WABE

Dear Bilingual Education Colleagues,

On behalf of Superintendent Chris Reykdal, I wish to extend to you the opportunity to serve on the Bilingual Education Advisory Committee (BEAC). The purpose of BEAC is to serve as an advisory to Superintendent Reykdal on matters related to English learners and to guide the work of the Migrant & Bilingual Education office.

Currently, the BEAC has a few vacancies that we are seeking to fill for terms beginning on September 1, 2021. Please see the BEAC by-laws for more information about the organization and work of the committee: http://www.k12.wa.us/MigrantBilingual/BEAC.aspx.

The BEAC has openings for multiple representatives:

• Immigrant/Refugee/Migrant community member
• Superintendent
• Teachers that serve English learners, including immigrant and refugee students;
• Parent of an English learner

Terms are staggered between two and three years in order to provide continuity on the committee. Members of the committee may serve two consecutive terms. Terms expire on August 31 of the given year. The BEAC meets up to five times per year, typically an all-day meeting, however during COVID all meeting have been virtual. OSPI provides travel, accommodations, meals and all meeting costs for members.

Please apply to serve on the BEAC by sending a letter of interest and a résumé or curriculum vitae by Monday, May 3, 2021 to Jolynn Engellant at Jolynn.Engellant@k12.wa.us or by mail: PO Box 47200, Olympia, WA 98504-7200. Jolynn can also be reached at 360-725-6145.

All applications will be shared with the BEAC members for consideration. We will notify all applicants of the selection decisions by the end of May. Please share this information with your colleagues and feel free to contact us if you have any questions.

Sincerely yours,

Sue Connolly

Interim Director of Bilingual Education
Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction
sue.connolly@k12.wa.us

The mission of the Washington Association for Bilingual Education is to advocate for inclusive instruction that promotes multilingual education in culturally responsive settings.

In keeping with that mission, WABE condemns interpersonal, institutional, and structural racism and violence of any kind against Black people and all People of Color. WABE promotes equity in access to high quality education for all students, and values the funds of knowledge that each family brings. We commit to reflecting on our complicity in systemic racism and to work toward equitable outcomes for students of color. Racism in any form is abhorrent and must end if we are to truly create culturally responsive settings in our schools, communities, country, and the world at large.

WABE will continue to support and promote programs and speakers who bring light and learning to the long history of systemic racism, discrimination, and exclusion in the United States. We will advocate and work for equitable education and a conclusive end to racism.

David Irwin, President, on behalf of the WABE Board of Directors

The mission of the Washington Association for Bilingual Education is to advocate for inclusive instruction that promotes multilingual education in culturally responsive settings.

WABE stands with all recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. The Supreme Court will decide soon on whether to allow the current law enacted by President Obama in 2012 to stand. It allows children of immigrants who were brought to the U.S. at age 17 or younger and have lived continuously in the U.S. for at least four years prior to the bill’s enactment to receive conditional permanent resident status valid for up to eight years, protects them from deportation, allows them to work legally in the U.S., and permits them to travel outside the country.

In order to support bilingual education, WABE encourages the Supreme Court to rule DACA to be constitutional. DACA recipients who are educators are crucial to WABE’s mission.

David Irwin, President, on behalf of the WABE Board of Directors