Adios, Amigo Al

Over 200 of Al Atkinson’s friends joined him for a Mexican-style fiesta

in the Douglas Room on June 10. The retiring VP of Educational

Services was toasted, (lightly) roasted and feted by friends and

colleagues as they celebrated his 32 years of service to the College.

 

Al's colleagues kindly hid his farewell gift inside a donkey-
shaped pinata. After threatening and finally subduing the
difficult donkey with a giant potato masher, Al persuaded it

to give up its treasure: a brass plaque for his sailboat
reading “May the wind always fill your sails. From your
friends at Douglas College."

 

Yvonne Mostert, Administrative Assistant (left), and Lou Rene Legge, Director of the Centre
for Sport, Recreation and Wellness (right), share a smile at the farewell fiesta.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Old friends gathered in honour of Al. From left to right are George Wootton, first Douglas
College President; Neal Nicholson, former College Board Chair, Bob Buzza; former College
Board Chair; Susan Witter, Douglas College President; and Bill Day, former College
President. Also present at the party but not pictured were former Board Chairs Myrna

Popove and Karin Henderson.

Unique ESL class hosts first graduation in Surrey mall

Learning English is only half the
battle for many new Canadians —
the other half is gaining an
understanding of the unwritten
rules of Canadian culture and the

workplace.

The first graduating class of a

£ £
new program called the English
Connection had the best of both
worlds — full-time English-
language training combined with

job hunting and workplace skills.

Douglas College President Susan
Witter and MLAs Brenda Locke
(Surrey-Green Timbers) and
Dave Hayer (Surrey- Tynehead)
came to congratulate the students
as they received their certificates
June 9 at Central City Shopping
Centre (formerly Surrey Place
Mall), where the program is

operated by Douglas College's

Training Group.
§

“English Connection helps
people with very little English
bridge the gap,” said Cheryl
Hagan, a Program Manager at the
‘Training Group. “Some people
don't have enough English to get
into other ESL programs and
they need to develop job hunting
skills but they don’t know how
things work here. We focus on
practical language skills people

can take to work.”

The program, a brainchild of
Hagan and the Ministry of
Human Resources, immerses
students in the English language,

full-time for four months.

“Every immigrant who comes to
Canada should take these types

of courses,” said Hayer, who

speaks from experience; when he
first came to Canada, he had a
very limited grasp of English. “It
benefits not only BC but it also
helps them and their families
reach their full potential in
Canada. You need to know the

language to do that.”

Surrey resident Tuba Samem,
who came from Afghanistan,
said, “If I start work at $8 an
hour, it’s not enough. I have five
kids. My husband is going to
school. When I started English
Connection, | had many
problems with reading and
writing. Now it’s better and I
might be able to find a job that

pays more.”

Another student, Nasreen

Babrakzi, who also lives in Surrey,

says the program was very useful

= Qi

 

(From left to right, back row): College President Susan
Witter, MLA; Dave Hayer (Surrey-Tynehead) and MLA Brenda
Locke (Surrey-Green Timbers) congratulate graduates of the
English Connection Program.

for her. “There was a lot of in our own languages and that

speaking practice and forces us to speak English.”
conversation, she said. “During

class, we're not allowed to speak