With a long presence and an expanding footprint,
Siena Literacy Center in West Detroit is a pillar of support for adult learners, including a growing West African immigrant population.
“Siena was founded by the Adrian Dominican Sisters, who believe that anyone who shows interest in improving themselves or contributing to their family, society, or community through educational attainment should be given a chance. We want to connect with people in that effort,” says Executive Director Caitlyn Pisarski.
Established in 1995, Siena Literacy Center settled in its current location in the Brightmoor neighborhood at the corner of McNichols and Burt roads in 2010.
From this site, Siena provides one-on-one tutoring for Adult Basic Education (ABE), GED, and English as a Second Language (ESL) to adults. A new partnership with St. Suzanne Cody Rouge Resource Center has opened up space for expanded offerings, including daytime group classes for English learners.
Group classes are a response to a growing need. With 60 active volunteer tutors, Siena has been unable to recruit and train volunteers fast enough to provide matches for the many students enrolling in the center, who numbered 302 in the last program year.
The growth is greatest among ESL students, who comprised around one-quarter of Siena’s enrollments in 2021-2022. Now half of the students are English learners, mostly from 12 countries in West Africa, who are enrolling at a faster pace than ABE students.
Zoe Dixon taught adult ESL in Los Angeles before returning to her hometown of Detroit. She now heads up Siena’s daytime and evening classes for English learners. All of her pupils are from West Africa.
“What the students have in common is that they are highly motivated,” says Dixon. “Apart from that, they run the gamut. We have some students who have been to college. Many want to be in the medical field. Some have goals to be auto mechanics or work in agriculture, so we work on vocabulary for those professions."
Dixon says that some students are not literate in any language, even in their own country's language; others have learning challenges.
"We do our best to meet all the needs,” says Dixon.
A Motivated Learner
Serigne Lo is one such highly motivated student. Lo arrived in the United States from his native Senegal in November 2023 and was introduced to Siena Literacy Center by a fellow student.
“From my first day, I wanted to learn English. In Senegal, I was not able to complete high school because my parents did not have money to pay. Now I want to improve my skills and take the GED test.”
Lo speaks of the American dream as the opportunity to pursue his childhood goal of becoming a nurse practitioner.
He meets with a volunteer tutor once or twice a week for two-hour sessions.. The pair works on reading and conversation and often add to and tackle word lists which Lo carries with him in a notebook. Recently, they studied vocabulary for the driving test.
Lo’s effort was recognized in June, when he was inducted into the National Adult Education Honor Society and gave a speech to an audience gathered in the Siena Literacy Center courtyard. “People heard my speech and couldn’t believe that I had been in the U.S. for only a few months,” he says. “I tell them that it is important to do your best in your education.”
Meeting Needs
When Pisarski took over the helm at Siena Literacy Center in 2022, she brought with her a focus on holistic adult education.
As such, she hired Juliet Graves, who joined the staff in 2023 as a community resource navigator, who helps with life problems and obstacles students might face while trying to keep up with their literacy lessons, such as overdue rent or bills or daycare issues.
Graves says that she experienced those challenges herself. "Things happen, life happens. That’s where I come in and can assist students who are encountering barriers.”
Because classroom conversations often reveal challenges in students’ lives, Graves works closely with Dixon. Recently, a woman in the class shared details about her child’s special needs. Graves helped the mother advocate with her child’s school to ensure it provides adequate services.
Graves works with students on matters ranging from transportation and housing to accessing childcare and health benefits. She has also been trained to accompany clients as they fill out the basic asylum application. Asylum protects individuals so they can remain in the United States instead of being deported to a country where they fear persecution or harm.
In addition to meeting practical needs, Siena Literacy Center is a source of care and encouragement for its students from West Africa and elsewhere. According to Pisarski, “ESL classes offer a unique opportunity for people to build community. The immigrant experience, the struggles and celebrations, are things that people can really rally around in ESL class.”
During a recent classroom discussion about friendship, one of Dixon’s pupils shared that she sees her friends twice a week– at her English class. At home most days with a small child, she finds adult companionship and support among her fellow students.
Serigne Lo agrees. “I have met so many people at Siena Literacy Center– people from America and from different countries in Africa. I like that everyone here is kind and helpful. They give me good advice about my future.”
Resilient Neighborhoods is a reporting and engagement series examining how Detroit residents and community development organizations work together to strengthen local neighborhoods. It's made possible with funding from The Kresge Foundation.