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Pullman ELD staff say program is underfunded despite strong student growth
Summary
ELD staff told the board they overspend program funds to meet student needs, citing $295,000 in TBIP state funds and roughly $41,000 in Title funds while describing strong WIDA growth percentages at several schools and a staffing plan to expand paraprofessional support next year.
At the June 10 meeting Ryan and Kelly Damon presented the district's English Language Development (ELD) report, describing a program that has achieved measurable student growth but that remains underfunded relative to staffing needs.
Ryan said the district receives roughly $295,000 through the state TBIP grant and about $41,000 through Title funding but that current ELD expenditures for staffing and curriculum exceed those allocations. He and Kelly said Pullman has a significant population of students learning English and that the district currently relies on two certificated teachers and limited classified support to serve K— students across multiple buildings.
Kelly Damon, identified in the presentation as the district's ELD lead, gave school-level growth data from spring WIDA testing: 57% growth at the high-school level; Jefferson 59%; Franklin 61%; Kameak 80%; Lincoln 37%; Sunnyside 80%. She said Jefferson saw a 20% exit rate from ELD this year and Franklin 46% exit. Kelly described classroom practices the district is using: push-in/co-teaching models where ELD staff work inside grade-level classrooms when possible, pull-out instruction for newcomers or students scoring below defined thresholds, and deliberate clustering of ELD students so staff can reach more learners.
The presenters emphasized extensive staff effort: Kelly and a colleague rotate across buildings and sometimes cover four schools in a single day. They also described family engagement efforts (translated notes via ParentSquare, planned family- and literacy-night events) and professional development (WIDA conference and GLAD strategies).
Board members asked about program mechanics and supports; presenters said the district plans to increase paraprofessional support and to continue clustering and push-in models to maximize instructional time. No formal budget action occurred on June 10; the ELD funding issue was flagged as part of the wider budget discussion.
