Education
We know that education empowers our community. In addition to Study Buddy, our youth tutoring program, we are expanding our reach with with two pilot projects: Little Neighbors for ages 0-5 and ENL Classes for adults 18+.
English as a New Language (ENL)
Study Buddy
Interpretation
Little Neighbors
English as a New Language (ENL)
Ensuring equal access to our services for all refugees and immigrants, regardless of English proficiency or native language.
Our ENL classes help newcomers gain independence and navigate their new world.
English language is a critical skill for new neighbors learning to navigate life in Pittsburgh. Through group classes and family tutoring, students learn to express their needs, ask and answer basic questions, and talk about their families, homes, health, and work. We work in partnership with Literacy Pittsburgh to ensure that students are receiving high quality instruction.
Classes are free and open to refugees and immigrants 18+ years old.
Our Four Levels:
- A1 - Low Literacy
- A2 - Mid Literacy
- B1 - Beginner 1
- B2 - Beginner 2
Current Classes:
The current semester ends December 18th, 2025.
- Level A1: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 12pm-2pm
- Level B1: Wednesdays and Fridays, 10am-12pm
- Level B2: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 5pm-7pm
For those unable to attend classes, in-home family tutoring may be available.
What We Do:
“Giant Eagle, everywhere, I am trying to talk to people everywhere and English classes helps me a lot. I try to use everything I learn in the class” - English Student
Before and after enrollment, clients take a language assessment through Literacy Pittsburgh.
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Classes include field trips to practice language in real-world settings. Here we are learning at the supermarket!
Interested in becoming a volunteer tutor or teacher?
Interpretation
Language Justice is Social Justice.
Did you know that all agencies receiving federal funding are obligated to provide language access under the 1964 Civil Rights Act? Language access staff advocate for Hello Neighbor clients’ access to interpretation in medical appointments, police encounters, family-school communications, local government, and more.
Over 19 Languages Available
Our network of in-house interpreters ensure that all clients have full access to programs and services at Hello Neighbor. Interpreters are valuable members of our team, attending meetings with clients and staff and translating documents. We are committed to investing financially in communities we serve, aiming to hire interpreters who are themselves immigrants or refugees.
Languages spoken by our interpreters include:
- Afar
- Arabic
- Arabic (Sudanese)
- Azeri
- Dari
- Dinka
- Farsi
- French
- Hindi
- Kinyarwanda
- Nepali
- Nuer
- Pashto
- Pojulo
- Russian
- Somali
- Spanish
- Swahili
- Tigrinya
- Turkish
- Ukrainian
Interested in working as an interpreter?
Study Buddy
Virtual tutoring and educational support for English language learners in middle and high school throughout the City of Pittsburgh.
Since Study Buddy’s start in 2020, we’ve had over 165 students receive more than 3,000 hours of tutoring per semester.
Since 2020, Hello Neighbor has been supporting refugee and immigrant youth in school districts across Allegheny County to navigate the United States education system through personalized online one-on-one tutoring. Current students, recent graduates, and young professionals are matched with refugee and immigrant students in grades 6-12 to help them navigate remote learning, stay motivated to attend class and do their work, and empower them to build relationships with peers and school staff. Volunteer tutors help students with school work, provide subject-specific learning, set up tangible semester-specific goals, increase their confidence in the classroom, and develop their English language and interpersonal skills.
Each semester, the Study Buddy program welcomes guest speakers from local partners, provides students with training relevant to academic development, and in-person events aimed at team building.
The core commitment is by semester (Fall, Spring) and 1-3 virtual hours of tutoring per week.
Interested in becoming a tutor or a Study Buddy student?
Our Study Buddy program runs on an academic calendar, with Fall and Spring semesters. We are always accepting new tutor applications. However, most enrollments will be completed during the summer and winter breaks.
Little Neighbors
Play-based learning and community connection for refugee and immigrant families with young children across the Pittsburgh area.
Little Neighbors supports refugee and immigrant families with children ages 0–5 through early childhood events focused on play, learning, and connection. Held in accessible community spaces across Pittsburgh, each event offers a welcoming environment where families can engage in storytime, music, crafts, and sensory play—activities that foster school readiness and language development in a joyful, low-pressure setting.
This small group of 15 regular participants allows children to explore, play, and learn alongside their parents and caregivers. Adults build community with their neighbors, and staff help families navigate school enrollments.
Little Neighbors is held in partnership with the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh.
So far in 2025, 10 families have attended 5 community events where children explored, played, and learned alongside their parents and caregivers.