TESOL Grant and State Department Project Awarded to Laura Baecher

Dr. Laura Baecher, Professor of TESOL, was awarded a grant in the amount of $325,000 with the New York State Education Department (NYSED) entitled “Analyzing the Linguistic Demands of the NGLS/ELA.” This project fills the critical need to ensure that English language learners (ELLs) can fully access the New York State Next Generation Learning Standards (NGLS)”, and the outcome of the work will not only crosswalk and analyze the Linguistic Demands (LDs) of each English Language Arts (ELA) standard in kindergarten through grade twelve, but it will also serve as the foundation for the design of the new New York State English as a Second Language Achievement Test (NYSESLAT).

Additionally, The U.S. Department of State announced the selection of Dr. Baecher for an 8-week English Language Specialist project focusing on hybrid and remote English language instruction for primary and secondary students in Bahrain. This virtual professional learning opportunity will be open to 800 English language teachers in the public and private sector. Dr. Baecher is part of a select group, as her project is one of 150 that the English Language Specialist Program supports each year.

The English Language Specialist Program is the premier opportunity for leaders in the field of teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) to enact meaningful and sustainable changes in the way that English is taught abroad. Through projects developed by U.S. Embassies in more than 80 countries, English Language Specialists work directly with local teacher trainers, educational leaders, and ministry of education officials to exchange knowledge, build capacity, and establish partnerships benefiting participants, institutions, and communities in the United States and overseas.

You can learn more about the English Language Specialist Program at the Department of State’s English Language Specialist Programs page.