English for Citizenship

Program Overview

This 12-week course meets every Wednesday night from 6 – 8 p.m. at the Central Library (14 W. 10th St). A new session of English for Citizenship will begin on August 21st. It is designed to help develop the language skills necessary to pass the USCIS naturalization test. Students will be taught the vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation found on the N-400 form and the 100 civics questions. Contact RISE@kclibrary.org or fill out this form to register for the class.

Cost Info

Student and Volunteer Success Stories

After working a full eight-hour day in the kitchens of the Marriott Hotel, Maria picks up her six-year-old daughter and heads over to the Kansas City Public Library. Despite bad weather, illness, and long days, this hard working mother adhered to this exhausting routine every Wednesday night for three months.

Why? She was hoping to ensure a better life for her child by attaining her citizenship. Maria was part of the Kansas City Public Library's pilot program: English for Citizenship. For a couple of hours every week, Maria and her classmates studied grammar and vocabulary, practiced speaking, reading and writing, and quizzed each other on the 100 civics questions needed to pass the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services Naturalization Test. More than that, over the twelve weeks, they learned from each other's mistakes, encouraged everyone's progress, and shared their dreams.

Maria was born in Mexico City, and grew up speaking Spanish. She moved to the United States in 1989. Her months of hard work paid off. In early January, Maria Hodge, a 20-year permanent green card holder, passed her naturalization interview. She took the Oath of Allegiance and officially became a United States citizen on February 21, 2018.

She confessed the hardest part of the entire process was studying for the 100 civics questions. For those patrons considering taking our English for Citizenship class, Maria says "Of course it helped. Especially in the beginning when we are not very good at reading and writing English. We get a lot of practice so when we go to take the test, we are ready!"