Building Bridges of Communication
Monica Augustenborg (’12), social work major
Dr. Carolyn Ericson, associate professor of social work
Monica Augustenborg appreciates the personal attention she receives from her professors, CNU’s small class sizes and the friendly faces she encounters on campus. “You know when people say they get that ‘feeling’? That’s what it felt like when I came here,” she says.
After moving around the world throughout childhood, finding a place to call home was important to Augustenborg. Through her father’s job with the state department, she has lived overseas half her life. She was born in Italy and has also lived in Hungary, Turkey and Argentina. Her family currently lives in Bangkok, Thailand, while she resides in Newport News.
When she enrolled in Ericson’s Social Work 200 class, Augustenborg didn't expect to be creating a tutoring program as a Ferguson Fellow. The class required her to volunteer 48 hours with an organization, and after attending a volunteer fair, she decided to work with Refugee and Immigration Services (RIS).
“I have lived a really international life,” Augustenborg says. “They needed tutors, and the people there are from places around the world. I know what it’s like to not know the language of the place where I’m living.”
When Augustenborg began volunteering, however, she found learning to be a tutor to be challenging. The training program she attended taught diversity but not actually how to teach English as a second language (ESL). “I worked with a woman from Nepal who didn't speak a word of English besides ‘hello’ and ‘goodbye,’” she explains.
At first Augustenborg felt overwhelmed and unprepared but eventually taught herself how to tutor ESL and create lessons. When Dr. Ericson recommended her for the Ferguson Fellows program, Augustenborg knew she wanted to help train students interested in teaching ESL who could possibly tutor at RIS.
“I wanted to do something that would make people feel better about being somewhere different,” she says. “Not knowing a language is a really scary thing.”
Augustenborg enjoyed her time volunteering at RIS and hopes other CNU students will be interested in tutoring ESL. “A lot of students here are interested in giving back,” Augustenborg says. “There are a lot of diversity courses here, and I thought I’d get a lot of student interest.”
She is currently developing the tutoring program and recruiting students willing to join, working with Dr. Peter Snow, Dr. Roberta Rosenberg and Ericson to get the program under way. Augustenborg recently hosted a seminar where individuals from Bhutan and Afghanistan spoke about their tutoring experiences at Refugee and Immigration Services. She and Lindsay Keeler, another CNU student who tutors at RIS, shared their personal experiences as well. Fifty students attended, and 10 signed up to tutor through the program.
“Monica is remarkable in her energy, commitment and enthusiasm in assisting those who have left difficult circumstances in their homelands to start a new life in this country,” Ericson says. “I have been honored to work with her in this process.”
After graduation, Augustenborg hopes to pursue international social work but is open to new ideas and experiences. As for the rest of her time at CNU, she will continue to develop the ESL tutoring program.
