English learners

Fresno Unified School District’s new superintendent, Misty Her, says her childhood experience as a refugee will help her identify with the challenges faced by today’s English learner students.

California is home to more than one million multilingual learners, according to state data. In the central San Joaquin Valley, where roughly one in five students is an English learner, federal dollars account for a notable portion of funding in school districts.

Five years out from the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, San Joaquin Valley schools are still recovering from learning losses. The Central Unified School District in west Fresno is trying something new to improve learning outcomes - and it appears to be making significant progress.