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Auburn reports gains in multilingual learner testing; 34 students exit services this year
Summary
Multilingual learner staff told the Auburn School Committee that 34 students districtwide exited MLL services this year after ACCESS testing, with Park Avenue Elementary reporting 82% of its MLL students made adequate growth; the district tested over 350 students and outlined staffing and intervention strategies.
Multilingual learner coordinator Melissa Hodkins and Park Avenue Elementary principal Stephanie Maris told the Auburn School Committee on June 17 that the district saw improved outcomes from this year’s language-proficiency testing.
"These are our students who exited this year. We had 25 at Park Avenue, two at AMS, five at Edward Little, two at Sherwood Heights with a district total of 34," Melissa Hodkins said, reporting the districtwide exits after ACCESS testing. Hodkins said the district tested "over 350 students" this year and that a composite score of 4.5 or higher on the ACCESS assessment is the threshold for exiting services, after which students are monitored for two years.
The presenters highlighted particular gains at Park Avenue Elementary. "Park Avenue had 82% in growth," Maris said, describing a program of targeted "boost groups" the school uses to prepare students for the four ACCESS domains — listening, reading, speaking and writing. Hodkins said those boost groups give students targeted prompts and practice in the skills measured by the exam.
The presentation included a current staffing breakdown: Park Avenue reported four teachers and three educational technicians supporting roughly 179 MLL students (noting enrollment fluctuates across the year), Auburn Middle School had one teacher and two ed‑techs for 41 students, and Edward Little High School had four teachers and one ed‑tech for 108 students. Hodkins said the district began the testing window in January–February and received scored reports in May.
Committee members praised the results and asked about placement. Corin McWigan noted the challenge of the test’s difficulty and asked whether MLL students remain in mainstream classrooms; presenters said students are served primarily in tier‑one general education settings with pull‑out support for newcomers, and pull‑out services typically begin at second grade when needed.
The district framed this year’s results as continued progress: exits rose from 24 last year and 11 in 2024 to 34 in 2026, and teachers credited targeted interventions and teacher collaboration for the gains. The committee did not take any vote on the presentation; the item was informational.
