We match adults across San Diego County with a volunteer partner for an hour a week. It's free, there's no test, and you can start whenever you're ready.
Do you want to practice English? It is free. Everyone is welcome. Start here
An hour a weekThe same partner at the same time, so it gets easier.
Always freeNo fees, no test, nothing to buy.
Every level welcomeBrand new to English or nearly fluent.
No questions about statusWe never ask for papers or ID.
Hello English
Hola Spanish
Kumusta Tagalog
Xin chào Vietnamese
مرحبا Arabic
你好 Mandarin
Salaan Somali
سلام Dari
Bonjou Haitian Creole
ሰላም Amharic
Привіт Ukrainian
Plenty of people in San Diego understand far more English than they feel safe speaking. They can read it, follow it on the phone, get through a shift in it. What they haven't had is an unhurried hour with somebody willing to wait through a sentence instead of finishing it for them.
That's the whole idea. Not a class and not a course — an hour a week with the same person, until the sentences come easier.
We also visit schools with lessons about where fear of outsiders comes from. That work matters to us, but it's the smaller half, and it probably isn't why you're on this page.
We match each person with a volunteer partner and a regular time — usually an hour a week at a workplace, a library, or a community room. You pick what to talk about. It's free. There's no test, and we don't ask anyone to prove anything about themselves.
How it worksOur second, smaller program. We visit elementary, middle, and high school classrooms with a single-period lesson on where fear of outsiders comes from and what it costs a community. Teachers choose the grade level and the length. We bring everything else.
What a visit involvesTell us your name and a phone number or email. That's the whole sign-up.
A trained volunteer, matched to a time and place that works for you. We try to keep it the same person each week, because that's most of what makes it work.
An hour, once a week. We check in after the first month, and we'll change the match if it isn't right for either of you.
All levels. Come once or come every week. Bring a friend. Nobody is asked for papers, ID, or anything about their immigration status — not at sign-up, not ever.
How to join
You don't need to be a teacher and you don't need to speak another language. Training is two hours. After that it's one hour a week with the same person, having a conversation.
Volunteer
A room and a predictable hour is the whole ask. We bring the volunteers and run the sessions. No staff time, and we don't report back to you about who came.
Host sessionsThe number of learners we can take on is limited by how many trained partners we've got. Rooms, too. If either of those is something you can offer, we'd like to hear from you.