Snowline board hears English-learner progress, professional-development highlights and DLAC priorities

Charlotte Eckenroth, district English‑learner coordinator, told the Snowline Joint Unified School District Board of Trustees that the district’s English learners “outperform the state average” and that the district has shown a rising trend since 2021. The presentation, delivered at the board’s regular meeting, combined assessment data, professional development updates and parent‑leader testimony from the district’s District English Learner Advisory Committee (DLAC).

Why it matters: English learners make up a substantial share of Snowline’s enrollment, and the district is focusing instructional time and training dollars on early assessment, designated ELD and teacher coaching to sustain gains. DLAC members also urged the district to continue communicating with families in Spanish and to maintain practices that protect students from immigration‑status‑related fear in schools.

Eckenroth said the district began using ELPAC interim assessments (IABs) this year as formative tools and is starting a multi‑year deep dive into student writing on ELPAC. She described local work to align designated ELD supports and test settings so English learners have appropriate help during state tests such as CAASPP and CAST. “Tonight isn’t about doing a deep dive with data,” she said, “Tonight is about bringing to life, the why.”

Phelan Elementary staff who attended the national CA­BAE conference and a SEAL school visit said the training emphasized language‑rich, culturally relevant instruction. Elsa Valenzuela, a second‑grade teacher at Phelan, said the conference reinforced “the foundational belief that language is the origin of thoughts and ideas” and helped teachers respond to changing student demographics. Georgia Moore, Phelan’s EL coach, described SEAL as a blended instructional model that emphasizes joyful learning with a language focus.

DLAC co‑secretary Jasmine de la Barra told the board the parent advisory body meets monthly, converts community input into votes and carries out local actions. She said DLAC recently voted not to hold a public Cinco de Mayo event in 2025 “due to political disturbance” and instead will host on‑site literacy celebrations and a scholarship raffle for EL and reclassified EL seniors.

Public comment on immigration climate: Sylvia Lopez, speaking as a DLAC support person, told the board families are experiencing fear about immigration enforcement and deportation and urged the district to keep families informed in English and Spanish. “We come before you tonight representing the voices of the families of … English learners,” Lopez said, adding reports of increased intimidation and bullying at school. Lopez urged the district to “please actively partner with us to ensure our children feel safe, loved and respected.”

District staff and board members praised the combination of student outcomes, teacher training and parent leadership. Tony Buckley, Phelan Elementary principal, said the SEAL site visits and national conferences reinforced existing district literacy work and that the model appears promising for both English learners and native English speakers. Board members and staff also noted pipelines from DLAC to district employment — several parents and paraprofessionals present have moved into bilingual associate and classroom roles.

The board did not take formal action on instructional programming at this meeting. Staff said they will continue implementing ELPAC IABs, expand analysis of student writing over coming years and pursue funding and site partnerships to support SEAL‑style professional development and possible future dual‑language programming.