Elmhurst District 205 Community Forum on English Language Learners

The Elmhurst area continues to be an attractive place for people from around the world to live and raise their children, resulting in a steady increase in the number of culturally and linguistically diverse students who come to District 205 schools. In addition to our District mission and vision of “equitable education for all and success in a global society,” there exist several state and federal regulations that support these learners and ensure their educational needs are met, so they can emerge college and/or career ready. Achieving this goal will open and broaden future opportunities for all District 205 students.

Over the past few decades, there have been many changes in the nation’s approach to English Language Learners (ELL) and new research has come to light on how to best serve these children for long-term success. In order to explain the programs available to English Language Learners, to apprise the community of pertinent state and federal regulations, and to hear about ELL best practices in other school districts, Elmhurst District 205 will host an English Language Learner Forum, open to the entire community, on February 25, from 7 to 9 PM in the District 205 Center, 162 S. York, Elmhurst.

In this meeting, attendees will learn about the rules and regulations that govern English Language Learner instruction in our state. Additionally, information about preparing these children for college will also be shared. Experiences from districts with robust ELL programs will be presented, along with the experiences of several District 205 staff, students and former students. Participants will have the opportunity to ask questions of the panel and to offer responses to some questions facing our community. We hope you will join us.

The February 25 agenda is as follows:

· Purpose, Format and Current District ELL Performance Results

Dr. Charles Johns – Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction, Elmhurst CUSD 205

· Rules, Regulations and Research Results

Dr. Ngoc-Diep Nguyen – School of Education, Northeastern University

· Programs in Other Districts

Rosa Ascharya – Principal – St. Charles SD 303

Keely Krueger – Director of Grants, Language and Culture – Woodstock CUSD 200

· A Few Perspectives from District 205 Faculty

Cheryl Freiberger – Churchville Middle School ELL teacher

Patricia Meza – Hawthorne Elementary ELL Teacher

· Perspective From Former and Current District 205 ELL Students

Former Students

Dominick Lipinski – Poland – current career in insurance

Bujar Sadiku – Albania – studying at COD, applying to UIC

Current Students:

Sofia Suanno – Italy– currently enrolled in ELL courses

Jessica Madgay – Phillipines

Ramzi Hamarhen – Jordan

· Questions and Answers

· Interactive Survey

· Comment Collection