RCW 28A.630.095 Dual language grant program. (Expires July 1, 2020.)

(1)(a) The K-12 dual language grant program is created to grow capacity for high quality dual language learning in the common schools and in state-tribal compact schools.

(b) A dual language program is an instructional model that provides content-based instruction to students in two languages: English and a target language other than English spoken in the local community, for example Spanish, Somali, Vietnamese, Russian, Arabic, native languages, or indigenous languages. The goal of the program is for students to eventually become proficient and literate in both languages, while also meeting high academic standards in all subject areas. Typically, programs begin at kindergarten or first grade and continue through at least elementary school. Two-way dual language programs begin with a balanced number of native and nonnative speakers of the target language so that both groups of students serve in the role of language modeler and language learner at different times. One-way dual language programs serve only nonnative English speakers.

(2)(a) The office of the superintendent of public instruction shall develop and administer the grant program.

(b) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this specific purpose, by October 1, 2017, the office of the superintendent of public instruction must award grants of up to two hundred thousand dollars each through a competitive process to school districts or state-tribal compact schools proposing to: (i) Establish a two-way dual language program or a one-way dual language program in a school with predominantly English learners; or (ii) expand a recently established two-way dual language program or a one-way dual language program in a school with predominantly English learners. When awarding a grant to a school district or a state-tribal compact school proposing to establish a dual language program in a target language other than Spanish, the office must provide a bonus of up to twenty thousand dollars.

(c) The office of the superintendent of public instruction must identify criteria for awarding the grants, evaluate applicants, and award grant money. The office must select grantees that represent sufficient geographic, demographic, and enrollment diversity to produce meaningful data for the report required in section 6, chapter 236, Laws of 2017. The application must require, among other things, that the applicant describe: (i) How the program will serve the applicant's English learner population; (ii) the number of classrooms that the applicant expects to add with the grant money; (iii) the planned use of the grant money; (iv) the applicant's plan for student enrollment and outreach to families who speak the target language; (v) the applicant's plan to recruit and support bilingual paraeducators, classified staff, parents, and high school students to become bilingual teachers in the district or state-tribal compact school; (vi) the applicant's commitment to, and plan for, sustaining a dual language program beyond the grant period; and (vii) whether the school district board of directors or the governing body of a state-tribal compact school has expressed support for dual language programs.

(d) The grant money must be used for dual language program start-up and expansion costs, such as staff and teacher training, teacher recruitment, development and implementation of a dual language learning model and curriculum, and other costs identified in the application as key for start-up. The grant money may not be used for ongoing program costs.

(3) The grant period is two years. At the end of the grant period, the grantees must work with the office of the superintendent of public instruction to draft the report required in section 6, chapter 236, Laws of 2017.

(4) The office of the superintendent of public instruction must notify school districts and state-tribal compact schools of the grant program established under this section and provide ample time for the application process.

(5) The superintendent of public instruction may adopt rules to implement this section.

(6) This section expires July 1, 2020.

[ 2017 c 236 § 2.]

NOTES:

Findings—Intent—2017 c 236: "(1) The legislature finds that it should review and revise the K-12 educational program taking into consideration the needs of students as they evolve. In Washington state, immigrant students whose first language is not English represent a significant part of evolving and more diverse school demographics. The legislature finds that Washington's educator workforce in school districts has not evolved in a manner consistent with changing student demographics. Thus, more and more schools are without the capacity to meet the needs of English learners and without the capacity to communicate effectively with parents whose first language is not English.

(2) The legislature finds that:

(a) Between 1986 and 2016, the number of students served in the state's transitional bilingual instruction program increased from fifteen thousand twenty-four to one hundred eighteen thousand five hundred twenty-six, an increase of six hundred eighty-nine percent, and that two-thirds of the students were native Spanish speakers; the next ten most common languages were Russian, Vietnamese, Somali, Chinese, Arabic, Ukrainian, Tagalog, Korean, Marshallese, and Punjabi;

(b) In the 2015-16 school year, forty-six percent of instructors in the state's transitional bilingual instruction program were instructional aides, or paraeducators, not certificated teachers; and

(c) Eleven percent of students in the transitional bilingual instruction program received instruction in their native language in the 2015-16 school year, and research shows that non-English-speaking students develop academic proficiency in English more quickly when they are provided instruction in their native language initially.

(3) The legislature showed its commitment to equity in education by passing legislation creating a seal of biliteracy, requiring world language for high school graduation, easing the transitions of English learners, encouraging training for staff in cultural competence, monitoring the racial and ethnic data of teachers, and funding the creation of K-12 dual language programs.

(4) However, the legislature finds it is necessary to better serve non-English-speaking students by addressing and closing the significant language and instructional gaps that hinder English learners from meeting the state's rigorous educational standards.

(5) Thus, the legislature intends to establish a comprehensive approach to support English learners by creating grant programs to: (a) Expand dual language programs for elementary and secondary students; and (b) recruit bilingual individuals to become educators who are able to provide instruction in, and support for, dual language programs." [ 2017 c 236 § 1.]