ACE/TESOL Program Hailed as a National Model

SALISBURY, MD---A Salisbury University graduate program helping area teachers serve Limited English Proficient (LEP) students is being honored as a national model and receiving bonus funding from the federal government.

The accolades come at a time when several counties on the Eastern Shore are experiencing growth rates above 40 percent for U.S. immigrants whose native language is not English.

In its second year, the Accelerated Career Enhancement (ACE) Master's in English/Teaching English as a Second Language (TESOL) Program has received a federal grant increase of $127,375 over projected funding for 2004.

"The education program specialist came to visit this summer," said Dr. Anjali Pandey, a linguistics professor in the English Department who wrote the initial grant and supervises its implementation. "She likes what we're doing here."

In addition, project personnel have been invited to present ACE/TESOL as a national model during the Office of English Language Acquisition National Summit  for federal language programs in Washington, D.C., this December.

SU's $1.3 million five-year program serves a rural area with a large number of limited English students, providing instruction for local teachers whose classes include such students.

The passage of President Bush's "No Child Left Behind" act places added pressure on school systems when the mandate of 100 percent pass rate on statewide standardized tests in reading, writing and science is implemented in 2007. This creates a need for teachers experienced with students for whom English is a second language.

Participants in ACE/TESOL come from Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Somerset, Talbot, Wicomico and Worcester counties on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. Program faculty have a minimum of a doctorate in the area of applied linguistics, TESOL or related areas and come from SU and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, as well as other colleges and universities. All courses are taught at SU.

For more information on ACE/TESOL, call Pandey at 410-677-5387or visit the Web site at www.salisbury.edu/schools/fulton/ace/. For more information about the University and its education programs, call 410-543-6030 or visit the SU Web site at www.salisbury.edu.