A $3.1 million federal grant will fund a Washington State University Tri-Cities project aimed at increasing the number of multilingual educators in the Tri-Cities region and beyond.

For eligible WSU students, the grant will cover fees and full tuition for two cohorts of Alternative Route and Teaching Bridge students on the Tri-Cities campus, and summer tuition for four cohorts of eligible Dual Language Pathway Certificate students statewide.

Officials say these three pathways will provide students with opportunities to earn their degrees in a way that suits them best, while gaining hands-on classroom experience:  

• The Alternative Route at WSU Tri-Cities allows current paraeducators in partner school districts to receive credit for prior learning and work experiences and earn a bachelor’s degree in education while completing job-embedded learning in their paraeducator roles.
• The Teaching Bridge program at WSU Tri-Cities mentors incoming education students and places them in paid substitute paraeducator roles in local school districts alongside their current courses.  
• The Dual Language Pathway Certificate, available to WSU students statewide through online delivery from the Tri-Cities campus, prepares students in teacher preparation courses in languages other than English, allowing them to qualify for a bilingual education endorsement.

“It is very exciting that this grant will provide funding to support students in our programs, two of them developed with our local school districts,” said Judy Morrison, academic director for the College of Education, in a statement. “The ‘grow-your-own’ pathways are important for our local communities because of the collaboration and improved academic outcomes for students.”

The grant also will fund partnering districts’ teaching academies that provide college credit-bearing classes to high school students, and bolster WSU research and development efforts focused on supporting dual language programming and instructional development in partnering elementary schools.

Fully funded by the U.S. Department of Education Office of English Language Acquisition’s National Professional Development program, the development of the program is in response to the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction’s initiative to provide all Washington students with access to dual language programs.  

“The body of work supported by this grant aligns with the college’s mission to expand access to higher education and prepare the next generation of educational leaders ready to interact with and support multiple levels and types of diversity in our classrooms,” said Karen Thomas-Brown, dean of the College of Education, in a release. “Funding work like this ensures that future educators and students from linguistic and culturally diverse backgrounds see a clear path to higher education and opportunities to experience the high-quality teaching, learning, and experiences the college is known for. Furthermore, creating multiple alternate paths to higher education meets our mission of increasing access and opportunities in the future.”  

The grant team consists of six WSU faculty and staff across the Tri-Cities and Pullman campuses: Yuliya Ardasheva, multilingual education; Lindsay Lightner, Alternative Route coordinator; Yun-Ju Hsiao, special education; Danica Garcia, Teaching Bridge program coordinator; Anne Marie Guerrettaz, multilingual education; and Shenghai Dai, psychometrics and evaluation.  

“Our team has been very fortunate to partner with Kennewick, Pasco, Prosser and Richland school districts, among others, in supporting WSU Tri-Cities programs tailored to the districts’ need for highly qualified teachers who are adept at working with learners from all backgrounds,” Lightner said.

For more information about the College of Education at WSU Tri-Cities, go to: tricities.wsu.edu/education.

For more information about the Dual Language Pathway Certificate for WSU students, go to: catalog.wsu.edu/Pullman/Academics/Certificate/1094.