Saint Paul Public Schools to open two new Transitional Language Centers
11/15/2004 10:25 AMSaint Paul Public Schools Superintendent Patricia Harvey announced today that new Transitional Language Centers (TLCs) will open in January 2005 at Groveland Park and Parkway elementary schools.
Like the three existing centers, located at Como Park, Hayden Heights and Phalen Lake elementary schools, the new TLCs will serve new Hmong immigrant students, many of whom speak little or no English and have had limited exposure to formal education.
Since the beginning of the school year, more than 730 students from the Wat Tham Krabok refugee camp in Thailand have enrolled in Saint Paul's public schools. Most of the older students attend the International Academy, located at the former Wilson Junior High School building, and most of the younger students attend an existing TLC.
Each TLC has five classrooms and a capacity for 125 students. Because 10-20 new students from Wat Tham Krabok continue to arrive daily, the district expects each TLC to reach its capacity by early January 2005.
Until then, staff from the school district's English Language Learner Program will work with staff at Groveland Park and Parkway elementary schools to hire and train teachers and support staff for the new TLCs. To meet students' needs, TLC classrooms are
bi-lingual, so teachers and support staff must speak both English and Hmong fluently.
Once the new TLCs open, the new students will spend their first weeks working on academics, specifically oral language development, reading, writing and math. Students in the TLCs are also paired with "Reading Buddies," who are older students from the same building. Reading Buddies read with their partners each week and help them acclimate to their new schools.
Superintendent Patricia Harvey is confident that the new Hmong students will succeed in their new schools. "We relish the opportunity to teach students from around the world," she said. "I know that students and staff at Groveland and Parkway are excited about meeting their new classmates and students."
Groveland Park and Parkway elementary schools were selected to house the new TLCs based on the capacity within their buildings, their proximity to where the new immigrants are settling and the interest of each school's staff and site council in participating.
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