TEA seeks applicants for Multilingual Outreach Advisory Council

The information below was provided by the Texas Education Agency.

The Texas Education Agency’s English Learner Support Division seeks applicants by Jan. 17 for its Multilingual Outreach Advisory Council, which will assist in developing and enhancing awareness of statewide multilingual resources to support multilingual families in Texas.

One out of five students in Texas are identified as an emergent bilingual student, representing 1.1 million students. Through a partnership with the advisory council, TEA will provide schools with training opportunities to assist and support educators in strengthening their understanding, communication, and awareness of their multilingual populations.

Key purposes

• The advisory council is intended to be composed of a diverse group of stakeholders who support multilingual families (e.g., educators, faith-based organizations, nonprofit organizations focusing supports on multilingual families, and family members) who will share valuable knowledge and expertise in promoting and bridging connections among multilingual families, schools, and the community.
• Council members will provide perspectives from their professional and personal experiences to help develop a statewide multilingual awareness campaign of multilingual resources.

Roles and responsibilities

The council will meet via Zoom monthly between February 2022 and August 2022. Council members will also receive regular communications through email and possibly phone calls. During monthly meetings, council members will

• discuss current statewide multilingual outreach efforts;
• identify the current needs of multilingual families that are known to the council members;
• provide input and feedback on statewide resources distributed by the TEA English Learner Support Division; and
• share innovative ideas on how to increase awareness of supports to multilingual families.

Council members will have opportunities to share their expertise and to network with each other to build new professional connections. In addition, council members may present at its statewide hybrid symposium in July 2022.

Apply by Jan. 17

If you are interested in becoming a member of the Advisory Council, please complete the short application available through this link.

Applications will be accepted until 5 p.m. CST Jan.17, 2022.

Selected members will be notified by February 7, 2022.