Carlota Noguera, 25, who came to the United States five years ago from Nicaragua, says having to work with the new technology was at first a bit intimidating.

''It was kind of scary, but they have people who support you working with the computers,'' says Noguera, a mother of two, who is studying to become a paralegal. ``I feel more confident now -- you learn a lot about many different computer programs. You can show all your work, your resume.''

According to Ileana Porges West, a professor in the ESL/Foreign Languages Department, the ESL student often lacks both English and technology skills.

''The sense of self-empowerment from being able to write better in English as well as having a sense of dominance rather than fear over technology led students to choose a more challenging college program or to set higher career goals for themselves,'' West says.

``My class consisted of mainly older Hispanic women, who saw the challenge facing them as immigrants as surmountable.

``Programs such as this one can help to correct the traditionally small percentage of Hispanic women in technology and science fields.''

Aside from giving the students a place to showcase their work, West says the grant changed her students' lives in other ways, too.

''On the first day of class, some of my students did not have an e-mail address -- so to go from zero to putting together a portfolio is phenomenal,'' she said. ``Many of them had computers in their homes, but were afraid to use them.''

West also says her students credit the patience and technical skills of Francoise Lefort, a technical support specialist, and Felix Ruisanchez, a faculty support technician, with keeping the ePortfolio project from turning into a ``high-tech nightmare.''

''Francoise and Felix were what made this project viable from an operational point of view,'' she said. ``They were available on a one-to-one basis when students were preparing their final portfolios to add graphics, music, etc.''

''A lot of the ePortfolio students have not been in the U.S. for long, have very low computer skills and come to work on their portfolio at the college, which suggests that most do not have access to a computer at home,'' Lefort says.

One of West's students, Hector Sunol, says the skills he picked up in the class will help him in finding a job.

''The low level of computer knowledge that most of the immigrants have when arriving to this country is visible,'' Sunol said. ``Therefore, the introduction of the ePortfolio helped me to improve my computer skills. Without that knowledge, it is almost impossible to be a good candidate for any position. The ePortfolio was very helpful because it introduced me a little more to this great world of technology.''

The grant allows students to access their ePortfolios online for up to four years. There's also a lab that houses almost two dozen computers, scanners and, most important, technical support.

''We hope the lab will be a meeting place for networking ideas, a place for students and faculty to get fast assistance,'' Ellyn Biggs, activity director of the grant at the InterAmerican Campus, says about the recent opening of the new ePortfolio lab. ``We also plan to run workshops on techniques and products to enrich the look of the individual portfolios.''