Top 3 Victories for Language Education in 2022

#1

JNCL Announces New America's Languages Caucus Co-Chair, Congressman Jimmy Panetta

The Joint National Committee for Languages is pleased to announce Representative Jimmy Panetta (D-CA-20) as the new House Co-Chair of the America’s Languages Caucus.

“It’s an honor to take over as a co-chair of the America’s Languages Caucus in the U.S. Congress. I hope to build upon the solid foundation that was laid by the caucus’s founders, Rep. Price and the late Rep. Don Young,” said Rep. Panetta. “Language skills are more and more critical these days to compete in our interconnected world. That’s why I look forward to working with my colleagues in Congress as well as the Joint National Committee for Languages and National Council for Languages and International Studies so that together we can support and expand language programs to empower the next generation of multilingual leaders in the United States.”

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#2

JNCL-NCLIS Celebrates FY22 World Language Advancement and Readiness Program Grant Awards

The Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) has announced awards for the FY22 World Language Advancement and Readiness grant program. Totaling over $15 million, these awards will allow 11 public school districts, spread across 10 states, to establish, improve, or expand innovative world language programs. Languages represented by the awards include Spanish, Japanese, and Mandarin Chinese.

The Joint National Committee for Languages and the National Council for Languages and International Studies (JNCL-NCLIS) spearheaded successful efforts to authorize this program through the National Defense Authorization Act and fund its first and subsequent rounds of grants.

Each of the 11 awardees received multiple years of funding to establish or augment existing innovative world language programs:

• El Paso Independent School District, TX
• Falcon El Paso County School District 49, CO
• Groton Board of Education, CT
• Windward, HI
• International Leadership School of Texas, TX
• O'Fallon TWP. High School District #203, IL
• San Diego Unified School District, CA
• Chatham School District, GA
• Steilacoom Historical School District #1, WA
• Wayne County Public Schools, NC
• York Country School Division, VA

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#3

The Native American Languages Resource Center Act to be Signed into Law



On December 22, 2022, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Native American Language Resource Center Act. The bipartisan legislation, authored by U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, will bolster Native American language schools and programs with coordinated, experienced support. The bill now heads to the president’s to be signed into law.

The Native American Language Resource Center will comprise a consortium of institutions housed at multiple locations throughout the country, reflecting the geographic diversity of Native American languages, cultures, and communities. It will support Native language students at all levels of learning, act as a central nexus for Native American language schools and programs across the nation, and provide additional resources to enhance distance learning capacity.

The bill is supported by the National Congress of American Indians, National Indian Education Association, National Coalition of Native American Language Schools and Programs, Joint National Committee for Languages – National Council for Languages and International Studies, and the Hawaiian Language Renormalization Committee.

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