Dutchess BOCES’ Adult Learning Institute (ALI) encourages everyone to invest in their future by partaking in its adult literacy offerings, which can help adults make a fresh start by learning how to master the English language and to improve basic skills to successfully take the GED exam.
The English for Speakers of Other Languages program is designed for adults who wish to learn or improve their English. During a lesson earlier this spring, Teacher Paula Greenspan taught her students how to say nine basic phrases in English, had them play an interactive game where they had to match a word with a picture on the screen and even learned how to sing “The Gray Squirrel Song.”
Louisa Granada joined the class because she feels it is important to learn the language of the country she lives in and praised Greenspan for being a good teacher.
“The teacher is amazing,” Granada said. “I want to learn more about English and have better conversations with my friends and family.”
For Jenifer Cabrera, learning English is crucial so she can communicate with her work colleagues, who only speak English, and the class has been helpful in meeting that goal.
“Living here in the United States, you need to learn English,” Cabrera said. “You learn step by step.”
In addition, there are low-cost vocational classes with ESL support that provide credentials upon completion. They include: Home Health Aide, Nursing Assistant, Construction with NCCER Core certification, Culinary with ServSafe Food Handler certification, Guest Services with AHLEI Guest Services Gold/ STAR Restaurant Server certification.
Adult Basic Education
Teachers in this program instruct students how to improve in basic language arts, math, science and social studies skills, preparing them to successfully take the GED test.
Jamala Dabashi attended high school until her junior year, but stepped away once she got married and had children. She would subsequently try to complete high school three times, but struggled – that is until her cousin recommended she attend ALI’s program in September 2025, making a world of difference.
“Believe it or not, I already passed two of the subjects and I have one more to go,” Dabashi said. “It’s been a great help.”
Dabashi credits her teacher, Dianne Ham, for helping her get this far because she provides plenty of relevant work to bring home or do in class and they complete practice tests before the real thing.
“There’s a lot of stuff that she helps us with,” Dabashi said of Ham. “I learned a lot of vocabulary I didn’t know before.”
Once she has her General Educational Development (GED) diploma, Dabashi predicts it will be beneficial as she is interested in pursuing real estate. She highly recommends attending ALI.
“If they want to get an opportunity in life, they should come to this school,” Dabashi said. “If they make that step forward, they’re going to feel more comfortable to come here.”
For information on any of these programs, call 845-483-3640 or come to the ALI Open House from 6-8 p.m. on Wednesday, June 24, at the Dutchess BOCES Conference Center, 5 BOCES Road, Poughkeepsie, NY.