Jessica, an immigrant herself, changed her work schedule so she could volunteer to help The ILC students.
Jessica was working two part-time jobs when she signed up to volunteer at The Immigrant Learning Center. She was looking for a way to make a real difference in people’s lives, and felt her experiences as an immigrant from South Korea and her work volunteering with special needs children would make her a great classroom volunteer at The ILC. It turns out she was right.
“I love it. I love the people, and I love the students. It’s a happy place.”
There was one problem. Volunteering at The ILC conflicted with her work hours. Contributing in this way was so important to her that she found a way to adjust her work hours and started volunteering with low literacy students in our Literacy Class once a week. In class, Jessica engages them in conversations to help them practice English and assists them with reading and writing exercises. What surprised her the most were the tactics that helped them learn.
“I try really hard to break the shell… I do a lot of handshaking, high fives… They love it,” she said.
She’s hoping to adjust her work hours even more so she can volunteer more days per week.
This story appeared in the Fall 2025 edition of our Impact Update newsletter. Join our mailing list to get future Impact Updates delivered to your door.