On Wednesday, June 25, English In Action held the opening ceremony for their new Center for Communication in El Jebel. English In Action began in 1994 as a space for adults wanting to learn English. Now, the nonprofit serves around 400 adult learners annually with the help of roughly 300 volunteer tutors.
“Our programming had outgrown the space available in our old building,” said Executive Director Lara Beaulieu. “We had room for potentially two small group classes in the evening, but that limited our ability to also have training or individual tutoring pairs meet as our staff grew. We couldn’t all fit in the space.”
Beaulieu said the plan for the new space was established in 2018. However, the COVID-19 pandemic forced the English In Action team to put it on hold. After the pandemic eased in 2021, the team brought the plan back and began fundraising in 2022. In less than three years, English In Action successfully raised $5.5 million from 437 donors, many of whom are adult learners and volunteer tutors at the center.
In addition to monetary donations from the community, English In Action also received many in-kind donations. These include all of the landscaping as a donation from Landscape Workshop and all of the plants needed for the exterior from Eagle Crest Nursery.
The result and impact of the fundraising became apparent as guests excitedly arrived in preparation for the ceremony. Members of the team at English In Action took turns sharing words and thanks before a longtime English learner cut the ribbon and attendees were welcomed in. Inside were new learning rooms, offices and even a kitchen.
Among the rooms in the new space was a child play area which will allow adult learners with kids to come to the center without having to worry about coordinating childcare.
“I think there’s so much potential in expanding all of our programs, building a stronger community and continuing to center the voices of our learners,” said Beatriz Ferrufino, English In Action’s student leadership manager. Ferrufino began with the program as a student and now works on staff while continuing her own education.
According to English In Action’s website, the need for English In Action followed an increase of people from Central and South America immigrating to the Valley in the 1980s. Some of these knew limited English, and cultural divisions emerged in the community. To address this division, the Basalt Regional Library created its Adult Literacy Program in 1994 to help people learn English. By 2005 the program had grown and founder Julie Fox-Rubin turned it into English In Action.
One of the main aspects of English In Action’s model is one-on-one tutoring. Adult learners are matched with volunteer tutors who they meet with for about one hour per week. When the learners first start the program, they enter a six-month commitment. However, it’s not uncommon for these pairs to stay together for years.
Maya Decker, English In Action’s individual tutoring manager, said the new center will help expand their reach. “I envision making many more matches in the space and watching many more friendships develop,” she said. Decker sees the building as “a center for communication and for fostering community.”
Decker, who previously taught in Spain and Vietnam, said those experiences inform her work at English In Action. “Having that experience has helped me approach my job with empathy toward our learners’ situations,” she said. “I know what it feels like to not understand everything that’s going on around you.”
Following the opening ceremony, English In Action looks forward to its summer benefit. The event will take place on July 13 at the Aspen Meadows Resort. The purpose of the benefit is to raise funds for the nonprofit’s annual programming. “All fundraisers are important, but this one is particularly important for us at this juncture in our organization,” Beaulieu emphasized.