U.S. Rep. Adelita Grijalva, a former TUSD board member, introduced a trio of English language learner bills.
The bills include:
— The Reaching English Learners Act: Supports partnerships between higher education and high-need local education agencies with competitive grants. Aims to enable English language teaching students and to gain English as a Second Language licensure.
— The Families Learning and Understanding English Together Act: Expands literacy services for English learner families to improve educational, social and economic advancement.
— The Supporting Young Language Learners’ Access to Bilingual Education: Invests in dual language immersion programs that serve preschool to fifth-grade students from low-income and English Learner backgrounds to strengthen bilingual education.
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“I was an English language learner, so was my dad. The reality of what our students are dealing with when they do not know how to speak English is a major struggle,” Grijalva told the Star. “Dual language and bilingual education programs are thriving in Tucson Unified, and in our communities in Southern Arizona. I just want to make sure that we have qualified people in the classrooms with funding attached.”
