Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Dual Language Newcomer Programs topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Albany International Academy emphasizes newcomer supports, dual‑language growth and social‑emotional circles
Summary
Principal Rachel Stead and colleagues described newcomer transition plans, dual‑language programming, decreased absenteeism and social‑emotional learning circles that staff say help students feel safer and more connected.
Principal Rachel Stead and assistant principal Tasha Anderson updated the board on Albany International Academy’s newcomer and dual‑language programs, asking the board to note promising outcomes and ongoing needs.
Stead said the school’s building leadership team aligned three school‑improvement strategies: collaborative analysis of student writing, a planned MTSSI enhancement to better assess multilingual learners and an expansion of social‑emotional learning. Assistant principal Anderson reported a decline in chronic absenteeism overall and flagged high‑school attendance for unaccompanied youth as an area of focus.
Hannah Kregel, an English teacher at AIA, described the school’s community circles as a core element of school culture. "They're about people and they're about giving our newcomer students who are learning English and adjusting to a whole new life a safe place to connect and to laugh and to share," Kregel said. She noted circles typically include eight to 12 students and two staff and that a spring survey found 68 percent of students said the circles were beneficial.
Stead said the dual‑language program’s chronic‑absenteeism rate this school year is about 13 percent. She also described a multi‑step transition process the school uses in the spring to return newcomer students to their home schools, emphasizing parent participation and data review.
Stead and Anderson highlighted wraparound services, including a weekly mobile health van, on‑site tutoring, Northern Rivers behavioral supports, a food pantry and a clothing room. Stead said the school remains in the third year of a four‑year Refugee School Impact grant that funds orientation and family‑engagement activities.
Board members thanked the presenters and asked for follow‑up data on attendance trends and the grant timeline; Stead said the district would provide multi‑year data as requested.
