Federal Funds will Improve Instruction for English Language Learners
Contact: Ed Taylor, Director of Marketing & Communications 608-663-2333
Madison, Wis. (November 27, 2011) – Edgewood College has been awarded a five-year, $1.6 million competitive grant from the U.S. Department of Education National Professional Development Program through the Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA). In consortium with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Cooperative Educational Service Agencies, and local educational agencies, the grant project will support professional development activities that are designed to improve classroom instruction for English language learners (ELLs) and assist teachers in obtaining the necessary certification to work in instructional programs that serve ELLs. The total amount of the grant is $1,577,953. The grant covers 100% of the program over a five-year period.
As student demographics are rapidly changing throughout the state of Wisconsin, Edgewood College is set to provide high quality education to teachers who increasingly work with culturally and linguistically diverse students. With nearly half of Wisconsin’s ELL population located in rural districts, the OELA grant will allow the School of Education to reach rural educators by offering two newly-developed online programs: Connecting Teachers of English Language Learners Online, and the ESL/Bilingual Licensing Online Program. Tuition support for qualified participants will be provided through the grant.
In addition, the College will partner with World Class Instructional Design and Assessment to develop and pilot materials for higher education that prepare pre-service teacher candidates from all licensing areas with knowledge and skills that promote academic achievement for ELLs. The final project will establish a new statewide alliance – the Wisconsin Alliance for Cultural and Linguistic Diversity – to develop a statewide, web-based resource center for teachers and administrators serving culturally and linguistically diverse students.
The College has made great progress in addressing the needs of Latino and other English learner students through several programs. The Masters degree in TESOL (Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages), Masters degree in Bilingual Education, and the Immersion Certificate Program are helping transform our future teachers into educators with the skills to address the unique needs of English learner communities.
About Edgewood College
Located in Madison, WI, Edgewood College is a liberal arts Catholic college in the Dominican tradition, with 2,500 undergraduate and graduate students. It offers more than 40 academic and professional programs, including master’s degrees in business, education, nursing, and other fields, and a doctoral degree in educational leadership. For more information about Edgewood College, please visit http://www.edgewood.edu, or call Ed Taylor in Marketing & Communications at 608-663-2333.
