Open Doors, Open Lives

JOIN OUR "LIVE" CLOSING EVENT ON ON SATURDAY, DEC 5TH, 7:30 PM.
ZOOM LINK: https://zoom.us/j/97049563751

Now more than ever, welcoming spaces like Open Doors English are especially important. This is your opportunity to support immigrants and refugees in our community and celebrate our inspiring school that welcomes everyone, turns no one away, and is a place of refuge.

EVERY DOLLAR COUNTS
The proceeds of this auction will directly supplement student tuition costs. Our students pay on a self-selected sliding scale anywhere from $0-$150 for four weeks of class. Due to COVID and the increased financial strain many of our students are experiencing, tuition payments are averaging $30 per student per month--a significant drop. More than ever before, the immigrants and refugees in our classes need your support to continue accessing Open Doors English's vital services!

Open Doors English already operates on a shoestring, and our teachers make half the prevailing wage for professional ESL teachers. Your bids matter! As you peruse our fabulous array of auction offerings, consider the impact of your bids in the knowledge that your generosity is deeply appreciated!

Open Doors English is a new, nonprofit language program for adults in the Ithaca area, primarily providing English as a Second Language classes for immigrants, refugees, asylum-seekers, and international visitors. ODE opened in September, 2019. We currently serve 120 students through our online classes. We are a vibrant, welcoming program! Students build strong friendships across cultures and languages. Coming to a foreign country, one can feel very alone and isolated. Students in our program feel as if they belong and say that ODE is a home away from home.

Why this work?
A student once told us, “Living in America with my little English is like living in a house with windows but no doors.”

Language is how we engage with our community, our work, our daily lives. Providing a place where students can build their English fluency and confidence is magical. Our work empowers students to open so many doors of opportunity, community, friendship, and belonging.
Just recently a student told us, “All of us who are from different countries gather together because of ODE, which is magical. Maybe we will never meet again in future, but the memories with you all are carved in my heart. "

Open Doors English is a fiscally-sponsored project of the Center for Transformative Action, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.