Impact Story: Digital Inclusion in Action at the Delridge Branch

What does it mean to have computer skills for the first time?

On a Saturday afternoon in December at the Delridge Branch’s meeting room, 11 newly minted adult graduates of a 13-week basic digital literacy class organized by Villa Comunitaria, reflected on this question.

One student, Abel, said that the class has helped prepare him to find a less physically demanding job than construction, a field in which he’s worked for many years. In addition to gaining practical skills, he felt empowered to continue learning.

“The teachers had a lot of patience and support with us,” he said in Spanish. “Now I can learn more on my own.”

The students are chatting and joking in Spanish while enjoying tamales, tres leches cake and arepas as part of the end-of-class celebration. They are also busy setting up their new laptops: Each student was awarded a newly refurbished Dell laptop for successfully completing the course. The laptops were supplied by InterConnection, and funded by The Seattle Public Library Foundation.

Isabel, who works as a nanny, said that the class taught her how to make schedules using Excel, and how to not just attend, but organize Zoom meetings. She was excited to use these skills in a new position, possibly at a day care.

Just that morning, Alida, a mother of two adult sons, had helped one of her sons participate in a work Zoom meeting from his bedroom by changing his virtual background. “So I am now the teacher,” she recalled, laughing.

This class is one example of how The Seattle Public Library works closely with community partners such as Villa Comunitaria to close the digital gap in our region.

For the past 13 weeks, these students – all busy adults, many of whom have families and full-time jobs — have given up three hours of their Saturday afternoons to learn basic tech skills together, in Spanish.

Called “Aula Digital en Accion” or Digital Classroom in Action, the class was created by Villa Comunitaria. Villa Comunitaria is a bilingual, bicultural community organization based in South Park whose mission is to cultivate leaders to create a stronger community. The Library provided funding and hosted the basic class, as well as an intermediate class, at the Delridge Branch. Villa’s intermediate computer skills class drew many current and future entrepreneurs.

Classes were highly interactive, with instructors Rogelio and Ruth showing, step by step, how to send and manage emails, create Google Documents, organize online meetings, and use software such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Zoom, and Canva. Along the way, students dove into concepts such as the cloud (“la nube”) and how to be safe online.

Because the classes were in their primary language of Spanish, students could focus on learning the skills. Over the 13 weeks, they were able to borrow laptops and Library hot spots (as part of the Library’s outreach hot spot lending program) and take them home to practice.

This kind of program addresses an important piece of digital inclusion — language. The City of Seattle’s 2024 Technology Access and Adoption Report showed that only 75% of residents whose primary language is not English have access to adequate internet, compared to 92% for the general population. People whose primary language is not English also have less access to technology skills, the study showed. Seattle IT also reports that 92% of jobs across all industries require digital skills, and many require industry-specific digital skills.

“It is the first time some of our students are touching a computer,” said Gladis Clemente of Villa Comunitaria. “Through classes like these, we are working to close the digital gap and help our communities access vitally important resources and information.” She noted that community assessments have shown that computer and English classes are in high demand, and that the “collaboration with The Seattle Public Library has allowed us to continue offering services that the community needs.”

“There’s no better way to truly understand a community’s needs and create effective solutions than by collaborating with organizations that are rooted in the community, like Villa Comunitaria,” says Elizabeth Iaukea, a Library program manager who helped organize the class.

“Our most impactful work happens when we partner with community and allow them to lead the way. Villa speaks the same language as the community they serve — both literally and figuratively.”

An additional benefit of hosting the class at the branch is that it connected students to the Library. A Spanish-language presentation at one of the classes encouraged students to sign up for library cards and access services.

At the Delridge Branch, as the class celebration wound down, students continued to share what this class had meant to them. One student talked about the impact of being able to pay bills online for the first time without worrying about reaching someone who spoke Spanish on the phone.

Another student, Luz, shared that for 18 years, she worked long days in a warehouse. Her new skills, she hoped, will help her find a new kind of work.

“I grew up in the dinosaur age,” she says, joking. “I knew absolutely nothing about computers … Now I know some and I want to learn more.”

Thanks to Villa Comunitaria for collaborating on this article and for partnering with us in many ways! Find out more about Villa at https://villacomunitaria.org.

More digital literacy services at the Library

Here are a few other programs and services at the Library that boost digital literacy and education.

• Hot spot lending: We loan Wi-Fi hotspot devices to people most impacted by the digital divide through our collection, as well as on a long-term basis through our partners.
• LinkedIn Learning: Learn a new skill at your own pace, with thousands of courses covering animation, business skills, marketing, design, photography, programming and much more.
• Northstar Digital Literacy: Northstar’s lessons allow you to learn technology skills and complete certificates that are helpful for work , school and life. The Library also provides community partners such as Villa access to Northstar to use with their clients.
• Microsoft Learn and certification exams: Learn Microsoft Office and technology skills through Microsoft Learn, and then take free certification exams.
• More computer classes: In 2025, the Library plans to organize more computer classes for other languages, including Chinese, with support from community partners.

– Elisa M., Communications

  What does it mean to have computer skills for the first time? On a Saturday afternoon in December at the Delridge Branch’s meeting room, 11 newly minted adult graduates of a 13-week basic digital literacy class organized by Villa Comunitaria, reflected on this question. One student, Abel, said that the class has helped prepare him … Continue reading “Impact Story: Digital Inclusion in Action at the Delridge Branch” 

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