The Bangladeshi Community Development Center is a part of the South Asian Network, established to offer Bangladeshi community ESL classes, immigration help, computer classes, domestic violence case management, and other resources.
More members of the Bangladeshi community have immigrated to the United States in recent years and hold lower-paying jobs compared to other South Asian groups. Bangladeshi immigrants are among the most underserved South Asian groups in Southern California. These ethnic groups also have high rates of limited English proficiency (LEP).
To address this issue, the South Asian Network received a grant through Los Angeles County’s Poverty Alleviation Initiative to fund and manage the center for one year.
Bangladeshi Community Development Center aims to give community members the resources to lift themselves out of poverty by offering the following services:
– Resume/career building skills, interview skills
– Basic computer skills (create an email, utilize word processing/excel, search and submit job applications)
– Financial literacy and budgeting 101
– English as a second language classes
– Public benefits application assistance such as CalWORKS
– Proper technical skills to retrieve better-paying jobs.