The National Center for Education Statistics found that an average of 9 percent of students in U.S. public schools are English Language Learners (ELLs); that number is closer to 14 percent in cities. Although many of these students start off in high-intensity, whole-day English programs, most are integrated into mainstream classrooms within a year, well before their English language skills would be considered proficient.

At thinkLaw, we strive for educational equity and 21 century success for ALL students. So we jumped at the opportunity to attend The California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE) conference to share our impact on academic language development for ELL students.

Holly Maria, our thinkLaw Chief Relationship Officer, will be more than happy to tell you about our impact. Holly Maria is Colombian-American and is grateful to have grown up in a bilingual and bicultural family. She was the last of six and the first to go to college in her developed a deep passion for educational equity at an early age. This resolve has stuck with her throughout as she’s been involved in the fight towards closing the achievement gap for the past fourteen years; first as a Teach for America corps member from 2004 to 2006 having taught bilingual and dual language PreK and Kindergarten for 6 years in traditional public and public charter schools and now as a District VI Trustee for the Houston Independent School District Board of Education in Texas.

Stop by booth #403 to learn what we are doing to support the development of ELL students. In the meantime, check out our brief company video here to discover more about our innovative approach.


To learn how your school or organization can adopt thinkLaw’s standards-aligned program that helps educators teach critical thinking to all students, please click here to schedule a time to speak with someone on the thinkLaw team, call us now at (702) 318-7512 or join us on our next webinar; Thinking Like a Lawyer: Powerful Strategies to Teach Critical Thinking to All Students

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