Interpreters Support Language Access Plans
More than 800,000 Minnesota K-12 students begin their summer break this month, including over 70,000 identified as English Language Learners (ELL).There is rapid growth of racial and ethnic populations nationwide, and Minnesota’s student population is increasingly diverse in part due to global migration and local refugee resettlement. The Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) and school districts remain focused on implementing policies and curriculum that view student multilingualism and cultural competency as assets.
School district Language Access Plans (LAP) should include the services of professional language interpreters and translators whenever possible. Our experienced team partners with school social workers, secretaries, and other school staff to provide language support to students and families and have seen firsthand how this positively impacts the ELL students’ school experience and academic outcomes. Our interpreters possess dual language expertise and cross-cultural competency, and both these critical skill sets contribute to the successful and accurate exchange of information in education settings.
Our language services team looks forward to our continued work with school districts throughout the state. We congratulate the 2023 graduates and wish the very best to all Minnesota students.