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Teachers union and multilingual community urge City Schools to expand Multilingual Family Engagement Office
Summary
Public commenters and the Baltimore Teachers Union called on the district to increase staff in the Multilingual Family Engagement Office from two positions to six and to improve translation, newcomer supports and transportation for international staff.
Speakers representing the Baltimore Teachers Union and members of the district's multilingual community asked the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners on Feb. 11 to increase staffing for the district's Multilingual Family Engagement Office and to expand services for multilingual students and international staff.
Christina Duncan Evans, teacher chapter chair for the Baltimore Teachers Union, urged the board to "dramatically increase" investment in the Multilingual Family Engagement Office (MFEO), calling for the office to grow from its current two positions to six. Evans said the MFEO connects families to language tools such as Language Link and Axio and provides programming for newcomer families; she told commissioners that current staffing is insufficient to serve a growing immigrant student population and that additional positions are needed to provide language access and family engagement.
During public comment, teacher Shelly Ann Higgins of Excel Academy at Francis Scott Key High School described specific needs for the international staff and families her school serves: more translated materials on the City Schools portal, greater multilingual support for ESOL special education students and families, transportation assistance for staff traveling to off-site professional development, and a larger MFEO staffing complement. Higgins said the district currently lists "only 2 staff members" supporting nearly 200 schools and that increasing the office to at least four additional staff would allow more robust services.
The remarks were part of a broader set of public comments clustered around support for multilingual families and school communities; multiple commenters requested expanded translation, newcomer programming and clearer communications about immigration enforcement protections the district has issued. The Baltimore Teachers Union statement also cited the American Federation of Teachers resolution supporting newcomers, asylum seekers and refugees when urging systemic supports.
No board action to change MFEO staffing was recorded at this meeting; the comments were received during the public comment period and will inform the board and staff as they plan resources and programming.
Ending: Speakers asked the board to make the MFEO a higher staffing priority and to provide clearer, proactive communications and operational support for multilingual families and international staff across the district.
