Chicago Tribune Review,
March 8, 2005

More help for Hispanic moms

BY Lisa Black
STAFF REPORTER

In a move aimed at getting Hispanic moms to read to their young children in English, a family literacy program will be expanded in Lake County, officials said Monday.

Started in fall 2003, the program targets parents who cannot speak English and their preschoolers in Waukegan, Round Lake and Zion.

Administered by the College of Lake County in Grayslake, Families Involved in Reading Stories Together has been piloted successfully at several libraries, officials said.

Thanks to a new $248,000 federal grant, the college will add more programs in Mundelein and Highwood and at its Grayslake campus.

"We have a very ambitious goal, to identify every pregnant Latina and get her into language classes," U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) said, announcing the grant during a news conference at the college.

Ideally, by the time a child reaches 1st grade, the mother should be able to read English and help with homework, he said. Research has shown that the mother's reading abilities are related to the child's future academic success, Kirk said.

The program differs from the usual literacy classes in that it offers the children reading lessons while parents are studying English and then has them read an assigned book together, such as "The Very Hungry Caterpillar." Parents also attend parenting classes and learn how to use a library.

Celina Ocampo, 37, of Park City considers herself one of the success stories. Having moved from Mexico in 1990, she said she didn't understand the importance of learning English until her children entered school.

Ocampo found the program easier to attend than other literacy classes because she could bring her children along and it didn't interfere with her job working the second shift at a nursing home.

"My children, they read all the papers in English," said Ocampo, whose three boys are ages 8, 5 and 3. "I went to school and now I know how important it is to help the children with their homework."

Her eldest son, Domingo, grinned shyly when she added that he helps her find the right words when she comes up short.

"Sometimes I say some words and they are not correct," she said.

The program's instructors measure success by giving the adults pre-tests and post-tests, said Mary Charuhas, the college's dean of adult and community education. About 80 adults have been through the program, though that number includes some who enrolled a second time, she said.

"We find that all but one or two people increased in at least one level of instruction for English as a Second Language," she said. "Many increased two or three--and some up to six. These are people who made a commitment to speak English at home and work."

Parents may enroll by calling 847-543-2021.

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