On April 5, 2024, Lincoln South Rotary Club heard about Lincoln Literacy from Executive Director Bryan Seck.
Lincoln Literacy started in 1972. At that time the focus was on native born Americans who needed help such as helping them learn to read and get their high school degrees. He reminded us that 1975 brought the end of the Vietnam war - and Lincoln received its first refugees.
The mission of Lincoln Literacy is to strengthen our community by teaching the English language and a variety of literacy skills to people of all cultures.
As Lincoln Literacy works with refugees they find that many are knowledgeable and some are very skilled in their home country. But that is hard to share with limited language skills here in America.
Many of their classes are small group held in various places in the community. There is also one-on-one tutoring. They have over 100 classes a week from 8am to 6pm six days a week.
He talked about the program that they offer at Kawasaki. They provide tools and skills to, not only get them started in their job, but to work to improve their positions. He said that the retention among those refugees is better than the other staff - they feel that someone cares about them. Besides Kawasaki they have classes at 10 other businesses.
He said that last week the Lincoln Manufacturing Council made national news. Working with Lincoln Literacy, they built a program to teach people to work with the manufacturing industry. With so many manufacturing companies, there is a continuous need for employees and a good opportunity for New Americans.
The number of students using the Lincoln Literacy services has doubled this last year. Those have come from 75 different countries. He explained that we may not have a complete picture of the refugee population. He explained that when refugees come to America they are assigned to a location. Should they choose to move to a different city, their benefits do not move with them and that tracking information is lost.
Bryan shared that one of the reasons we have so many refugees - and one of the reasons we have a good plan to help them and our community - is because of the Lincoln/Lancaster County Welcoming & Belonging Strategic Plan. There is a New American Task Force that meets monthly to make sure that all of our service providers are as effective as possible, that there is not an overlap in services, and that we continue to collaborate. It is not just about welcoming refugees, it is about making them feel at home and getting them ready for work.
Bryan was proud to announce that Lincoln is outpacing Omaha for resettling New Americans. We have 30,000 immigrants/refugees in Lincoln/Lancaster County. By the end of this year it is anticipated that we would welcome 700 new refugees. Last year there were 300.
The goal is to get our New Americans back into their careers - what they were doing in their native countries. They work to get them into the system and working up the ladder. For example, people with medical skills might start with the CNA program. They learn the language and technical information as they transition to the American programs. Learning the culture of the work is an important part of the tutoring. They also have a driving training program. They not only teach people how to drive in America, but they also have a CDL preparation program.
Bryan stated that they currently have 1600 students, 185 volunteer tutors and 40 staff. The learning is not just about learning the language. In some cases the students could not read in their own country - so they are not only learning the language but how to read for the first time. Lincoln Literacy helps the new Americans navigate the systems such as banking and getting medical services. They also provide childcare and transportation.
Bryan wants people to know that Lincoln Literacy is not a school. They teach English and prepare people to take the next step. They are in the business of preparing people to get into certified classes - preparing them to maximize their careers. Lincoln Literacy is a Community of Learning and Caring.
BIO:
Bryan Seck took over as Lincoln Literacy's new executive director on Oct. 28, 2022. Seck has served as chief talent management strategist at Kawasaki Motors Manufacturing Corp. He was previously director of workforce development at the Lincoln Partnership for Economic Development (LPED). Before that, he served as employment skills developer at Prosper Lincoln and homeless outreach specialist at Lincoln Public Schools.
Seck also has deep experience supporting English language learners. As a Peace Corps member, he taught English in Kazakhstan for over two years. He later taught English to immigrants in California and New York City.
He has a passion for helping people, especially those who are less fortunate. In addition to his other interests, he enjoys gardening.