¡Bienvenido a nuestra nueva biblioteca electrónica!
¡Bienvenido a nuestra nueva biblioteca electrónica!
Ten-year-old Miguel Huerta struggled to enjoy reading before he and his mother discovered University of Houston Downtown’s bilingual e-library, an online collection of books available in both Spanish and English.
Math is still his main interest — the fourth-grader has his own YouTube channel where he teaches the subject to other kids — but reading became more fun when he started advancing his dual-language skills on the computer. He now gravitates toward fantasy and action stories.
“It makes it more interesting,” Huerta said.
Huerta is one of dozens of Aldine ISD students helping to grow UH Downtown’s e-library, which works to improve literacy and technology skills for Hispanic families in Houston. Patrons have been able to use the library cost-free at home since it launched around 2010, but a new partnership fueled by a $2.5 million U.S. Department of Commerce grant also allows Aldine parents to go to school once a week and help their children write their own stories for the collection.
Huerta and his mother, Maria Alvarez, will be published authors through the program — they wrote a book called “The Blue Dream,” or “El Sueño Azul,” based on the time Huerta learned he was going to have a baby brother. Like every book in the library, it is written in both Spanish and English, a process that Alvarez said has helped her son round out his academics.
“Literacy is so important. It’s important in everything and it’s really what’s going to connect him to his goals,” she said, via a translator. “He has a lot of potential.”
The collaboration is part of a larger two-year effort to expand the e-library and make it used worldwide. The new partnership is meant to benefit students and their parents, reinforcing the importance of Spanish literacy while also advancing English and technology aptitudes that are important for attaining jobs in the Houston workforce, said Marisol Vazquez, community engagement manager at UHD.
University officials hope the e-library will contribute to the city of Houston’s plan to increase residents' literacy skills by one level — an achievement which would add $13 billion to Harris County’s economy, according to the Mayor’s Office for Adult Literacy.
Aldine ISD has the right demographic for the partnership, with parents who are eager to participate, district officials said. More than 47% of students there are emergent bilingual and English learners.
“For me, it’s deeper than just writing a story,” said Georgina Foroi, executive director of the district’s Family and Community Engagement Department. “At this point we’re not only transforming a student, but we’re transforming the whole child, socially and emotionally. And also the parent, they’re breaking barriers.”
Emerita Munguia said her own English skills have improved since helping her daughter with the program during weekly meetings at Black Elementary in Aldine. She recently declined a promotion at her job because she didn’t feel she had enough knowledge in English and technology, but she said she hopes her work on the e-library can help her advance in her career.
Her daughter is similarly making progress, and she breezed through reading exercises in English and Spanish as they worked on their e-book one afternoon in December.
Once their book is published, it will be added to the e-library’s roughly 350 books. Many of those were previously written by college students at the Hispanic-serving institution, said project director and co-founder Maria Bhattacharjee.
Families at Aldine ISD’s Black and Bussey elementary schools are taking over some of the writing through the university partnership. About 240 families are expected to participate over two years, with groups alternating each semester. Officials also plan for the program to reach a wider audience, with an expansion to other Aldine schools, community engagement events in the district and a YouTube channel that will give broader access across the U.S. and world.
“I believe learning to read and write is a human right,” Bhattacharjee said. “This is a country of opportunity, but you have to know how.”
Aldine ISD’s Mariachi Acero and Ballet Folklórico Ketzally were on hand in Room A300 on Friday, Nov. 10, 2023, setting a lively and festive tone for a morning program celebrating UHD’s major literacy initiative: the UHD Bilingual E-Library.
Many of the Aldine ISD families participating in the program were in attendance alongside Program Director Dr. Maria Bhattacharjee, UHD President Loren J. Blanchard, UHD Provost Deborah E. Bordelon, and Aldine ISD Superintendent LaTonya M. Goffney.
“Literacy is a bridge from misery to hope. It is a tool for daily life in modern society. It is a bulwark against poverty, and a building block of development,
an essential complement to investments in roads, dams, clinics, and factories.”
— Kofi Annan, Nobel Peace Prize Recipient
The continuation of the Bilingual E-Library to improve the connectivity and literacy of Houston’s Hispanic community was made possible by the work of Drs. Maria Bhattacharjee and Irene Chen and a two-year, $2.5 million grant by the U.S. Department of Commerce received earlier this year.
The benefits of the UHD Bilingual E-Library include:
College of Public Service Dean Jonathon Schwartz emceed the event, with Provost Bordelon welcoming the crowd. “As part of every child’s right to education, literacy improves lives by expanding capabilities and, in turn, reduces poverty, increases participation in the workforce, and has positive effects on health and sustainable development,” said Bordelon. She shared that a recent report shows that Harris County’s economy could grow by $13 billion if adults with low literacy could increase their literacy skills by even one level. “We are delighted to partner with Aldine ISD on tackling this issue and, most of all, sharing the joy of storytelling and reading with your students and families,” Bordelon said.
“At $2.5 million, the bilingual e-library expansion and upgrade grant is one of the largest active grants in our College of Public Service,” stated UHD President Loren J. Blanchard. “When it comes to collaboration, partnerships, and community outreach, the Department of Urban Education is a model example.”
“UHD’s Bilingual Education Program is one of the largest producers of bilingual teachers in the Houston area,” continued Blanchard. In addition to the grant for the Bilingual E-Library, Dr. Elizabeth Stackhouse and Dr. Ron Beebe received a U.S. Department of Education Title V Grant for $2.5 million over five years to support training and wraparound services for pre-service teachers seeking certifications in critical areas of need, such as bilingual and ESL education.
“As a Hispanic-Serving Institution, our commitment to bilingual and ESL education is an extension of our commitment to our students and the communities they call home,” said Blanchard. In turn, UHD acts as an anchor for those communities and as an anchor institution for Houston. UHD has set its sights on improving literacy, having an impact on workforce development and socioeconomic mobility for the entire region.
The University of Houston-Downtown (UHD) is the second-largest university in Houston and has served the educational needs of the nation’s fourth-largest city since 1974. As one of four distinct public universities in the University of Houston System, UHD is a comprehensive, four-year university led by President Loren J. Blanchard. Annually, UHD educates approximately 14,000 students, boasts more than 66,000 alumni, and offers 45 bachelor’s degrees, 12 master’s degrees, and 19 online programs within four colleges: Marilyn Davies College of Business, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, College of Public Service, and College of Sciences and Technology. UHD has one of the lowest tuition rates in Texas.
U.S. News and World Report ranked UHD among the nation’s Best Online Bachelor’s Programs for Applied Administration and Best Online Master’s Programs in Criminal Justice, as well as a Top Performer in Social Mobility. The Wall Street Journal/College Pulse ranked UHD one of the best colleges in the U.S. for its 2024 rankings, with notable distinctions: No. 1 for diversity (tied) and No. 3 for student experience. The University is designated as a Hispanic-Serving Institution, a Minority-Serving Institution, and a Military Friendly School. For more information on the University of Houston-Downtown, visit uhd.edu.
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By Marie Jacinto
What’s not to love about a project to improve literacy and connectivity for Houston’s Hispanic community that involves children, parents, PTOs/PTAs, in-service bilingual/ESL teachers, and UHD pre-service teachers and students in other areas of study?
This two-year project to expand the UHD bilingual e-library is the brainchild of Dr. Irene Chen, Professor of Education in the Department of Urban Education in UHD’s College of Public Service, and Dr. Maria Bhattacharjee, a former UHD Associate Professor of Education. They recently received notice from the U.S. Department of Commerce that their project proposal was awarded $2,470,225.
The project promises to have a dramatic impact on workforce development and, ultimately, the local economy, as the City of Houston seeks to increase the literacy skills of Houstonians by one level. The benefits of this project will extend beyond Houston, since access to the bilingual e-library will be available worldwide.
“During the development of our 2022-2027 Strategic Plan: A New Paradigm, we set our sights on becoming an Anchor Institution for the region,” stated President Blanchard. “This project epitomizes what it means for UHD to be an anchor for the city—not only through an accessible, online library specifically targeting Houston’s Latino community, but also as a resource and workforce development tool to grow the local economy significantly.”
According to Houston’s Adult Literacy Blueprint Executive Summary Report, published by the Mayor’s Office for Adult Literacy in partnership with Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation, the City of Houston’s economic growth is linked to literacy achievement. The report stated, “Harris County’s economy could grow by $13 billion if adults with low literacy could increase their literacy skills by even one level.” According to the same report, connectivity is another challenge Houstonians need to address. “In Houston, about 142,650 households do not have a computer at home and almost twice that amount, about 267,250 households, do not have broadband internet access.”
The Project
Ten UHD bilingual students and two reading specialists will assist 240 Hispanic families in writing culturally meaningful stories over the two years of the project. These stories will be part of the UHD-upgraded bilingual e-library. Through this interaction, Hispanic families will learn to use the e-library for self-teaching as well as reading and writing with their children at home.
“Teachers in the UHD anchor community also play an essential role in preparing Hispanic individuals for the job market in Houston,” stated Chen. “Therefore, it is crucial to support teachers, too. UHD pre-service teachers and in-service bilingual/ESL teachers at seven elementary schools with high Hispanic enrollment will have the opportunity to participate in the training of reading comprehension strategies using the e-library.”
Furthermore, the plan is to mobilize the Hispanic community by involving the Parent Teacher Organization/Association representatives from each of the seven campuses. They will visit UHD monthly to learn how to prepare their students to complete a bachelor’s degree at UHD and how to use the e-library to support the development of literacy skills. There will be opportunities for all parents at these schools to attend the meetings virtually. Also, 19 students from different programs, such as Urban Education, Communication, and Technology, will work together to create a community of learners that link Hispanic families and pre-service and in-service teachers to the e-library and each other.
“The expectation is that as Hispanic families use the e-library, they will increase their literacy skills levels and abilities to self-teach using technology,” stated Bhattacharjee. “These skill sets, in turn, will increase the number of Hispanic individuals prepared to enter the labor market in Houston.”
About the University of Houston-DowntownThe University of Houston-Downtown (UHD) is the second-largest university in Houston and has served the educational needs of the nation’s fourth-largest city since 1974. As one of four distinct public universities in the University of Houston System, UHD is a comprehensive, four-year university led by President Loren J. Blanchard. Annually, UHD educates approximately 14,000 students, boasts more than 66,000 alumni, and offers 45 bachelor’s degrees, 12 master’s degrees, and 19 online programs within four colleges: Marilyn Davies College of Business, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, College of Public Service, and College of Sciences and Technology. UHD has one of the lowest tuition rates in Texas.
U.S. News and World Report ranked UHD among the nation’s Best Online Bachelor’s Programs for Applied Administration and Best Online Master’s Programs in Criminal Justice, as well as a Top Performer in Social Mobility. The Wall Street Journal/College Pulse ranked UHD one of the best colleges in the U.S. for its 2024 rankings, with notable distinctions: No. 1 for diversity (tied) and No. 3 for student experience. The University is designated as a Hispanic-Serving Institution, a Minority-Serving Institution, and a Military Friendly School. For more information on the University of Houston-Downtown, visit uhd.edu.
By Marie Jacinto
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