Community Action, Inc. of Central Texas

Program Overview

Community Action, Inc. of Central Texas offers adult education classes to people living in the rural counties around Austin, Texas. Adult education includes high school equivalency ("GED") in English and Spanish, English as a Second Language, Citizenship classes, digital literacy, and career training classes (such as CNA, bookkeeping, or HVAC). We also have programs for Head Start, Early Head Start, Texas Home Visiting (for homes with young children), Women's Health Screening, Youth Services, Services for people living with HIV or AIDS, and energy assistance.

Cost Info

Student and Volunteer Success Stories

Yolanda H. always loved school. Every day she would walk 30 minutes from her parents' farm to go to class. Her parents didn’t read or write, but they were responsible, honest, and strict. Once she took her shoes off while playing soccer with friends and left the shoes in the street. Her parents refused to buy her new shoes for two weeks, so she walked to school barefooted!

Although she studied accounting in Mexico, she ended up coming to the United States and earned money by cleaning houses for 20 years. Raising her two children and working didn’t leave much time for anything else, but it was worth it to see her children grow up and start their careers.

Just after her 55th birthday, Yolanda started studying English with Community Action, Inc. of Central Texas. When the opportunity to take a bookkeeping certification course came up, she decided to give it a try, even though the course was completely in English. Her son had opened a construction business, and she wanted to help him. Although the bookkeeping itself wasn’t hard for her, she was a little nervous about learning QuickBooks because she didn’t know how to use a computer. When her son was younger, she worked for a year to buy him a computer. Now, he bought her one just for the QuickBooks part of the course.

Yolanda passed the National Bookkeeper Association Exam on the first try! But, she did not pass the QuickBooks Certified User exam on the first attempt. Not one to quit, she continued to practice to learn how to do the tasks required for the certification test. When she took the test the second time, she passed with flying colors.

After her successes, Yolanda started volunteering to teach basic literacy to new immigrants and eventually was hired as an ESL and ESL/Spanish GED teacher. She continues to help new English Language Learners achieve their goals. She tells her students, "It’s never too late to learn something new.”