National conference newcomer program overview -mena
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The document outlines the establishment of a newcomer education program in Morgan County to support non-English proficient students, particularly East African refugees and migrant students. It highlights the demographic changes in the school district, the unique needs of these students, and the program's structure, including assessment processes and community integration efforts. The initiative aims to enhance English language skills, provide academic support, and facilitate successful transitions into the traditional school system.
National conference newcomer program overview -mena
- 1. Migrant Education Newcomer Academy
- 2. Mark Rangel – Director of MENA and Coordinator of Federal Programs Abdinasser Ahmed –Migrant Education Graduation Advocate Carolyn Klimper – Middle School & MENA ELL Instructor Karen Liston– High School & MENA ELL Instructor
- 3. The story of Morgan County’s diversity is in the emerging change. Lutheran Family Services (LFS) began to recognize the relocation of East African refugees in the Fort Morgan (county seat) area in 2007. In the summer of 2010, LFS estimated that 1,000-1,200 East African refugees were living the in the Fort Morgan area. Fort Morgan’s total population is approximately 12,000. At last report, these refugees include people from the Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Somali and Sudan. The majority, approximately 90+%, are from Somalia. The Morgan County School District RE-3 student population of 3,000 students is 51% Hispanic. There are 23 birth countries represented other than the United States and 11 first languages. Approximately 33% of the school district’s student population is affiliated with an English as a Second Language program.
- 4. Newcomer students are recent immigrants who have little or no English proficiency and who may have had limited formal education in their native countries.
- 5. Recent demographic changes ◦ ELLs 30% of secondary students are ELLs (NEP and LEP) Pressure on existing ESL service delivery Newcomer language development needs are distinct ◦ Refugee students—recent increase Pressure on entire instructional system—skill levels extremely diverse ◦ Migrant students—funding source Serving 230 migrant students District-wide 45% at Middle School and High School levels
- 6. District designated as Priority Graduation district Need alternatives for non-traditional students ◦ Over-age, under-credited students Would allow FMHS to focus on instructional rigor— The MENA will focus attention to differentiation and “catch up” strategies when the “clock is ticking”
- 7. Establish a bridge between newcomer needs and existing language support system Develop English language skills Help newcomers acculturate to U. S. schools Make newcomers aware of educational expectations and opportunities Create connections to existing community resources
- 8. Identified placement criteria Selection assessments Identified transition criteria and strategies Determine support services such as translation services (Community Navigator) Establish parent/family connections (MEGA’s) Provide professional development
- 9. Must match student needs with District resources ◦ Use of migrant funds ◦ Potential for other grants Program structure-half day programming Off campus site Secured curriculum materials and tools Provide extended time for learning ◦ Integration within regular school, extracurricular activities, etc. Ex. Reading to elementary students
- 10. Age of student Number of credits previously earned Academic skill level Language proficiency Recommendation from ELL teacher and school counselor Use of Pathways Power point flow chart
- 11. ◦ The MENA is located in a building connected to our BOCES. ◦ OneMorgan County (Immigrant Integration Services )has an office within the MENA. ◦ All furniture was donated by CBOCES ◦ Computers are re-purposed from the school district.
- 12. The program is designed to serve middle school and high school students who are non-English proficient (NEP) and have no formal education or very limited formal education. Length in program will be individualized. The main determination will be the student’s native language literacy level when entering the program.
- 13. Provide “intake” process Assess individual student needs Provide direct instructional services and supplemental instruction to support successful transitions ◦ Intense language development ◦ Academic skill development ◦ Social/cultural readiness Migrant Literacy Net (LEARN Consortium) Inside & Edge Curriculum A+ Courseware
- 14. Social/cultural readiness - Positive Behavioral Support Model using district produced student expectations from middle school and high school. Community Integration Skills – Lessons provided in Collaboration with OneMorgan County. Facilitate transitions ◦ Develop a graduation/completion pathway and ICAP Based on time available and student skill level ◦ Established criteria for transition into FMMS or FMHS
- 15. LEARN Consortium – Migrant Literacy Net
- 16. What have been the successes? What are the challenges? What have you enjoyed the most?
- 17. Teachers come to the students to provide instruction. RTI process has allowed students to be transition in and out of the MENA during the middle of a quarter or semester due to student need or exited out of MENA because of increased proficiency levels in language development. Due to student need we added two students from Baker 5-6 Elementary school. ◦ These students start at Baker, come to MENA then finish their day at the middle school. We had a high school student who arrived from Mexico with a week and a half left in the 1st semester. There was no opportunity to receive credit at the high school; therefore, we had the student attend MENA to focus on Language development until the beginning of 2nd Semester.
- 18. Dolores Del Campo– High School students Mohamed I. – East African H.S. students (Somali and Swahili speaking families) Araceli F. –H.S. Junior students (Spanish Speaking Families) Abdinasser A. – 8th grade students at M.S.
- 19. PCIC meets monthly to provide information and training from the school district and community agencies to parents. We use our bilingual MEGAS for translation for parents. Parents provide ideas for presentations
- 20. Summary of Program: Designed to serve Out Of School Youth (OSY) Migrant students and At-risk high school migrant students in language development, workforce readiness development, GED Preparation, and academic support. Service Delivery and Program design: The program will begin March 1st 2012 and will conclude on June 28th 2012. Schedule: Abdinasser Ahmed- Thursday 4:00PM – 6:00PM Saturday 12:00PM – 2:00PM Sunday 12:00PM – 2:00PM Dolores DelCampo- Monday 4:00PM -6:00PM Tuesday 3:30PM – 5:00PM Saturday 9:30AM – 12:00PM
- 21. Summer Migrant Learning Labs ◦ June 4th –June 28th Monday MENA and Pioneer Elementary ◦ 8:30-11:30 & 12:30-3:30 Advancing Refugee Academic Readiness Summer Program ◦ June 4th and finish July 26th 2012 (with a day off for 4th of July). ◦ Pioneer Elementary School 8:30AM -11:30AM daily ◦ Funded through Lutheran Family Services
- 22. ◦ Entrance Criteria – school referrals, pre- assessment of English language proficiency (CELA PLACE Test), transcripts of formal educational experiences. ◦ Exit Criteria – Formative and Summative Assessments (Inside/Edge Curriculum, LEARN Consortium assessments, A+ courseware assessments, CELA PRO state assessment, CSAP Assessment) These assessments as well as instructor observations and recommendations will provide a body of evidence to determine each student’s completion of services.
- 23. ◦ OMC- Community Integration for students and Parents ◦ Workforce Center – Job readiness skill development ◦ SARA Inc. – relationships ◦ CSU Extension Program – Hands on Science lessons in robotics ◦ Doctoral Students from UNC and DU- Group counseling ◦ Colorado Heights University – community presentations and campus visit ◦ Cargil Meat Solutions – donation of SMART Board system $4000
- 24. Establishing a newcomer program is a very complicated process Requires flexible planning and strong commitment from district leadership Will involve a great deal of collaboration and problem solving in the context of a budget crisis
- 26. Mark Rangel – mark.rangel@morgan.k12.co.us http://markrangel.weebly.com http://menamorganre3.weebly.com http://markrangel.wordpress.com Office: 970-370-6144 abdinasser.ahmed@morgan.k12.co.us carolyn.klimper@morgan.k12.co.us kliston@morgan.k12.co.us