Introduction: The Multilingual Project LLC in Context
The Multilingual Project is a nonpartisan, multimedia research, advocacy, and translation company on a mission to create a more robust and responsive multilingual education system.TMP leverages cutting-edge research, strategic advocacy, and seamless translation services to empower organizations, businesses, schools/districts, and communities with the multilingual expertise they need to thrive.
At TMP, our research and advocacy agendas are grounded in the linguistic and educational experiences of multilingual learners (MLs). From K-12 to postsecondary, MLs have distinct needs that impact their academic outcomes, language gains, and long-term economic mobility. Understanding this, our core focus areas of Language Education, Language Transformation, and Language Accessibility are designed to seamlessly integrate these components of linguistic success, delivering solutions tailored to the needs of the clients, communities, and multilingual learners we serve.
Local Education Agencies & Multilingual Learners
Schools and districts play a critical role in language accessibility that learners, parents, communities, and employers alike rely on. In a state like Colorado, where Spanish was identified as one of the top 10 most in-demand technical skills among employers and ranked among the top 10 skills listed by job seekers, local education agencies (LEAs) have a unique opportunity— and a moral imperative— to provide every multilingual learner with meaningful pathways toward upward economic mobility. Pathways that honor their home language, expand ML bilingual range, and strategically align language gains with postsecondary and workforce success.
In an effort to expand the way MLs are considered at the linguistic, pedagogical, and policy levels, The Multilingual Project identifies Second-Language Learners (L2s), Heritage Learners (HLs), and Native Speakers (NS) as populations representing the ML continuum. We acknowledge the critical role that definitions like “English Language Learner” (ELL) have in supporting multilingual students, and offer our ML Continuum not in contrast, but in addendum. With the inclusion of these definitions, LEAs are equipped with a more nuanced perspective into the backgrounds and lived experiences of the MLs they serve, providing a more profound understanding of their linguistic and pedagogical needs.
Language Accessibility at the Micro-Level
In practice, LEAs— and the leaders who serve in them— are the greatest contributors to a more robust and responsive multilingual education system. Serving as the incubators of multilingual talent, for decades schools and districts have invested resources in translating materials for families, hired and trained ESL teachers and paraprofessionals, informed policy on language accessibility, and educated generations of language learners.
At The Multilingual Project, we work to support these efforts by offering critical insights around multilingual learners and their academic/economic outcomes, and providing the multilingual solutions needed to move ideas to action. We believe that when done strategically, LEAs can utilize language accessibility to not only provide more dignified and accessible spaces to multilingual learners, but to also provide them with the best education possible.
Expanding how Language Accessibility is Considered
In Colorado, there are over three times as many Spanish-speaking job seekers as there are opportunities for them. In our blog, “Oversupplied & Misaligned: Why Colorado Urgently Needs Multilingual Workforce Reform”, we outline how this leads multilingual learners toward navigating a labor market that does not consistently recognize or compensate their language abilities, leading to underemployment, missed opportunities for upward economic mobility, and a disconnect between the in-demand skills they offer and the roles and compensation available to them.
Language accessibility represents more than curating linguistically-accessible spaces for multilingual learners to thrive. It means creating a world where multilingualism is dignified at the operational and policy levels— and working strategically to do so. By facilitating resource-sharing and strategic partnerships between LEAs and businesses, nonprofits, state agencies, and other institutions, The Multilingual Project works to create a more linguistically-accessible future where every multilingual learner can thrive— from K-12, to postsecondary, to workforce.
Conclusion: Where do we go from here?
Local education agencies (LEAs) play an enormous role in shaping a more linguistically inclusive future aligned with student success. From creating safe and welcoming environments for multilingual learners to expanding multilingual communication practices and offering innovative and sustainable approaches to language education, their impact cannot be overstated.
By restrategizing language accessibility— considering it at the operational, pedagogical, and policy levels— Colorado has the opportunity to build a more robust and responsive multilingual education system. One that honors the contributions of schools and districts, strengthens their capacity to serve diverse communities, and ensures every multilingual learner has the tools they need to thrive. Beyond Words, Into Worlds.
The Multilingual Project is a nonpartisan, multimedia research, advocacy, and translation company on a mission to create a more robust and responsive multilingual education system.