Church teaches English, welcomes Asian students

This article by Gary McLendon is from Democrat and Chronicle:

Casually gathered at rectangular tables in one of Ridgeland Community Church's recreation rooms, Chinese student Yang Yu summed up his and his colleagues' English language abilities.

"We don't speak good English," said Yu, holding back a laugh. "That is the best I can do."


But Yu, 27, who is pursuing a doctorate in electrical engineering at the University of Rochester, is a success story — his language skills belie his modest assessment.

Since shortly after his 2007 arrival in the U.S., he has been attending weekly English as Second Language workshops founded by church members Joe and Maree Klingensmith in 1998.

Joe Klingensmith, a retired biology professor from Rochester Institute of Technology, also taught biology and English in China in the late 1980s and mid-1990s. Maree also taught English for several semesters in China.

"The church was looking for a way to provide services to the people in the community," said Joe Klingensmith.