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ILI

The International Language Institute of Massachusetts (ILI) promotes intercultural understanding and diverse communities by providing high-quality language instruction and teacher training.

You are here: Home / News / #VoicesofILI is BACK and shining a bright spotlight on Blanca Sandoval!

July 29, 2020

#VoicesofILI is BACK and shining a bright spotlight on Blanca Sandoval!

#VoicesofILI is BACK and shining a bright spotlight on Blanca Sandoval!

Blanca is a student in the Free English Program and is originally from Guatemala. She admits that the beginning of her journey was not easy. She did not know any English except for “thank you,” and jokes about the kind of conversation you could have with only those words! On Blanca’s first day at ILI, a Spanish-speaking teacher accompanied her to class, and once she started to learn the English alphabet she was excited to realize its similarities to the Spanish alphabet! With seven years at ILI in her back pocket, Blanca is much more comfortable with the language and pronunciation. Everyone at ILI is very proud of how far she has come from starting as a student in a level one classroom, though Blanca claims it was more like level zero! In December 2019, Blanca participated in her first ever “Living History Museum” at ILI, choosing Harriet Tubman as her historic character. Blanca shared that her favorite part about the classes at ILI is practicing English—whether it be a warm up, a game, or a reading—she simply enjoys learning!

Blanca’s story is about much more than her admirable dedication to perfecting her English. She took the time to tell us a little bit about her family and her life since moving to the United States. She met her husband while he was in Guatemala visiting his home country—talk about fate! Blanca moved to the US in 2011, and now their son attends the same school that her husband did. ILI is proud to know that her son is growing up in a bilingual household!

When Blanca first moved to Northampton she got a job at a local restaurant as a dishwasher because she did not know any English. Eventually, she took a leap of faith in herself and now works as a prep cook. After all, practice makes perfect! She is much more comfortable now that her English has improved so much.

In 2018, Blanca got her citizenship, which she says changed her life. Her family traveled back to Guatemala in August 2019 to visit the rest of her loved ones. Her favorite parts about Northampton are that it is beautiful, safe, and clean, making it an ideal place to spend free time with her now seven–year old son!

Thanks for sharing your story with us Blanca—you are admirable in so many ways!

Article by ILI Staff / News

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Students in ILI’s Intensive English Program visi Students in ILI’s Intensive English Program visited the Northampton Police station yesterday. Students asked Officer Lauren Bolduc questions about topics from animal control to traffic to violent crime to the job of a cop. The tour took us to every corner of the station from the detention center to the evidence room to Chief Jody D. Kasper in her office. Thanks NPD for an unforgettable experience. ⭐️

#ili #internationallanguageinstitute #massachusetts #northampton #northamptonpd @northamptonmapd #studentlife #iep #intensiveenglishprogram #english #languagelearning #community #ialc #ialcschools
Congratulations to new U.S. citizen Ayça! ✨ Ori Congratulations to new U.S. citizen Ayça! ✨ Originally from Turkey, Ayça studied with us in 2016 and then received a Master’s in Communications and Information Management at @bay_path (ILI university pathway partner). Now she is Director of Marketing and Communications at the Realtor Association of Pioneer Valley. 

#ili #internationallanguageinstitute #congratulations #studentlife #congratulations #citizenship #northampton
“Music is the universal language of mankind.” “Music is the universal language of mankind.”
― Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

ILI English and French instructor, Josh Owsley is also a musician! He will be playing bass with @landownerband tonight at @thedrakeamherst . 🎶Hope to see you there!

📸Photo by @vagabundodeltiempo 

#ili #internationallanguageinstitute #massachusetts #northampton #landowner #livemusic #teacherfeature #thedrakeamherst  #community
Congratulations 🎉 to our graduates  Jeffrey ( Congratulations 🎉 to our graduates  Jeffrey (Peru), Azhar (Kazakhstan), Ruveyda (Turkey), Andrei (Russia) and Yasemin (Turkey). Every month we have an international potluck to celebrate our graduates. You might have seen Azhar’s cakes before, but the cake that she made, as you will say, is truly over the top! We are sad to say goodbye to the students, but excited about the next steps that they will be taking in their lives.

Cake by @_azhar_bakery 

#ili #internationallanguageinstitute #massachusetts #northampton #studentlife #azharbakery #potluck #education #internationalstudents #ialc #ialclanguages
“We must risk everything for the raw recipe of o “We must risk everything for the raw recipe of our passion” 

We had such an engaging afternoon at @parlorroommusic with ILI Board Member + former president of @gccgreenfield Bob Pura. Bob led a reading and discussion of his new book The Community’s College: The Pursuit of Democracy, Economic Development, and Success, which he co-wrote with Dr. Tara L. Parker. Audience members also got the chance to learn more about the process behind the creation of the book. 

Thank you for joining us! 📚

#ili #internationallanguageinstitute #massachusetts #bobpura #authorevent #reading #discussion #communitycollege #thecommunityscollege #northampton
Today Bob Pura and Tara Parker read from and lead Today Bob Pura and Tara Parker read from and lead a discussion of their book The Community’s College: The Pursuit of Democracy, Economic Development, and Success! 📚 Join us at @parlorroommusic at 2pm. 

In their book, The Community’s College: The Pursuit of Democracy, Economic Development, and Success, co-authors Dr. Robert L. Pura and Dr. Tara L. Parker explore the extraordinary impact of this country’s community colleges on people, communities, and our democratic traditions.

As the book’s foreword by Lynn Pasquerella, President of the American Association of Colleges and Universities, states: "[T]he analysis offered by Dr. Pura and Dr. Parker unveils how community colleges—distinctively American institutions—are more essential than ever to fulfilling our nation's historic mission of educating for democracy."

Pura, a member of the ILI board of directors, retired in 2018 as president of Greenfield Community College after 17+ years in that position. Parker is the recently appointed Dean of the College of Education and Human Development at UMass Boston.
 
#thecommunityscollege #authorevent #ili #bobpura #taraparker #theparlorroom #northampton #community
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