During a recent job fair at Legacy High School, Midland ISD Superintendent Dr. Stephanie Howard noted the growth of the district's bilingual program, as reported in a social media post on X. The event was aimed at filling various faculty, staff and administrative positions within the district.
"Our @Midland_ISD bilingual program has grown by 18% - we're hiring bilingual teachers and para-professionals…. Join team MISD! @olym84 @LizVarela9," said Stephanie Howard, according to X.
Midland ISD elaborated that their Bilingual/English Second Language (ESL) Department is committed to facilitating English learning for students who are new to the language "while ensuring long-term affective, linguistic, and cognitive development." There has been a focused effort to expand this department. In May 2023, Luz Melendez was appointed as the executive director of the Bilingual/ESL department after her 13-year tenure as the bilingual coordinator at Ector County ISD.
Howard's tweet.
| X
According to information available on a MISD website, Texas mandates districts with 20 or more students lacking English proficiency in any language classification at the same grade level to provide either a special language program or bilingual education. In response to this requirement, MISD offers ESL across all campuses as needed and currently runs programs at 19 elementary schools, two junior highs and two high schools.
NewsWest 9 reports that the district is looking to extend its international teachers program with an aim to recruit qualified candidates such as bilingual teachers. Jimenez, recruitment and retention coordinator at MISD, stated: "We're trying to grow the program. We have in the past recruited one or two teachers from out of country, but this year we're starting a new program with cultural exchange programs." She further explained: "So, it's with the J1 visa and that allows us to bring more teachers at one time."