Learn at SAPL Program for New American Citizens
San Antonio Public Library, Texas
Innovation Synopsis
The library has a unique drop-in service for adult learners called Learn at SAPL housed within four branch libraries. Main elements of Learn include job help, high school equivalency, digital literacy and ESL. The In Our Words Anthology publication and tours of USCIS are two initiatives that have created a welcoming environment for new Americans.
Challenge/Opportunity
Both of these program provided the opportunity to be able to provide services and programs that were created through listening to San Antonio's communities' needs.
Key Elements of Innovation
The second edition of the anthology was published in 2018 which included essays by ESL students from 20 countries. Two of the Learn centers started offering citizenship classes in 2018. The participants are taken on tours of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Students also get the opportunity to speak with USCIS officers responsible for carrying out citizenship interviews and observe a naturalization ceremony. These tours greatly lessen anxiety about what to expect the day of their citizenship interview.
Achieved Outcomes
The anthology was showcased at a program where students read their essays in front of an audience. The program celebrated the students’ accomplishments as well as engaged the public in learning about the struggles of new Americans. Days after a USCIS tour, a student had her citizenship interview and was assigned the same officer who had spoken with our class. The officer remembered her and the student said that she immediately felt at ease as soon as she saw him. She passed the interview and became a U.S. citizen shortly after.
