Multilingual Families Newsletter

A total of 85 parents attended the TELPAS 101 for Parents of English Learners session. The Zoom sessions included information about the TELPAS exam, why emergent bilingual students are required to take it, and how parents can best help their child prepare for it. Recording of the presentation in English and Spanish will soon be available at the FBISD Multilingual Programs website.

January’s Equity and Access Award Winners for our Secondary Schools are Ms. Humble from Kempner High School, Ms. Richards from Sugar Land Middle School, Ms. Hill from Fort Settlement Middle School, and Ms. Steinkamp from Garcia Middle School. WE appreciate all that these teachers do to support our Emergent Bilingual Students!

Please join us to learn more about the Gifted and Talented(GT) program in Fort Bend ISD. Find out how your child can participate and benefit from being in the GT program.

Gifted and Talented Information Session (Virtual)

Wednesday, May 10th, 2023

Spanish Session 4:30pm - 5:00pm

English Session 5:30pm - 6:00pm

(Note: The link to this event will be provided at a later date)

Summer school will begin soon! Please see the information below for the grade levels and the link for the attendance zones.

La escuela de verano comenzará pronto. Por favor, vea la información abajo de los programas y grados que se ofrecen y el enlace para las zonas de asistencia.

Central Campus Glover Elementary

1510 Columbia Blue Dr Missouri City, TX 77489

Principal – Lewis, Carlos

East Campus Goodman Elementary

1100 W Sycamore Rd Fresno, TX 77545

Principal – Land, Quentin

West Campus Arizona Fleming Elementary

14850 Bissonnet St Houston, TX 77083

Principal - Jack, Candus

For more information, please visit the site: https://www.fortbendisd.com/Page/144494

Dilma Calles, from Mission West Elementary, was recognized as the SHABE Bilingual teacher of the year. Mrs. Calles, originally from El Salvador, is currently a 1st grade Dual-Language teacher going into her 21st year teaching. Her personal story and struggles growing up, have inspired many of her students to continue pursuing their education. From walking about two miles to get to school, living through a civil war, dropping out of school and even moving to the United States without speaking English, did not stop Mrs. Calles from continuing her education. Mrs. Calles said, “I treat my students as my own children. I want them to succeed and believe in themselves. I try to instill in them respect, honesty, perseverance, and the love for learning as I had when I was their age”. As her principal Jorge Pena says, “She truly is the embodiment of a teacher who teaches from the heart. Her energy, drive, and enthusiasm for kids are admirable.”. When people ask her what she sees herself doing in 5 years, she proudly replies saying, “I do not see myself doing anything else but teaching!”

Every year, FBISD competes in the Suburban Houston Area Bilingual Educators (SHABE) Teacher of the Year contest to honor bilingual, ESL, and World Language educators. Campuses may nominate one World Language teacher each year to go on to compete for the district title. Dr. Brittany Lindsey was this year’s FBISD World Language Teacher of the Year, so she got to compete against teachers from other districts who are part of SHABE. On Friday, March 31, 2023, SHABE held its annual banquet, where they named the Houston area winners for bilingual, ESL, and World Language Teachers of the Year. Fort Bend ISD proudly announces that Dr. Brittany Lindsey, a Spanish teacher at First Colony Middle School, was named SHAB World Language Teacher of the Year for the Houston Area. Dr. Lindsey is a huge asset to her campus and the district, and we are so proud that she received this much-deserved recognition.

Brittany Lindsey – Spanish – First Colony MS

Rose Morello- Spanish - Bowie MS

Debby Crain- Spanish - Sugar Land MS

Maria Kennett- Spanish - Ridge Point HS

Margie Campbell- ASL - Clements HS

Yoshimi Sheridan- Japanese - Clements HS

Brittney LeBlanc- ASL - Travis HS

Norma Siraj- Spanish - Garcia MS

Todd Wasserman- Spanish - Sartartia MS

Adriana Mesa- Spanish - Quail Valley MS

Shavonna Cheeseborough- ASL - Dulles HS

MULTILINGUAL CONTACTS

Tinou (Angela) Tran, Ed.D.
Director of Multilingual Programs

Marianella Moore, Ed.D.
Assistant Director Multilingual Programs

Youngmee Hsu
Multilingual Compliance Officer

Melissa Vargas
World Languages Coordinator

José Barrera
Bilingual Program Coordinator

Raquel Gonzales
Bilingual Program Coordinator

Carolina Álvarez
Bilingual Program Specialist

Lee Glaesemann
Elementary ESL Coordinator

Joël Johnson
Secondary ESL Coordinator

Maria Salgueiro-Alessio
District Translator

Sarah Hightower
Sheltered Instruction Specialist

Cassie Noble
Sheltered Instruction Specialist

Priscilla Van
Sheltered Instruction Specialist

Curtis Waczko
Sheltered Instruction Specialist