The needs assessment component of the project was spearheaded by a group of Monterey Institute students during their International Education Program Design and Assessment course. The needs assessment conducted by this group sought to determine the breadth and depth of need of an ESL program in the Monterey area and what the program should look like in terms of design and target audience. Through internet research, correspondence and key informant stakeholder interviews, the group aimed to collect information (e.g. cost, location, student number, etc.) about pre-existing ESL programs to better understand the niche of the future YMCA program for which we are now designing the curriculum.

The needs assessment carried out in early 2014 provided insight into the existing gaps for ESL education in the Monterey area. The students found that there was a need for extra-curricular English classes to supplement insufficient ESL instruction in the public school system. They also found that there is a lack of ESL courses that include structured curriculum, provide childcare and maintain a low cost. It was thus concluded that, for the feasibility sake, the YMCA should fill the gap for these ESL students and provide a structured ESL course for a similar target market as the Peace Resource Center.

The needs assessment also recommended that Monterey Institute should design the curriculum for a course of three months that consists of classes that meet twice per week (total of 16 hours). The group also concluded that the course should consist of three units, each one month in duration. Suggested themes were: healthy living, diabetes awareness and prevention, and professional development. Our group took this information gathered and presented by the previous group and determined the curricula content that the course will consist of – aiming to have a the course to begin in February 2014.

Recognizing that the future teachers of this program will benefit from additional demographic information from the students in the class, our group developed a questionnaire that should be administered immediately prior to the course or during the first class meeting. This questionnaire garners more information about the needs of the participants and their English language background.