ELL News Headlines

Such preparation goes into a smooth, exciting summer program — and each year, it's a new challenge to keep things fresh and manageable for staff. That's especially true these days. After two years of remote and hybrid programming, with varying levels of success, many schools and libraries have significantly rethought or streamlined their summer reading initiatives, with more reading choice; outdoor, online, or in-person options; and more. Here's how six libraries are updating and refreshing their plans for 2022.

As the only person in his immediate family born in the United States, Ezat Sharifi feels a sense of obligation to help immigrants. That's why he recently joined a small group of students in Howard County — all first-generation U.S. Citizens or immigrants themselves — in raising more than $1,200 for Afghan refugees living in their community.

We're about a quarter of the way through 2022, and a whole slew of books by Latinx authors have already come out this year, including picture books for kids and middle grades books that our kids are loving. That said, the young adult genre has been one that young and up-and-coming Latinx authors have been making major headway in for several years now, and this year is no exception. There are literally dozens of Latinx YA novels being published in 2022.

Choosing a public high school can be a daunting process for New York City families. But it can be particularly confusing for older students who are new to the United States, speak limited to no English, and in some cases, may have gone years without formal schooling. For years, immigration advocates have cited those students as they pushed the city to create more school programs tailored to the needs of new immigrants — and this year, they may get their wish.

After years of prioritizing English-only classes for students who spoke other languages at home, California now is pushing to expand bilingual programs for all students. But the state has a huge hurdle: It needs more bilingual teachers.

For years, a Spanish-English dual-language program has been under consideration at Independence Elementary School, where standardized test scores have pegged the school as one of the lower performers in the state. This spring, those discussions ended – and the rollout began.

Dahlma Llanos-Figueroa lives in a high rise apartment with a view of the Hudson River in the Bronx, New York. Her apartment is surrounded by shelves of books, pens, statues, and artwork that remind her of her ancestors and characters of her own books. After a long career as a school teacher and librarian, she has been on a mission to tell stories of the Black experience in Puerto Rico. On April 12th, 2022 she published her second novel, "A Woman of Endurance," which centers on Pola, an enslaved woman in 19th century Puerto Rico. 

When he's not working shifts as a custodian at Harvard's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Luis M. Toribio — a native Spanish speaker — takes classes on the weekends through Harvard to hone his English skills and practice pronunciation. Toribio is one of many Harvard workers who take classes through the Bridge Program, a University-run Adult Learning Center that provides English as a Second Language classes, career development workshops, an adult diploma program, and citizenship classes.

Technology donations are giving a boost to a nonprofit organization that provides education programs for Hispanic residents in northeast Mississippi. El Centro, in Tupelo, is receiving three years of free internet access and a $50,000 grant from AT&T and 15 computers from Dell Technologies, the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal reported.

The Keres Children’s Learning Center lies in the heart of the Pueblo de Cochiti, a 40-minute drive southwest of Santa Fe, serving 14 students of mixed ages in early childhood and elementary classrooms. The oldest – a 12-year-old boy – serves as an informal mentor and example to the younger children. The nonprofit school is funded largely by private charitable foundations, in addition to a federal Esther Martinez language immersion grant, named after the late Tewa language preservationist and linguist from Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo.