March 23, 2022 ELPAC Meeting

The English Learner Parent Advisory Council held an open meeting for parents/guardians of current and former English Language Learners.

The text from the slides is posted below. 

If you need this information translated, please select "Language" at the top of the page. If you are on a mobile device, select "More Options" at the top of the page and then select "Language". If you have and questions, please contact Jamie Singelais, Director of English Language Learner Education, at [email protected] or 781-455-0461 ext. 53331.

Text Version of Slides:

ELPAC Meeting March 23, 2022
Jamie Singelais, Director of English Language Learner Education
Joni Magee, High School ELL (English Language Learner) Teacher
Mary Bashir, High School French Teacher

What is ELPAC?
*English Learner Parent Advisory Council *Voluntary group of parents and guardians whose children are or were identified as English Learners (ELs) or former English Learners (FELs) *Works together to advise the Needham Public Schools on matters related to English learners and issues that are important to English learners and their families * Run by families!
What can happen at an ELPAC meeting?
*Meet and talk with other parents/guardians of multilingual and multicultural students *Help the schools to plan and improve the school experience for multilingual students and families *Share ideas and ask questions about school and the community *Learn how you can help your child with school and how your school can help you *Learn about the English learner program and other school programming
We want to hear from you!
*The goal is to have families run the ELPAC and to have an ongoing partnership with the schools (similar to PTC or SEPAC groups) *We recognize that we need to focus on building relationships and community first *We want meetings to meet the needs of our diverse multilingual community *Follow this Padlet link to share your thinking and questions about the ELPAC: https://padlet.com/mary_bashir/wgtplf426g4b9c6l
What happens next?
*Tell us if you are interested in participating in the ELPAC *We will continue to build community and empower the ELPAC group *We will plan an in-person family event - the tentative date is Wednesday, May 11th

Questions and Answers From the March 23rd Meeting:
1. How often does the ELPAC meet?
It depends on what the parents/guardians would like to do. Some districts have ELPAC meetings every month or every other month. We could have some meetings that are for business and others that are family events. For this year, we will plan at least one family event, probably in May.
2. How many members are there and who are the key leaders?
The ELPAC is for parents/guardians of current and former English learners. 236 families were invited to the March 23rd meeting. Jamie Singelais, Director of English Language Learner Education, Joni Magee, High School ELL Teacher, and Mary Bashir, High School French Teacher are the key leaders from the school district. We are looking for parents/guardians to become key leaders of this group!
3. Are parents from all grades and all Needham schools included?
Yes, parents of current and former English learners from all grades (PreK-12) and all schools are included.
4. Should we include full English speakers are part of the group too so that we are fully diverse?
The ELPAC (as designed by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education) is for parents/guardians of current and former English learners. There are other parent groups in the district who would like to partner with the ELPAC (Parent-Teacher Councils (PTC) and Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC) are two examples.
5. Up to what grade does ELL provide support?
ELL provides support to students through high school.
 6. Are there any baseline metrics/KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) that we would like to focus on?
I think it would be good to have Key Performance Indicators to track the success of the ELPAC. I would like to work with parents/guardians to identify what these should be.



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