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CTELL Program Description

In the past ten years, the percentage of English Language Learners (ELLs) has doubled in the state of Wisconsin. Districts of every size and geography throughout the state have witnessed first-hand the unique challenges of this increasing and unique population. While urban and larger school districts in WI may have larger populations of ELLs in their individual schools, nearly half (46%) of all ELL students in the state are spread across 302 small and rural districts. As the population of ELLs continues to grow in our state, professional development opportunities and academic coursework about the unique challenges of this population take on an importance for almost every educator, no matter the size or placement of their school.

Until now, most professional development opportunities or academic courses on this critical subject have been targeted exclusively toward teachers in elementary grades or have grouped all grade levels together, K-12. That’s why Edgewood College’s CTELL Program is so unique.

Connecting Teachers to English Language Learners (CTELL) is designed to group educators in cohorts that teach similar grades and content areas, demonstrating how you can better serve this student population within the context of a particular subject area and grade level.

Funded through a 1.5 million dollar grant from the Federal Office of English Language Acquisition, public school teachers accepted into the CTELL program are eligible for six graduate credits supported by full-tuition scholarships. From around our state, more than 270 educators from 54 districts have benefited from this unique program. CTELL is open to any educator in the state of Wisconsin through regional partnerships with CESAs 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 11.

Applications for the 2015 cohort will be accepted beginning May 1 and until November 1, 2014. All selected scholars will be notified by December 1, 2014.

Questions about any portion of the CTELL program, please contact John Kibler, OELA Grant Project Coordinator, at jkibler@edgewood.edu or 608-663-2287.