prospect of being deported for his guilty plea. Although Federico has paid his debt to society in the eyes of Virginia, federal immigration laws allow him to be held without charges. In this country no one should be punished twice by the law or be detained while deprived of their right to a fair hearing. Federico has been subject to both of these injustices. Like most of the working poor, Federico doesn’t have the resources to take his case before the courts. His assault conviction in 2002 makes him deportable under immigration law. Federico’s only hope of remaining in this country with his family is to have his 2002 felony conviction reversed. Catholic Charities has done all that it can to help Federico. What Federico needs is legal assistance that he cannot afford. What Prince William County needs is a compassionate process that deals with legal immigrants that are suspected of felonious activity. Federico should not have been arrested. Certainly, the serious charge of abduction should not have been made by the arresting officers. The human cost of Prince William County’s immigration enforcement in Federico’s case has been enormous. The loss of human dignity for Federico and his family is immeasurable. The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by contributors belong solely to the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs, and viewpoints of Hogar Immigrant Services or official policies of Hogar Immigrant Services. Giving Thanks Western Regional Office is so thankful to the Walmart store located in Leesburg, VA for their generous contribution to our Emergency Assistance fund. With their contribution, the Western Regional office was able to assist 5 families with utility reconnection. The Western Regional Office would also like to thank the St. John the Apostle Catholic Church catechism class for their support of our non-perishable food pantry. Their contributions have given families cereal, soup and other non-perishable items that they would otherwise go without. Bits and Pieces Help Low-income Families In Your Community The Fairfax Department of Family Services is looking for volunteers to work with their Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program (VITA). Free tax training and certification is available. Volunteers are needed throughout Northern Virginia beginning of January 2009 through April 2009. To register as a volunteer contact James Do at 571-749-7838; TTY 703-533-5316 or email James.Do@fairfaxcounty.gov. ______________________________________ First Time Home Buyer Classes Available in Herndon Reston Interfaith in partnership with the Virginia Housing Development Authority is offering information for first time home buyers at the Herndon Senior Center (873 Grace Street, Herndon, VA 20170; (703) 464-2000). In addition to learning what you need to know in order to purchase your first home, the session includes information about tax benefits you can receive from Fairfax County. Classes are typically held once a month, alternating English and Spanish every month. Each session is on a Saturday from 9:00 am - 5:00 pm. The next class will be in early December 2008. The classes are free and materials will be provided. Further counseling is available if needed. To register contact Martin Rios at (571) 323 1438 or martin.rios@restoninterfaith.org.