Caroline House has received a $15,000 grant from the Fairfield County’s Community Foundation’s Fund for Women and Girls. The grant will support English as a Second Language (ESL) and life skills education for low-income women.
The Caroline House ESL and life skills program provides free literacy education and support services to low-income women in a setting of safety and encouragement. Learning English and life skills are the first steps women take to qualify for livable-wage jobs to support their families. Gains in language and literacy help women better manage responsibilities at home, at work and in the community. Women become proud when they can read to their children in English. They develop self-confidence when they can read signs and labels at the store, communicate in a health care clinic, and fill out job applications.
“We are grateful and honored to partner with Fairfield County’s Community Foundation and its Fund for Women and Girls,” said Peg Regan, SSND, Caroline House Executive Director. “At Caroline House, women progress in their new country by acquiring English language and life skills. Students are encouraged to participate in new cultural and community experiences and to reflect on the better lives they are building for themselves and their families. With the help of teachers and tutors, women can dream higher and wider, unrestricted by gender stereotypes. This grant supports our efforts to increase employment and educational opportunities for low-income women, and to provide skills that enable them to help their children with school and health needs.”
Caroline House is celebrating its twentieth year of providing literacy education and encouragement on the East Side of Bridgeport. Founded in 1995 by the School Sisters of Notre Dame, Caroline House continues to meet the educational and human needs of economically-disadvantaged families. Programs serve over 200 women and children per year. Donations and grants provide course materials, student supplies, classroom and computer equipment and maintenance, and staffing for all programs.
About Caroline House - Caroline House is a literacy education center located on the East Side of Bridgeport, Connecticut. English as a Second Language, life skills, citizenship, preschool, and children’s tutoring programs serve low-income women and children. Classes are held in a safe and welcoming environment to inspire confidence, hope, lifelong learning and achievement. The Caroline House mission is: To enable women and children to reach the fullness of their potential through education in English language and life skills. For more information, visit www.thecarolinehouse.org.