Equitable Education for All: Rewards, Challenges of ELL Program Explored at District 205 Forum Monday

A community forum that explores the goals, legal requirements, rewards and challenges of Elmhurst District 205's English Language Learners program will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. Monday, Feb. 25, at the District Administration Center, 162 S. York.

Members of the community are invited to learn how other school districts provide ELL services and hear about the experiences others have had with the program in District 205. Board members, administrators, teachers, former ELL students, parents, a professor with an ELL specialty, members of the Superintendent's Advisory Committee and administrators from St. Charles and Woodstock school districts are expected to attend.

The committee will share their findings at a future board meeting and set the vision for the district's ELL program.

"Really, the main goal is a two-way communication about ELL," District 205 Board member Maria Hirsch said last month. "Hopefully we'll have a large group of community members."

District 205 has seen a steady increase in the number of students who come from other countries and who do not speak English. The district's mission and vision is to provide an "equitable education for all and success in a global society," and there are numerous state and federal regulations the district must adhere to.

"Achieving this goal will open and broaden future opportunities for all District 205 students," according to a press release from the district.

Following is the agenda for Monday's meeting:

Purpose, Format and Current District ELL Performance Results

• Dr. Charles Johns, District 205 assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction

Rules, Regulations and Research Results

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

Programs in Other Districts

• Rosa Ascharya, principal at St. Charles District 303
• Keely Krueger, director of grants, language and culture, Woodstock District 200

Perspectives from District 205 Faculty

• Cheryl Freiberger, Churchville Middle School ELL teacher
• Patricia Meza, Hawthorne Elementary ELL Teacher

Perspective From Former District 205 ELL Students

• Dominick Lipinski, Poland, current career in insurance
• Bujar Sadiku, Albania, studying at COD, applying to UIC

Perspective From Current District 205 ELL Students

• Sofia Suanno, Italy
• Jessica Madgay, Phillipines
• Ramzi Hamarhen, Jordan

Questions and Answers

Interactive Survey

Comment Collection

Participants will have an opportunity to ask questions of the panel.

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