About
Potencia began as a class project to empower immigrants and refugees in the community. Although a language is a key to survival and employment, we were struck by how many people lived without a basic means of communication.
Since launching the pilot class in 2019 with three tutors and four learners, Potencia has been broadening its community impact.
The Problem
According to the Boston Foundation, only 5% of the 236,900 immigrants with limited English skills in the Boston area are served by the State's largest funded programs. The current services provided by all organizations, schools, and businesses can only serve a fraction of the unmet need for English classes.
These classes' waitlists can be as long as two years, while learners may not sign up for the services due to conflicts with their working schedules or physical location constraints. Also, there was a lack of higher-level English classes and self-learning methods in the services available.
Our Mission
Potencia aims to break down the language barriers in the United States. We do this by recruiting and training civic-minded college students and young professionals as English tutors for adult immigrants and refugees in the community.
Meet the Team
Amanda Wang
Co-Founder
Jun Hyung Yoon
Co-Founder
Board of Directors
Catherine Popper
Angel Investor
Launchpad Venture Group
Lana Luo
Technical Program Manager
Amazon Robotics
Bailey Hu
Graduate Student
Tufts University
Our Partners
Nonprofits & Governments
Tufts Gordon Institute
Tufts Tisch College
Refugee Immigration Ministry
Commonwealth of Mass.
Office for Refugees and Immigrants
Businesses
