Learner Spotlight: Meet Emmanuel

We invite you to meet Emmanuel B., our featured student this month in our “Learner Spotlight”.  Featured adult learners represent the Literacy Council’s programs, including authors from Reflections: Voices of English Learners, the Literacy Council’s literary magazine, as well as adult learners in other programs. Emmanuel contributed his story to the sixth edition.

My name is Emmanuel B. I am a Cameroonian who arrived in the United States approximately seven months ago.  My academic background is a bit atypical because I started with biochemistry then one day, I decided to go into computer science.  Thanks to this last training, I was able to teach for almost ten years as a computer teacher in several private high schools in Douala in Cameroon.  It was with devotion and commitment. Teaching is a noble job and I am proud to have contributed to the education of Cameroonian youth. 

I am convinced that my integration in this country will go through the language.  The Literacy Council helps me in this direction. This is an opportunity to thank all the staff for their professionalism.  My goals are to be able to communicate in English, to read well and to write what I think.  I am more tempted for a short academic training in computer science or to do certifications.  I remain ambitious and determined because my future will depend on the efforts made today.

We hope you enjoy  Emmanuel’s written works, “My Computer Gift”, “Nkui My Favorite Food”, and “Douala”.  Read about Emmanuel and view all of our students’ stories on our Reflections: Voices of English Learners web page! Emmanuel presented his work at the Literacy Council’s Reflections debut event for the sixth edition publication in February.

“My Computer Gift”

My first computer makes me think of my brother Etienne who lives in Texas.  It was a new TOSHIBA computer, gray color, with the following characteristics: processor 2.5GHz, RamDDR 16GB, hard drive disk 500 GB, WI-FI connection and the operating system was Windows 8.  It was very speedy. I was a new student in IT and my brother was new to the USA.  Although his situation was challenging, he bought me a computer.  I appreciated his action, and I still remember him every time I am working with that computer.

Read Emmanuel’s additional stories on page 13-14, and other student stories from our 6th edition of Reflections.