Cove church hosting ESL, citizenship classes

By LYNETTE SOWELL
Cove Leader-Press 

Thanks to St. Martin’s Episcopal Church in Copperas Cove, the Killeen-Fort Hood League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) Council 4535 is branching into Copperas Cove to offer classes for those who want to achieve one part of the American dream—becoming an United States citizen. 
St. Martin’s is hosting the classes, which kick off tomorrow at 10 a.m. at the church. Classes meet weekly for 14 weeks and last three hours, and will continue every Saturday, with the exception of Veterans Day, through December 9. 
Raul Villaronga heads up the Citizenship and English as a Second Language (ESL) program for LULAC, and said the endeavor between the church and LULAC came about as a result of an encounter during LULAC’s 2017 Scholarship Banquet. 
“St. Martin’s Church’s Pastor, Mother Paulette (Magnuson), attended our 2017 LULAC Scholarship Banquet where USCIS District 18 Director Miguel Ortiz  administered the Oath of Allegiance to one of our previous graduates and LULAC member, Marisela Barrera,” said Villaronga. “That led to their offering to sponsor a class, and we negotiated on the time and date, and here we are.” 
The Killeen-Fort Hood LULAC Council 4535 started teaching citizenship classes in late 2013. 
Classes are free, Villaronga said, but applicants must be legal residents of the United States and also be prepared to pay the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) the $725 application fee when it comes time to apply for naturalization. 
Villaronga said LULAC offers three versions of the citizenship class, to include a citizenship class for English Speakers; a citizenship and ESL class for non-English speakers; and citizenship in Spanish for those over 55 years of age and 15 years as legal residents (or 50/20), who are eligible to take the naturalization test in their native language. 
“With the exception of the latter, all our classes are taught in English,” Villaronga said. “We only have Spanish Instructors, but welcome other volunteers.”
Villaronga said the organization has recruited a cadre of volunteers who are trained and experienced to teach the classes, with most of the classes being taught by Dora Grandames, a retired Army veteran. 
“We also have several volunteer professionals from Central Texas College who teach our ESL curriculum,” said Villaronga. “Members of St. Martin’s have volunteered to teach some of the classes with our assistance, and we are looking forward to expanding our ‘stable’ of Instructors.”
Applicants must attend at least 75 percent of the classes and can register for the program through September 16. To sign up, they can come to the classes on Saturday, contact Villaronga at rgvillaronga@gmail.com. There is also a downloadable form at www.killeenlulac4535.org which can be printed, completed and mailed in. 
The classes will be offered again in 2018, depending on the availability of Instructors and venues, said Villaronga. LULAC also currently holds classes at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Killeen and things are in the works to offer the classes in Harker Heights.