The Evolution of Felt Education
By Jordan CowellHow It Started
As with any great organization, Felt Education was born as an idea.
Caroline McKinnon, FELT’s founder and director
It was 2016 and Caroline McKinnon was sitting at her kitchen table in Brooklyn, mulling over an idea she couldn’t shake. She then typed out a stream-of-consciousness Facebook status, in part an effort to flesh out her idea further and in part an appeal to her social circle: would anyone join her in making this a reality?
Caroline wanted to create a safe space for immigrant and refugee women, who otherwise did not have the economic means to attend school, to gain a free English education and thereby improve their possibilities of integrating into their new communities. Caroline — an educator, entrepreneur, and immigrant herself — described her own migration journey as one of welcoming. She wanted to pay it forward, using her privilege and skills to elevate others in her community.
One of Caroline’s friends responded enthusiastically to her online appeal. It was Noga La’or — international educator, director of ESL programs, and fellow immigrant — who would become the perfect co-founder to help Caroline in taking this from idea to action.
Felt Through the Years
Noga La’or, FELT’s co-founder and coordinator
The nonprofit organization FeLT NYC, now known primarily as Felt Education, was born. The acronym “FELT” comes from “friends engaging and learning together,” a sentiment which highlights our emphasis on education through connection and community. The lowercase ‘e’ referred to “Fe,” the periodic table symbol for the element of iron, which symbolized strength for the FeLT NYC team.
In the early days, we focused primarily on teaching English to immigrant and refugee women in physical spaces donated by public schools with large immigrant populations. When it comes to education, migrant women are overlooked and underserved because often, their primary focus is on their children and families. Childcare is one of the biggest hurdles for women pursuing or completing their education.
Since the pandemic hit in 2020, we transitioned from in-person classes to operating in a fully remote capacity. The virtual format allowed us to greatly scale our impact beyond New York City, and classes are now offered to students in other parts of the U.S. and beyond.
Today
While Felt began as a women-focused organization, today our educational services are available to anyone who identifies as a low-income immigrant, refugee, or victim of war, torture, or trafficking. All of the curriculum is centered around trauma-informed principles, ensuring that Felt’s classes are safe spaces for its students.
The online classes are divided by level — Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced — and the students are placed by the Academic team. Felt students learn the practical English skills they need to navigate everyday life in the U.S., from attending parent-teacher conferences, to figuring out health insurance, to finding meaningful work. As always, the classes are entirely free of charge.
If you or someone you know is interested in signing up for one of Felt’s online English classes, please visit: https://www.feltnyc.org/classes.
The Future of Felt
Since its inception, Felt has educated over 2,500 students representing 121 countries, and we continue to expand. We’ve secured key partnerships with Cambridge University Press and Assessment, the United Nations International School, and more.
So what’s next for Felt? In addition to English classes, we hope to expand our offering this year to include literacy, financial literacy, citizenship, coding, and wellness.
Help Us Further our Impact
One of the most unique aspects of Felt Education is that it has been an entirely volunteer-sustained business model from Day 1. There are countless ways to contribute. If you would like to volunteer, please visit: https://www.feltnyc.org/contactus
Did you know that just $20 is enough to fund a student’s education for an entire semester? If you would like to make a tangible difference in someone’s life today by making a donation, please visit: https://www.feltnyc.org/donate
