City of St Charles School District
A Proud Past...An Enlightened Future
- City of St Charles School District
- ELL/Immigrant/Migrant Students
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St. Charles R-VI English Language Learners, Immigrant Students and Migrant StudentsThe St. Charles School District has a Plan and Procedural Handbook that outlines the Educational Program for English Language Learners (ELL), Immigrant and Migrant Students. Below is a brief description of each program.
English Language Learners' Program
The St. Charles School District has an English Language Learners (ELL) program. The purpose of the ELL Program is to ensure that nonnative speakers of English have the same access to high-quality academic instruction in the content areas as native speakers of English. This program accomplishes this goal by teaching listening, speaking, reading and writing in English using special techniques to provide comprehensible input to students. Students' English language skills are developed and strengthened to allow full participation in the regular academic program. English language instruction is content-based.
During the enrollment process, parents/guardians complete a Home Language Survey. If the use of a language other than English in the home or by the student is indicated on the form, the student is assessed using the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) required screener designed by WIDA (World-Class Instructional Design and Assessment) for assessing the English language proficiency of nonnative speakers of English. Parents of students who qualify for the ELL Program (based on the WIDA assessment) will be notified with 30 days of the start of the school year (or within two weeks of placement if enrolled after the beginning of the school year). Students who are placed in the ELL Program will receive extra English support until an appropriate level of proficiency in English is achieved and the support services of the ELL program are no longer needed.
The district is required to report the count of ELL students to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Because of the number of students identified in the St. Charles School District, the district receives federal funds through the Title III English Language Learner grant. These funds are used for supplemental programs to assist the district's non-native English speaking students.
Immigrant Students
According the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, the term "immigrant children" is defined as children:
- who are ages 3 through 21
- who were not born in this country and
- who have been attending schools in one or more states for less than three complete academic years.
- The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education does not collect information on the legal basis for any student's current residence in the US (e.g. citizenship status, permanent residency, visas, etc.).
- Students adopted by U.S. citizens and foreign exchange students may be identified as Immigrant (Title III) code if they meet the above three criteria.
- According to the U.S. Department of Education, students born in the territories of the United States other than Puerto Rico are not considered born in the US for purposes of determining immigrants under Title III. These territories include American Samoa, Guam, Marianas Islands, and U.S. Virgin Islands. These students are considered 'not born in the US'. Children born outside the US to military personnel and children born outside the US and adopted by US citizens are considered 'not born in the US'.
Migrant StudentsAccording to NCLB and federal regulations, a child is considered a migrant if:- The child is younger than 22 and has not graduated from high school or does not hold a high school equivalency certificate (this means the child is entitled to a free public education or is of an age below compulsory school attendance); and
- The child is a migrant agricultural worker or a migrant fisher or has a parent spouse or guardian who is a migrant agricultural worker or a migrant fisher; and
- The child has moved within the preceding 36 months in order to obtain (or seek) or to accompany (or join) a parent, spouse, or guardian to obtain (or seek), temporary or seasonal employment in qualifying agricultural or fishing work; and
- The child has moved from one district to another.
During the enrollment process, parents/guardians complete a Migrant Survey. If a parent has circled "yes" to any of the questions on the Migrant Survey, the regional migrant center is contacted and arranges an interview with the family. If the interview indicates the family qualifies as migrant, the school is notified so that they can address the unique needs of the student. If the migrant center identifies enough students, the district will receive Title IC Migrant federal funding for supplemental programs to assist these migratory students.
The detailed St. Charles School District Plan and Procedural Handbook that outlines the Educational Program for English Language Learners, Immigrant and Migrant (LAU Plan) is available upon request by email to nwoolfolk@stcharlessd.org or by calling the administration center and asking for the Federal Programs Coordinator.