Free Community Workshops
Everything we do at ArteSana affirms the central role of creativity and the arts in community and personal development.
Free ESOL Classes
ArteSana ESOL classes were offered Fall 2015 to Spring 2016 and were multi-level and responsive to the personal and professional interests of students. They were taught by a certified ESOL teacher with decades of experience and a commitment to supporting the unique needs of adult learners. We aren’t offering these classes anymore; as a small and new nonprofit organization we’ve had to concentrate our resources elsewhere. We’d love to offer ESOL again in the future - contact us if you want to learn about our approach or have any possible collaboration opportunities!
Why did ArteSana offer ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) classes? One of the best things about Holyoke is that it is a bilingual city - 50% of residents are Hispanic and over 90% of these belong to the Puerto Rican diaspora - bringing a density of cultural richness that's uncommonly found in small cities. Among the Spanish speaking community there are many non-English speaking adults, who experience much more limited opportunities. And yet, in Holyoke there is a persistent unmet demand for ESOL classes for adults; every program in the city has a long wait list, especially for beginner level classes.