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If you are willing to donate a little of your time and energy to volunteering, the rewards are enormous. Tutor a child, interpret for hospital patients, or help foreign-language speakers with their English conversation skills.

Below are some organizations looking for your language talents, sorted by General, French, Spanish, and International opportunities.

Organizations wishing to be listed here, please contact us.



  • Michigan Language Center (MLC)
    309 S. State Street, Ann Arbor, MI
    (734) 663-9415
    MLC-USA@worldnet.att.net

    MLC pairs volunteers with conversation partners looking to improve their imformal English conversation skills. Once you've been matched, you may arrange meeting times on your own. If interested, fill out a Conversation Partner Request Form (pdf) and return it to MLC.

  • Michigan Secretary of State's Volunteer Interpreter Program
    Any SoS location in Michigan

    This program provides interpreter services for people who do not read or understand English well enough to take written tests. If interested, please submit an application (pdf).

  • University of Michigan Health System
    Ann Arbor, MI

    If you have limited language abilities, you may apply to Volunteer Services as an "LEP Visitor" (Limited English Proficiency), to interact informally with children or adults. Click here for more information and an online application.

    Students with a minimum of fourth-term proficiency in a language may be an interpreter, and apply for the Interpreter Services Mentorship program (pdf). You will receive training in terminology and ethics by a current interpreter. For more information, call (734) 936-7021.

  • Ypsilanti District Library
    5577 Whittaker Road, Ypsilanti, Michigan 48197
    (734) 482-4110 extension 1340

    The Ypsilanti District Library’s Youth department seeks volunteers to help present bi-lingual story times (French-English and Spanish-English) for children of all ages. The ideal volunteer candidates should be fluent or native speakers of French or Spanish and have an interest in working with children. No experience presenting story times is necessary, library staff will provide training. For more information, please contact Shannon Bovis at 482-4110 ext. 1304, or e-mail bovis@ypsilibrary.org.



  • Freedom House
    2630 W. Lafayette, Detroit, MI
    (313) 964-4320
    FHShelter@aol.com

    Freedom House is an emergency shelter in Detroit that provides various services for people seeking asylum in the U.S. and Canada. They are in need of French-speaking volunteers to tutor children.



  • Asociacion Latina Alcanzando Suenos (ALAS)
    Ann Arbor, MI
    Amanda Fox, foxal@umich.edu
    Are you interested in working with Latino children or teaching English to adults in the Ann Arbor area?

    ALAS is looking for Spanish-speaking volunteers to work with both children and adults during the fall term. Volunteers are needed who are willing to help Latino children with homework in English while reinforcing their Spanish speaking and writing skills. Also, we are looking for anyone who would like to teach adults English. Since tutors are usually enrolled in Spanish 448, we do ask that you have 400 level profiency in Spanish in order to tutor.

    ALAS is a student group organized by students and a core group of parents in the Latino community who share the goals of helping immigrants maintain their own culture and language while learning the necessary skills in English to have a successful life here in the United States.

    This is an extremely rewading experience with an organization that is dedicated to academic and cultural enrichment. We work with truly amazing children and adults in an environment that stresses diversity and academics. Time commitment would be around 3 to 5 hours per week but anyone interested is encouraged to get involved, regardless of actual amount of time available because we can probably work something out if you can only commit to one day. All tutoring/teaching will take place in Trotter House on Mondays and Wednesdays, 5:30-7:30pm.

    If youre interested, just stop by on those days and you'll be placed with a student to tutor for the semester.


  • Ecuador Volunteer
    Reina Victoria 1325 y Lizardo Garcia Quito-Ecuador
    Contact: Francisco Pastor
    email: info@ecuadorvolunteer.com
    Ecuador Volunteer

    Ecuador Volunteer, an international nonprofit organization founded in 1999 that is committed to providing internship and volunteer opportunities in social, educational and community development in Ecuador. We recruit over 70 volunteers for per year from all over the world, and alumni are over 350 since we have founded. Our volunteers and interns have improved a lot of instructions at local communities in Ecuador. Volunteers and interns work based around Quito, main programs offer experiences of cultural exchanges, work and help with local people in need. We arrange placement in the environmental or community area. The environmental area involves working in nature services on a wide variety of projects, the community works helping street children, elderly people and educating people. We dedicate alternative achievements to solve these problems, making a difference and a better world. In addition, we work with a Spanish school and offer volunteers to have lessons to have better relations with people within the different projects.



  • Hispanic Outreach
    A list of organizations that service the Hispanic community in the metro Detroit area.


  • Migrant Health Program (pdf)
    Saline, MI (15 minutes from Ann Arbor)
    (734) 944-0244
    migranthealth@voyager.net


  • PALMA (Proyecto Avance, Latino Mentoring Association)
    For more information: PALMA
    If you have questions, direct them to carissao@umich.edu

    We are a bi-weekly tutoring group that helps Latino students in the Ann Arbor area with their schoolwork. Our primary goal is to help foster academic excellence by encouraging the students to learn and monitoring their progress. To learn more about PALMA you can visit our website.

    We will be having an introductory meeting on Wednesday January 12th, at 5:30pm, in the Anderson Room in the Michigan Union. Please come if you are interested, we would love to have you join PALMA.


  • St. Mary Student Parish
    331 Thompson Street, Ann Arbor, MI
    Sue Waters, slwaters@umich.edu or (734) 663-0557 ext. 229

    Spanish-speaking students are needed to help with the Parish's new ministry, serving the Hispanic/Latino community. You may assist with baptism and catechism classes for Spanish-speaking children and adults, translate forms and information, provide information in Spanish to families and migrants, and assist with the weekly Spanish Mass and other celebrations.  Semester and summer help needed.
  • Wayne County Public Health
    Shannon Richards, richards@ewashtenaw.org or 544-2984.

    Program at Washtenaw County Public Health in which we provide home-based services to pregnant women and mothers with infants. We have had an increase of Hispanic clients and we have a great need to be able to help them with resources and information regarding their health and the health of their infants. We can cover the cost of transportation by giving 35 cents per mile.

 

  • U of M America Reads Tutoring Corps
    Whitney Begeman, wjb@umich.edu or (734) 647-7766
    The University of Michigan America Reads Tutoring Corps Edward Ginsberg Center for Community Service & Learning
    1024 Hill Street, Ann Arbor 48104-3310
    Visit them on the web: http://www.umich.edu/~mserve/areads/

    We provide literacy tutors (UM students, paid through work-study) to a variety elementary schools in the area. The children with whom we work are K-3rd grade and at least one grade level behind in their reading and writing.

    We currently have 2 schools located in Southwest Detroit. Each year we place 10 tutors at each school and prefer them to be bilingual in English and Spanish.



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