PUCRS and Santa Clara Parish running third edition of program
Immigrants and professors at Santa Clara Parish
Photo: Nathana Fouchy
Since early in May, Haitian immigrants have had the chance to learn Portuguese at the Santa Clara Parish, in Lomba do Pinheiro, east Porto Alegre. The program, which is now in its third edition, is the fruit of the partnership between the School of Humanities, the Pastoral and Solidarity Center and the Santa Clara Parish. 15 students were present in the first class, but the program’s administrators expect that as many as 40 students will complete the program by Jul 7 and earn their certificates. Many of the students arrived in Porto Alegre late in April and are now facing the challenge of learning an additional language.
The classes will be offered every Saturday morning by the Associate Dean of the School of Humanities of PUCRS, Dr Regina Kohlrausch, Modern Languages professor, Dr Cristina Perna, and graduate students Mrs Aline Antunes and Mr Rafael Ferreira. In addition to the course per se, the students have received a kit containing a notebook and writing utensils. These materials were given to them by agents of the Pastoral and Solidarity Center in the beginning of the program, in a lesson filled with prayer and music. The course is traditionally offered in the first and second semesters of 2017. So far, it catered to an audience of as many as 50 Haitians, who how have better qualifications for the job market.
