Sen. Cano, Rep. Felix help secure increased school funding for multilingual learners in state budget
STATE HOUSE — Sen. Sandra Cano and Rep. Leonela Felix are applauding the increase in state funding school districts will receive for multilingual learners (MLL) in the state budget. They had introduced legislation to increase this funding and advocated for additional resources during the budget process.
“This issue is extremely personal for me, because when I was 16, my family came to Pawtucket from Colombia under political asylum. My English was limited when we arrived, but thanks to the transformative power of education, I found amazing opportunities in my new home,” said Senator Cano (D-Dist. 8, Pawtucket). “I am grateful to President Ruggerio, Representative Felix and all my colleagues in the General Assembly for increasing this funding so that districts can better address the needs of students like me. Every student in Rhode Island deserves the resources they need to thrive, and that includes our growing multilingual learner population. I will continue to work to make sure families and multilingual educators get the support they need to effectively help these students grow and achieve success.”
Said Representative Felix (D-Dist. 61, Pawtucket), “Whatever our background or whatever language we speak at home, we all want our kids to succeed in school and have opportunities after they graduate. This year’s budget takes important steps towards this reality by increasing funding for multilingual learners. I am grateful to Speaker Shekarchi, Senator Cano and all my colleagues in the General Assembly for helping us get here and I look forward to working to increase this funding further in future budgets.”
Currently school districts receive 15% extra over the core education aid for MLL students, which will increase to 20% and be incorporated directly into the education funding formula in the new budget (2024-H 7225Aaa) starting on July 1.
The budget also requires schools to provide RIDE with annual reports showing how they are using this increased funding to provide services to MLL students.
The legislation (2024-S 2558, 2024-H 7907) introduced by Senator Cano and Representative Felix would have increased the extra state funding districts receive for multilingual learners to 25%.
Both legislators are committed advocates for multilingual students and educational programs. This past session they also cosponsored a bill, called the Support and Access to Bilingual Education Act (2024-S 2917, 2024-H 7514), that would have created a dual language program within the Rhode Island Department of Education that, conditional on funding, would have provided grants to schools and districts that establish dual language programs.
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