There are many different assets that are part of the community that my school is located

in. Some of these facilities and programs can help the bilingual learners in the community. The

first one that might be useful is the Gwinnett County Public Library. They have many resources

for people who speak Spanish. There are many different resources which can be checked out in

order to better serve citizens. Many of these resources are online resources that anyone in

Gwinnett County can access if they have a library card. Many parents of our students in our

community do not have a car so this could be one way to allow parents as well as students to

access any materials from their house. The school can start partnership with the library where a

representative from the library can visit the school and parents can have a chance to sign up for a

free library card. There could also be a partnership where students are given a free bus ride to the

library where they can access many resources. Teachers can give different types of homework or

projects where students can go to the library and complete the tasks.

Another asset in the community can be the ESL classes that are offered in our

community. These classes can be for anyone in the community who is wanting to learn English.

The location of the center is about three miles from our school so parents would need a car or

some type of reliable transportation. Classes are free and are offered in the evening time which

allows parents to be able to join the classes. This facility offers free daycare service while the

parents are in classes so that it can be easily manageable for parents to attend class. As adults can

take more classes to become more proficient in English, it can be very valuable to our

community. Parents will feel more comfortable to come to school and be involved. It can

increase our numbers for parent teacher conferences. This can also be very beneficial to our

community.
 Graves Park is an asset that many families in our community rely on. Parents take their

kids their so that they can build new relationships with other families and their kids. Many

parents take their kids here so that this can be one form of entertainment for them. Our

community is in the “low income” area which means that many times they are not able to go out

to other events in our city or state. Many families in this area are struggling when it comes to

knowing the language, understanding what is expected of their students at school, having enough

food to eat, making sure someone can watch their child while they are at work, financial

difficulties, and many other issues. It is very beneficial for parents to come together at this park

when they can make new connections. Graves Park is like a second home for many of our

students.

Norcross Cooperative Ministry is a food pantry organization which offers free food to

take home as well as meals for our students. Many of our students and their families can benefit

from this. They have Spanish services so if adults have any questions, they can feel comfortable

to ask. Many times, families must drive to this location in order to be able to bring the food back.

Our school also holds an event called Market Day. This event is doable with the help of many

different organizations which come together and donate many kinds of packaged foods. There is

a limit on how much food each family can receive. If they have at least one child who attends our

school, they are able to receive food.

There were so many new findings I came across as I was doing this project. There are so

many assets offered for our community. Most of them have some type of helpful service where

they can help translate for out bilingual families. Many families struggle financially and for that

there are also many different services which are offered to help.
Allen, J. (2007). Creating welcoming schools: A practical guide to home-school
partnerships with diverse families. New York: Teachers College Press.

Epstein, J. Toward a Theory of Family School Connections: Teacher Practices and

Parent Involvement. In. K. Hurrelmann, F. Kaufmann, and F. Losel, eds., Social
Intervention: Potential and Constraints (New York: de Gruyter, 1987).