Advocacy

Carolina TESOL is committed to advocating for English learners (ELs) throughout the Carolinas by informing educators of national, state, and local research, issues, and policies affecting ELs and advising its membership of advocacy resources and opportunities.

From left, Congressional staff member George Pulizzi from South Carolina US Representative Nancy Mace's office met with SC Advocacy Coordinator Jamie Fletcher and Carolina TESOL Past President Tanya Franca to learn more about how federal legislation affects ML students across South Carolina and the United States.

From left, former NC Advocacy Coordinator Dr. Jon Smart and current NC Advocacy Coordinator Dr. Jen C. Mann met with North Carolina legislators to discuss how federal legislation affects higher education, as well as PK-12 Multilingual Learners across the United States.

From left: Jamie Fletcher, Jen Mann, Jeff Hutcheson, Tanya Franca, and Jon Smart meet in Georgetown/D.C. for a full-day workshop with congressional staffers,  members of Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA) and immigration law offices. 

TESOL International 2023 Advocacy & Policy Summit 

TESOL International annually holds the Advocacy and Policy Summit in Washington, D.C. for those interested in meeting with members of Congress (and/or their staff) to discuss educational needs.

Carolina TESOL sent four representatives, two for North Carolina and two for South Carolina. These educators met with TESOL International Advocacy Director Jeff Hutcheson, as well as other TESOL affiliate members to collaborate and learn about policymaking and progress. 

The focus for Carolina TESOL during the Summit was to forge relationships with members of Congress who represent the two Carolinas. Being knowledgeable about the current legislation was important to engage the members of Congress and their staff in meaningful discussions.  Both South Carolina and North Carolina members went to offices of US Senators and Representatives for meetings, as well as brought collateral to leave with the staff to later review our legislative priorities. 

STAY TUNED FOR INFORMATION FROM THE 2024 TESOL INTERNATIONAL ADVOCACY AND POLICY SUMMIT IN WASHINGTON, DC, JULY 22-23, 2024!