Christ the Good Shepherd Mission used grant funds to help operate a program to teach English classes in their predominantly Spanish speaking community. The classes are an important offering because the English proficiency of a significant amount of the population in the area is sub-par
and hinders their social and economic progress as community members. All the students come from Spanish speaking countries of origin in the Western Hemisphere including Ecuador, Venezuela, Columbia, Honduras, Guatemala, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Mexico. The ages range from a few people in their sixties with a majority in their thirties and forties, some young adults in their 20s and a few minors who come with parents. Most students are active at Christ the Good Shepherd Mission.
Of the average attendance at Sunday Mass, about 10% are active English students at any given time. A methodology of teaching was introduced which has students identify those issues that are of most immediate concern for them regarding the use of the English language. This ensures that people would not come to class to do exercises that might have little to do with their daily life issues.