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NYS Will Teach Immigrants English Via Cell Phone

Governor Andrew Cuomo says New York will be the first state to offer English-language lessons to Spanish speakers over their mobile phones.  Cuomo announced the pilot program Monday.

It's designed to help immigrants who don't have the time or means to get traditional language lessons.

The service uses audio and texts and is free — aside from typical fees for minutes and texts.

A version for Spanish-language users will be introduced first in New York City, the Hudson Valley, North Country and the Finger Lakes. Other languages could follow if the initial $14,000 program is extended.

Copyright 2015 The Associated Press.

Dave Lucas is WAMC’s Capital Region Bureau Chief. Born and raised in Albany, he’s been involved in nearly every aspect of local radio since 1981. Before joining WAMC, Dave was a reporter and anchor at WGY in Schenectady. Prior to that he hosted talk shows on WYJB and WROW, including the 1999 series of overnight radio broadcasts tracking the JonBenet Ramsey murder case with a cast of callers and characters from all over the world via the internet. In 2012, Dave received a Communicator Award of Distinction for his WAMC news story "Fail: The NYS Flood Panel," which explores whether the damage from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee could have been prevented or at least curbed. Dave began his radio career as a “morning personality” at WABY in Albany.
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