A Class All Its Own

(Winter 2018) - Marty Davis was walking through the Cambria processing facility early one morning in the spring of 2015. Davis was alarmed by the barrage of Spanish signs littered throughout factory doors and walls. As he walked through the back mixer area, he often observed the entire mixer cleaning crews were Hispanic workers, and when he would engage them in visits, it was clear, their ability to speak English was nonexistent. This picture remained with him for a few weeks; he couldn’t seem to get it off his mind, and was bothered that some in our workforce were stuck in entry-level positions with virtually no opportunity to grow within the company. 

Finally, while driving into the office one morning, Davis decided that Cambria needed to help these employees learn to speak English and that it was our complete responsibility to ensure them an equal chance at developing higher-end skills and climbing up the ladder at Cambria. He immediately called Brian Scoggin, Cambria’s EVP of Operations, and Butch Brey, the Plant Manager, and expressed his concern. Davis critiqued this circumstance where we oppress our fellow workers through the ease of two-word directions on posters that were command-oriented dictums; Spanish signage that enabled our Hispanic workforce to simply “get by” at Cambria, oppressing them from any real opportunity to achieve success through their own dedicated work and performance. Not being able to speak English was preventing them from greater success at the company. 

Davis asked Scoggin and Brey to immediately put together a plan in which Cambria would hire English teachers (professionals in education) to begin a full-fledged English teaching and speaking curriculum at Cambria. Davis had three requirements that he insisted must be met: it must be completely free of charge, all the employees’ family members were welcome to enroll, and the students must achieve grades that justified an issued degree from Cambria’s English program. Nobody was to be pushed through; they must pass strict testing, earning their degrees, and if they didn’t, they would have to retake the course until they passed. 

Scoggin and Brey took these three tenets, added many details with visions of their own, and ultimately built the entire Cambria English teaching program. Scoggin led the charge, focusing on the mission and developing a very detailed, disciplined, and well-organized English department for the Cambria employees. Brey followed with a tremendous effort of recruitment and excitement with the employees around the opportunity to learn English. 

“If we don’t teach non-English-speaking employees English, they will always be in entry-level positions,” says Brian Scoggin. “We want them to grow and we want to assure them the opportunity to advance to more skilled positions.” In the fall of 2015, Scoggin and Brey hired Kamille Kolar as a full-time English language and leadership development specialist. Kolar designed and taught English classes for those who were interested in them. 

Kolar interviewed 140 employees for whom English is a second language. She then developed standards for completing the course and created a curriculum that uses relevant topics such as strategies for success, building confidence, team building, advancement and leadership, digital literacy and numeracy, and others.

Employees are compensated for classes, attending during their work hours, typically for an hour before or after their shifts. The majority of the participants are Spanish-speaking natives of Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, but French, Tagalog, and Thai-speaking employees have also participated. Students practice reading, writing, grammar, and pronunciation, as well as listening, speaking, and engaging in workplace conversations. 

Yeny Hernandez, one of 12 employees in the first group to graduate from the English language education program, immediately saw the value of the classes and soon enrolled. “I think it’s a good opportunity for everybody here,” says Hernandez, a native Spanish speaker. “It’s a good chance and it’s free, so we were working and receiving class at the same time.”

When students have advanced to the point where they are reading at or above a ninth-grade level and are able to communicate in English effectively and confidently, they are recommended to Cambria hiring managers. In recent years, several students have completed interviews with Cambria and were subsequently offered new jobs at higher levels than their previous positions. 

The program has also helped improve overall communication and safety within the facility and created a better sense of community among all Cambria employees. “When I just came here to Cambria, it was so difficult to communicate with my English-speaking co-workers,” says Patricia Ruiz, who recently completed the advanced course. “After the class, I feel more confident to communicate myself and even to help others to do it by translating, and I have been able to do a job that requires a good level of comprehension of the English language.”

The students' success is a sweet reward for Kolar's hard work and dedication. "I'm so proud to work for Cambria, a company that invests in its employees and challenges, motivates, and inspires them, and most importantly, encourages them to stay with the company and help it grow," says Kolar. 

After overwhelming employee interest, the English language program continues to grow. A second full-time instructor, Denise Rude, was hired last fall, and then a third full-time teacher, lan Rude, was hired recently, more than tripling capacity for classes. A part-time teacher, Zoe Hughes, also joined the team this year as well as three interns from MNSU working throughout the year. Currently, nearly 200 employees are enrolled in the program.