The Penn Global Learners Program, taught by English Language Programs instructors, offered learners from Afghanistan and Ukraine, English through content courses—"and provided some normalcy and hope in the process."
The Global Learners Program in cooperation with the ELP, Online Learning Initiative (OLI), and an NGO in Afghanistan called 30 Birds, offered a pilot program for over 20 displaced learners from Afghanistan that included a 3-week online ELP class, English for Leadership and Innovation, with weekly synchronous sessions taught by Lori Chinitz. More recently, Penn Global working with an NGO in Ukraine, Goncharenko. which has English and cultural centers there, put together a second group of learners from Ukraine. Four sections of a five-week course, English for Career Development, enrolled over 300 learners. This course also included weekly synchronous class meetings. These sections were taught by ELP instructors Michael Sullivan, Rachel Gonzalez, Danielle Bergez, and Kate Kinney. Both programs were coordinated by Kate Kinney.
The Penn Arts & Sciences August 9, 2023 edition of OMNIA includes an article "Words of Encouragement" which contains more details about this amazing program.
For more information about the Penn Global Learners Program and to read comments by some of the Ukrainian participants, read "A Beacon of Hope."
