On Language Accessibility for Families | Highlight: Seattle’s Rainier Prep
Do you feel supported and acknowledged at your child’s school? How are you welcomed when you walk in the doors or when you open an informational email about current school events?
When it comes to supporting and respecting the diverse voices of families at a school, the most inclusive school communities acknowledge the various languages that are spoken at home and take them into account when planning communications and meetings.
Walking in the doors at Rainier Prep, families are warmly welcomed and acknowledged right away, some who are familiar with staff are greeted in their home languages. Each weekly newsletter, (called GUIDES which is an acronym to represent the school’s values of Grit, Urgency, Integrity, Discovery, Excellence and Society) is translated into Spanish as Spanish-speaking families indicated they prefer written communication to be in that language. Families are invited to attend monthly Family Advisory Council meetings where information about the school is shared, guest speakers present valuable information and parents have the opportunity to ask questions and share feedback.*
I attended the Family Advisory Council meeting in December and learned that there was a Spanish interpreter present as well as Somali translation by the school’s Family Engagement Manager, Kowsar Hassan. Seeing the school’s intentional care given to language accessibility had me thinking about how charter schools account for and coordinate language accessibility for their families.
I contacted Rainier Prep Principal, Morgan Fernandez, to learn more. Morgan stated that the school takes great care in ensuring families have what they need to communicate in whichever language is most comfortable for them. She said that families indicate language preference during the enrollment process as well as filling out a survey during August Family Meetings. The school has a number of systems in place to help support language accessibility:
Talking Points (messaging system used by all staff to communicate with families): Automatically translates written messages into family language of choice.
Any school-wide written communication is translated into Spanish and distributed with the English communication. Depending on the importance of the message, it may also be translated into Vietnamese and Somali (which are the other two prevalent languages spoken by families at Rainier Prep.)
Mostly have outside interpreters for in-person events such as conferences, Family Advisory Council meetings, etc. They will sometimes use staff who speak the language to translate for families.
They are always looking to hire more staff that can speak different languages. Staff who can support interpretation are eligible to apply for a stipend to compensate them for their time.
Karen Lobos, Rainier Prep’s Executive Director, reports that for the current 22-23 school year the highest number home languages reported by families other than English are:
1) Spanish
2) Somali
3) Amharic
4) Vietnamese
Overall, families at Rainier Prep have reported speaking at least 10 different languages besides English. During their student-led conferences last fall, 27% of Rainier Prep families requested interpretation.
One of the things that I found most interesting is that the school identified that most of the Somali, Ethiopian and Eritrean families actually prefer written communication in English. This information helps the school decide which languages to provide most written communication in and is why their weekly newsletter is sent in both English and Spanish.
Rainier Prep does a wonderful job making families feel welcome and comfortable in their school environment. They do this by ensuring that how they are communicating is in a way that best suits them.
We will continue to highlight what other charter schools in Washington state are doing to be multi-language accessible and resources that schools can use to bring these tools to their own school. If you or your child attends a school that does a great job of providing language services to families or if you think your school could benefit from some tools, reach out to WA FAB and let us know! We would love to connect with you and hear more about what your charter school is doing!
Check out these resources:
New language access requirements for Washington State public schools from the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI Bulletin, Sept. 2022)
Quick tips for interpreted meetings from the Governor’s Office of the Education Ombuds (OEO)
*For the January Family Advisory Council Meeting, Rainier Prep has invited an expert on adolescent brain development to come speak to families. The meeting is on Tuesday, January 31st from 5:30pm - 6:30pm at Rainier Prep 10211 12th Ave. S. Seattle, WA 98168. Please join if you are interested! All families are welcome to attend!
