Board adopts Multilingual Learner Strategic Plan after multi-year revision; plan treats multilingualism as asset

The Dixon Unified School District board approved a Multilingual Learner (MLL) strategic plan on May 15 after a multi-year development process that began in 2020 and resumed in earnest under the current administration.

District presenters described the plan as an "asset-based" approach that replaces the older English-learner framing with “multilingual learner” (MLL) to highlight students’ existing language strengths. The plan lays out goals for designated and integrated English Language Development (ELD), family and community engagement, compliance with federal and state law, monitoring and reclassification procedures, and professional development for staff.

Why it matters: The plan establishes districtwide systems for serving students who speak languages other than English and sets expectations for classroom instruction, reclassification criteria and monitoring. Board members and presenters said formalizing the plan is a step toward equity and consistent support for the district’s multilingual population, which presenters said represents about 20% of the student body in various classifications (English learners, reclassified fluent-English proficient students, monitored students and others).

Presentation highlights

• Planning history and scope: The work began in February 2020, paused, and resumed under district leadership in 2024–25. Presenters said the plan was developed by a committee of teachers, administrators and EL specialists and reviewed across sites.

• Key elements: The plan renames the student group "multilingual learners" (MLL) and calls for both designated ELD (daily, proficiency-grouped instruction) and integrated ELD strategies in core instruction. It describes models already in place — structured English immersion, bilingual supports, dual immersion at Gretchen Higgins — and standardizes designated ELD minutes by grade band (e.g., K: 30 minutes daily, grades 1–5: 45 minutes four times weekly; secondary: one period daily by proficiency level).

• Reclassification and monitoring: Reclassification criteria include ELPAC (English Language Proficiency Assessments for California) performance and achievement on diagnostics such as i-Ready; students who reclassify will be monitored for four years.

• Family engagement and supports: The district said it will use site-level English Language Advisory Committees (ELAC) and a district-level DELAC and continue parent workshops and bilingual communications.

Board action and next steps

Trustees voted to approve the strategic plan during the May 15 meeting; board members said they view the document as a “living document” that will be revisited annually and that a needs assessment will be conducted in 2025–26. Presenters and trustees emphasized a continued focus on professional development for teachers — both designated ELD instruction and integrated classroom strategies — and monitoring the plan’s key metrics (ELPAC growth, reclassification rates, and narrowing achievement gaps).

Quotations

• "Rather than using the term ‘English learner,’ we now will use multilingual learner. This reflects an asset-based approach that values and celebrates linguistic diversity," said the district’s MLL presentation lead, Amanda Deman, who described the committee-backed change.

• "Our mission is to ensure equitable access for core instruction and to invest in staff development so teachers can support multilingual learners all day, every day," said a district presenter, Trevor Foster, principal at Tremont.

Ending

The board approved the plan and directed implementation work to continue; district leaders said they would return with progress updates and an annual review. The plan includes legal references to Title III, ESSA, California Education Code and Proposition 58 as part of its compliance foundation.