Community
Services 
The goal of Community Services is to assist clients achieve self-sufficiency
through training, employment, and support services. Program services are made
possible through funding from the Houston-Galveston Area Council; Texas Workforce
Commission; the Texas Education Agency (through Houston Community College);
Houston Childcare Council; Harris County Protective Services for Children
and Adults; and the United Way of the Texas Gulf Coast.
Programs in this department include:
o Adult Literacy / English as a Second Language
o Youth and Family Services
o Hurricane Survivors Program
o Healthy Marriage
o Pharmacy Technician Training
Adult Literacy / English as a Second Language
Program goal is to provide English language instructions to eligible limited-English-proficient
(LEP) population so that they can acquire the language skills necessary to
become self-sufficient/employable as quickly as possible.
English as a Second Language instruction empathizes contextualized instruction
on job-related and safety vocabulary, everyday conversation related to shopping,
healthcare and etc., on the rights and responsibilities of citizenship, naturalization
procedures, civic participation, and U.S. history and government to help students
acquire the skills and knowledge to become active and informed parents, workers
and community members.
Youth and Family Programs: 
The goal of the Youth and Family program is to empower refugee, immigrant,
and low-income persons facing cultural, linguistic, and economic and crime
related risks and challenges by providing them a variety of After School Program
services so that they become responsible, successful and productive members
of society.
Currently the Youth and Family programs are provided to refugees, asylees,
immigrants and low-income individuals in Southwest Houston, Northwest Houston,
and the Medical Center area. Grants provide the basis for children to be given
tutoring assistance with homework and computers and provides for a safe and
structured environment for youth in the after school hours. Here the youth
are given an outlet with art, music, sports as well as other activities. Monthly
parent classes are used to educate refugee/ immigrant parents on how to communicate
and work with the school system, work through intergenerational conflict,
and obtain information on child abuse and child protective services. Parents
are also able to take advantage of free ESL and financial literacy classes.
These after school programs are housed in Apartment Complexes very close to
the targeted populations.
Current programs include;
o Juvenile Delinquency Prevention Program (JDPP) funded by the Child Care
Council of Greater Houston- is to alleviate the family and community conditions
that lead to juvenile delinquency and crime.
o Gulfton Community Youth Development Program is crime prevention program
funded by Harris County Protective Services for Children and Adults ("HCPS")
o Katrina Assistance Youth Empowerment Program funded by Houston-Galveston
Area Council (Social Services Block Grant) is a social services grant directed
toward achieving economic self-support, self-sufficiency, preventing or remedying
neglect, abuse or the exploitation of Children and Adults.
Hurricane Project
The goal of the program is to re-establish self-sufficiency and to sustain
resilience among hurricane victims by providing direct counseling, connecting
them to available support services, and ultimately to the services of nearby
One-Stop Career Centers to become re-employed. Program is funded by Houston
Area Urban League.
Healthy Marriage Project
Program goal is to provide marriage and family education programs to the specialized
needs of refugee populations to combat the stresses on the family structure.
The Refugee Healthy Marriage Program is currently funded by the Office of
Refugee Resettlement.
Program activities primarily include:
o Culturally and linguistically appropriate communication and conflict resolution
workshops to unmarried, married, and married with children, and young adult
refugees to help improve their relationships and enrich their families.
Pharmacy Technician Training Program: 
The goal of Pharmacy Technician Training Project (PTTP) is to provide training
to low-income persons with children and on public assistance (Temporary Assistance
for Needy Families and Food Stamps) or hurricane survivors in pharmacy technician
training, internship opportunities, and employment in the field of Pharmacology
as a pharmacy technician.
The programs include the following:
o Pharmacy Technician Training Self-Sufficiency Program: Funded by the Texas
Work Force Commission (TWC)
o Pharmacy Technician Training for Hurricane Survivors: Funded by Houston
Area Urban League and the Red Cross. (Not limited to TWC eligibility)
Admission Requirements:
An applicant interested in Pharmacy Technician Training must meet the following
guidelines:
o Official high school transcript/diploma of official GED scores or proof
of college level courses.
o College transcripts. Foreign language transcripts (high school and/or college)
must be evaluated and approved by accredited evaluation services.
For eligibility and admission requirements, call 713-776-4700 x 209.