Services for Refugee Students
Contact the Central Piedmont Refugee Education program coordinator or your refugee caseworker for more information about enrolling in classes or services.
- College registration advising and support
- Beginning English classes
- Citizenship classes
- Classes for work
- Placement test preparation classes
- High school equivalency (GED or HiSET) preparation
- Transportation support
- Translation support
- Interpretation support
- Help with school
- Drivers’s permit preparation
Education for Refugees
Program goals:
- offer a comprehensive educational orientation program for diverse groups of adult refugees in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg community
- provide English language instruction throughout the Charlotte-Mecklenburg community to meet specific and defined language, employment, and family needs of adult refugees
Refugee classes are free.
English Courses for Refugees
College and Career Readiness provides English language instruction through a variety of learning modules. Instruction modules are tailored to the needs of targeted subgroups such as seniors, parents, and workers. Each module includes 20 hours of instruction and revolves around themes such as:
- personnel identification
- safety
- housing and home economics
- transportation/travel
- health/emergencies
- family literacy
- learning/education
- getting a job
- on the job
You may also be interested in earning college credit for learning English by taking Academic ESL/EFL to help you earn a degree. Learn more about options to learn English at Central Piedmont.
Who Qualifies for Refugee Services?
Anyone who entered the country as a refugee/SIV or has been granted asylum. To enroll in a Central Piedmont foundational English as a Second Language (ESL) course:
- 18 years of age or older
- test into any of the six levels of ESL
- hold legal refugee status
How are Students Referred for Education for Refugees?
Students are referred to our program by the resettlement agency that hosts them in this area. All of our students are refugees or individuals who have been granted asylum by the U.S. government. Individuals who arrive looking for English classes who are not refugees or asylees are referred to other local ESL classes offered by Central Piedmont.
Additional Resources
- Carolina Refugee Resettlement Agency: refugee resettlement agency
- NC Department of Health and Human Services (DSS): provides caseworker assistance to some students