My role is to provide supplemental support beyond the core instructional program to help students overcome barriers that may interfere with their success at school.

I work alongside teachers, counselors, administrators, families, and community agencies to help identify concerns, coordinate resources, develop support plans, and connect students and families with services.

Think of me as an additional layer of support when a student needs more than what can reasonably be provided through the classroom or regular school support systems.

You can reach out to me when you have a student who:

📚 Is Struggling Academically

I can help with:

• Identifying barriers that may be affecting academic performance.

• Connecting students and families with appropriate resources.

• Helping develop individualized support plans.

• Coordinating with counselors, teachers, and families.

• Supporting students who are struggling to adjust to school expectations.

• Helping identify outside resources that may address barriers affecting learning.

Example:
"I've tried several classroom interventions, but something outside of school seems to be affecting this student's ability to be successful. Can you help me figure out what resources might be available?"

🧠Social-Emotional Needs

I can provide support when a student is experiencing:

• Frequent behavioral concerns.

• Difficulty regulating emotions.

• Conflict with peers or adults.

• Difficulty adjusting to school.

• Significant changes at home.

• Challenges following expectations.

• Difficulty returning to school after a major incident.

• Needs that may benefit from additional community resources.

I can also assist with:

• Behavior support planning.

• Restorative practices.

• Conflict resolution.

• Student check-ins.

• Connecting families with mental health or community resources.

• Coordination with counselors and other school personnel.

My role is to help families find and access appropriate resources, not to take over the responsibilities of other professionals or agencies.

📅 Is Frequently Absent or at Risk of Chronic Absenteeism

If you have a student with attendance concerns, I can help:

• Review attendance patterns.

• Identify potential barriers to attendance.

• Communicate with families.

• Conduct home visits when appropriate per policy.

• Connect families with community resources.

• Coordinate attendance interventions.

• Help develop an individualized attendance support plan.

• Work with school staff and outside agencies when additional support is needed.

Example:
"This student keeps missing school, and we've been unable to figure out why. Can you help us identify what's getting in the way?"

🏠 Is Experiencing Challenges Outside of School

Sometimes what happens outside of school directly affects what happens inside the classroom.

I can help when a student or family is dealing with issues such as:

• Family instability.

• Housing or transportation barriers.

• Food or basic-needs concerns.

• Mental health needs.

• Family involvement with social services.

• Juvenile Court involvement.

• Significant family changes.

• Community resource needs.

• Other circumstances that may interfere with school success.

I can help identify appropriate resources and coordinate with outside agencies when appropriate.

🔄 Needs Help Transitioning Back to School

I can assist with student re-entry following:

• Hospitalization.

• Residential treatment.

• Extended absences.

• Suspension.

• Significant behavioral incidents.

• Other disruptions to a student's educational experience.

I can help coordinate communication between the student, family, school personnel, and outside providers to create a smoother transition back to school.

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Needs Family Engagement or Support

If you're having difficulty connecting with a family, I may be able to help.

I can:

• Contact families after reasonable efforts have been made.

• Help establish communication.

• Conduct home visits when appropriate as per policy.

• Provide parent education.

• Help families understand available school and community resources.

• Connect families with social-service agencies.

• Help coordinate communication between families and school personnel.

You don't have to navigate complicated family situations alone.

🤝 I Can Help Coordinate Outside Services

I can serve as a bridge between the school and community partners, including:

• Children's Division.

• Law Enforcement

• Juvenile Court.

• Mental health providers.

• Social-service agencies.

• Community organizations.

• Other appropriate outside service providers.

I can help with referrals, communication, coordination, and documentation when appropriate.

📝 I Can Help With Student Support Planning

I can participate in or assist with:

• Student Support Teams (SST).

• Re-entry meetings.

• IEP meetings, as appropriate.

• 504 planning.

• Attendance interventions.

• Behavior support planning.

• Individualized student support plans.

• Family support meetings.

• Problem-solving meetings.

My goal is to help the team determine:

What is happening? → What does the student need? → What can we do? → Who can help? → How will we know if it's working?

What I Can Take Off Your Plate

When appropriate, I can assist with:

Need How I Can Help

Student concerns Gather information and help identify next steps

Family communication Make contact and help establish engagement

Attendance Review concerns and coordinate interventions

Community resources Identify and coordinate appropriate services

Home visits Conduct when appropriate and necessary per policy

Outside agencies Help coordinate communication and services

Re-entry Attend meetings and help coordinate a student's transition back to school

Student support plans Develop, monitor, and document plans

SST meetings Participate and assist with problem-solving

Family resources Connect families with available services

Documentation Maintain records of support and coordination

Conflict Assist with restorative practices and resolution

Student check-ins Provide additional support when appropriate

What I Am NOT

I am not a replacement for:

• Classroom teachers.

• School counselors.

• School administrators.

• Special education staff.

• School psychologists.

• Mental health professionals.

• Other specialized service providers.

Instead, I work alongside these professionals to provide another layer of support and coordination.  My support should not be written into an IEP or 504.

How to Refer a Student to Me:

CLICK ME FOR REFERRAL 

You don't need to wait until a situation becomes a crisis.

Consider reaching out when you notice:

Concern → Repeated Pattern → Barrier → Need for Additional Support

You can contact me when you think a student could benefit from additional support, even if you're not sure exactly what that support should look like.

When You Contact Me, Helpful Information Includes:

• What are you noticing?

• How long has it been happening?

• What interventions have already been attempted?

• How is it affecting the student's school experience?

• Have you communicated with the family?

• Are there known circumstances outside of school that may be contributing?

• What would success look like for this student?

My role is to support multilingual learners, their families, and school staff by helping remove communication barriers, strengthen family engagement, and connect students and families with appropriate school and community resources.

I work alongside teachers, administrators, counselors, families, and other school personnel to help multilingual students and families better understand and access the educational system.

Think of me as a resource when language, communication, family engagement, or navigating school systems is creating a barrier to student success.

My goal is to help ensure that language is not a barrier to a student's success or a family's ability to participate in their child's education.

I am here to help staff:

• Build stronger relationships with multilingual families.

• Improve communication.

• Connect families with resources.

• Support multilingual learners.

• Navigate school systems.

• Coordinate follow-up.

• Strengthen family engagement.

You can reach out to me when you have a student or family who:

🌎 Needs Help Navigating the School System

I can help students and families understand:

• School procedures and expectations.

• District programs and services.

• Enrollment and registration processes.

• School policies and procedures.

• Available student and family resources.

• Educational opportunities and support services.

• What to expect during school meetings and processes.

Example:
"This family is having difficulty understanding how this process works. Can you help explain it and make sure they know what their next steps are?"

📞 Is Having Difficulty Communicating With School

I can help when:

• A language barrier is making communication difficult.

• A family needs assistance understanding information from the school.

• Staff are having difficulty establishing communication with a family.

• A family needs information communicated in their home language when available.

• Communication with a family requires continued follow-up.

• A concern needs additional coordination between the school and family.

My goal is not simply to communicate information, but to help make sure the student and family understand what is happening and know what support is available to them.

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Needs Additional Family Engagement

I can help when a family:

• Is difficult to reach.

• Needs additional support engaging with the school.

• Needs help understanding school expectations.

• Would benefit from continued communication following a meeting or concern.

• Needs assistance navigating school or community resources.

• May benefit from someone helping establish trust and communication with the school.

I can help build relationships and create stronger connections between families and school staff.

📚 Has Academic Concerns

I can assist when a multilingual learner has academic concerns that may involve:

• Communication barriers.

• Difficulty understanding school processes.

• Family questions about academic services.

• A need for additional family outreach.

• Difficulty accessing available educational opportunities or services.

• A need for communication or coordination between school and home.

I can work with teachers, counselors, administrators, students, and families to help ensure communication barriers do not prevent a student from accessing appropriate support.

📅 Has Attendance Concerns

If a multilingual learner is experiencing attendance concerns, I can help:

• Communicate with the family.

• Identify potential communication barriers.

• Help families understand attendance expectations.

• Determine whether additional family support is needed.

• Connect families with appropriate resources.

• Coordinate follow-up communication.

• Help school staff maintain communication with the family.

Example:
"We're concerned about this student's attendance, but we're having difficulty communicating with the family. Can you help us make contact and determine whether there are barriers we need to address?"

🧠 Additional Student Support Needs

I can assist when communication with a multilingual student or family is needed regarding:

• Student well-being.

• School expectations.

• Intervention plans.

• Attendance.

• Academic concerns.

• Student support meetings.

• Follow-up after a significant concern.

• Urgent student needs when a language barrier exists

I can help make sure families understand the concern, know what is being requested of them, and have an opportunity to communicate their questions or concerns.

🤝 I Can Help Connect Families With Resources

Sometimes a family needs more than the school can provide directly.

I can help connect multilingual students and families with:

• School-based resources.

• Community resources.

• Basic-needs assistance.

• Family support services.

• Appropriate community agencies.

• Other resources available to support student success.

My role is to help families find and access appropriate resources, not to take over the responsibilities of other professionals or agencies.

📝 I Can Support Student-Centered Meetings

When appropriate and when my availability has been confirmed, I can assist with meetings involving multilingual students and families, including:

• MLL program planning.

• Student Support Team (SST) meetings.

• Section 504 meetings.

• Special education meetings.

• IEP meetings.

• Intervention planning.

• Behavior support planning.

• Attendance meetings involving additional family support.

• Meetings involving significant academic or student support concerns.

When I participate in a meeting, my role may include more than communication. I may also help identify follow-up needs, family concerns, resources, or additional support.

What I Can Take Off Your Plate

When appropriate, I can assist with:

Need How I Can Help

Family communication Help establish and maintain communication

Language barriers Help facilitate communication

Family engagement Build relationships and increase participation

Enrollment Help families navigate enrollment and registration

School procedures Help families understand processes and expectations

Student concerns Assist with communication and follow-up

Attendance Support family outreach and communication

Academic concerns Help communicate concerns and available resources

Behavioral concerns Support communication with students and families

Student meetings Assist with communication when appropriate

Community resources Help connect families with appropriate services

Interpretation Provide support when appropriate and available

Translation Assist with finalized documents as workload permits

Follow-up Help coordinate continued communication and support

What I Am NOT

I am not a replacement for:

• Teachers.

• School counselors.

• Administrators.

• Special education staff.

• Case managers.

• School psychologists.

• Professional interpreters.

• Other specialized service providers.

I am also not intended to be:

• The default interpreter for every meeting.

• The school's primary interpreter.

• An on-demand translator throughout the school day.

• The person responsible for all communication with multilingual families.

• The sole communication bridge between school and home.

• Responsible for creating or designing documents that need translation.

• Responsible for making instructional, disciplinary, special education, or administrative decisions.

Instead, I work alongside school staff to help multilingual learners and families access the support they need.

A Simple Way to Think About My Role

If language, communication, family engagement, or navigating the school system is creating a barrier for a multilingual learner or family, let's talk about it.

I can help:

Communicate → Connect → Coordinate → Support → Follow Up

You don't have to figure out the communication piece by yourself.

Before Requesting Interpretation or Translation

Ask yourself:

Is this a routine communication need?

➡️ Use the district interpreter request process.

Is this a student/family situation that is likely to require follow-up, coordination, relationship building, or additional support?

➡️ Contact the MLL Student Support Specialist.

Does the situation require immediate communication because of an emergency?

➡️ Contact the MLL Student Support Specialist if an approved interpreter is not immediately available and the specialist is available to assist.

🗣️ Interpretation Support

I can provide interpretation support when appropriate and available.

However, interpretation is a support function of my position—not the primary purpose of my role.

I should not be considered the school's primary or default interpreter for every meeting or family communication.

I am most useful as an interpreter when:

• The conversation involves a significant student concern.

• The meeting is likely to require follow-up.

• The family may need additional support after the meeting.

• Multiple school staff or outside providers need to coordinate with the family.

• The communication involves student services or educational planning.

• The family may need help accessing additional resources.

Examples may include:

• MLL program planning.

• SST meetings.

• 504 meetings.

• IEP meetings.

• Intervention planning.

• Behavior support planning.

• Significant attendance concerns.

• Meetings involving student services.

• Meetings where continued family support or coordination is anticipated.

For routine interpretation:

Please use the district's established interpreter request process and approved interpreter resources.

This allows me to prioritize my primary responsibilities of:

• Student support.

• Family engagement.

• Communication coordination.

• Follow-up.

• Resource connection.

• Supporting multilingual learners.

🚨 Emergency Communication

In an emergency or other time-sensitive situation where an approved interpreter is not immediately available, I may be contacted to assist with communication when appropriate and available.

Emergency interpretation should be limited to situations where immediate communication is necessary to address a significant and time-sensitive student or family need.

🌙 Events Outside of the School Day

For routine events outside of the regular school day, such as:

• Parent-teacher conferences.

• Open house.

• Routine attendance meetings.

• General school events.

• Other routine family activities.

Please use the district interpreter request process and approved interpreter list whenever possible.

This allows me to focus my time on multilingual learners and families who need additional support, coordination, or follow-up.

If a student or family has needs that extend beyond routine interpretation, please reach out to me so we can determine how I can best support the situation.

🌐 Translation Support

I may be able to assist with translating school-related documents and communications as workload permits.

Translation is a support function of my position and is not my primary responsibility.

When requesting translation:

Please provide:

• The final document.

• The date the translation is needed.

• Any necessary background information.

• The intended audience.

• Any other information that will help clarify the request.

Please allow at least one week whenever possible.

Requests submitted with less than one week's notice cannot be guaranteed by the requested deadline.

Student and family needs, scheduled meetings, enrollment support, communication, and other time-sensitive responsibilities may take priority.

What I Can Translate

I can assist with translating information provided by staff so that it can be communicated to multilingual students and families.

The document should be complete, approved, and in its final form before it is submitted.

I am not responsible for:

• Creating the original document.

• Writing content for staff.

• Correcting errors in the original document.

• Rewriting or substantially editing the document.

• Designing flyers or newsletters.

• Creating forms or presentations.

• Redesigning documents.

• Reformatting documents.

• Updating graphics or images.

• Changing tables or visual elements.

• Converting documents into different formats.

Translation requests should be submitted as finalized materials whenever possible.

How to Refer a Student to Me:

CLICK HERE FOR REFERRAL 

You don't need to wait until a situation becomes a crisis.

Consider reaching out when you notice:

Concern → Repeated Pattern → Barrier → Need for Additional Support

You can contact me when you think a student could benefit from additional support, even if you're not sure exactly what that support should look like.

When You Contact Me, Helpful Information Includes:

• What are you noticing?

• How long has it been happening?

• What interventions have already been attempted?

• How is it affecting the student's school experience?

• Have you communicated with the family?

• Are there known circumstances outside of school that may be contributing?

• What would success look like for this student?