PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) – The U.S. Justice Department says it has reached an agreement with the Providence Public Schools to provide better services for students who aren’t fluent in English.
The settlement announced Monday stems from a federal investigation launched under the Equal Educational Opportunities Act. The district has about 8,000 students not fluent in English.
Under the agreement, the district will properly identify and place English learners when they enroll, and communicate with parents about program offerings and other information in a language they understand.
In addition, it provides for adequate English language services, including for students with disabilities; secures a sufficient number of English as a Second Language teachers; and ensures monitoring and evaluation of the program.
In a statement, Superintendent Christopher N. Maher said, “For the past year and a half, we have been working with the Department of Justice on a review of our current English Learner instructional methods.” Characterizing the process as both cordial and collaborative, Maher continued, “We agree with the departments that Providence Public Schools must do more to support its English Learners. In particular, we acknowledge that our staffing has not kept up with the accelerated growth of English Learners in our school system.”
Maher added that over the past decade, the percentage of Providence Public School students identified as English Learners jumped from one out of five to one out of nearly every three students. The district said at the same time, it has struggled with recruiting a sufficient number of ESL-certified teachers due to a shortage in the Rhode Island workforce. This created a situation where some English Learners did not receive the appropriate level of direct instruction in language services, the district said.
The district also said it has budgeted $1.1 million more to improve its English Learner programs.
