May 1, 2012

Morningside College receives $1.7 million grant to fund English language proficiency program

The U.S. Department of Education (DOE) has awarded Morningside College a $1.7 million grant to fund “Project Proficient,” a program designed to improve classroom instruction for preschool through 12th grade students who have limited language proficiency in English.

The Morningside College Education Department will administer “Project Proficient.” The program will assist Iowa teachers in acquiring state certification, or endorsement, to teach English as a second language (ESL). Teachers who successfully complete the program also will earn 18 hours of graduate credit, which they may choose to apply towards the requirements for a Master of Art in Teaching degree from Morningside.

The five-year grant is part of the National Professional Development Program administered by DOE’s Office of English Language Acquisition. Only two higher education institutions in Iowa received grants for 2012: Morningside and the University of Iowa. Nationwide, DOE awarded grants to a total of 73 colleges and universities.

A similar Morningside College program, Project Unlimited Proficiency (PUP), received a $1.2 million grant from the DOE in 2007. More than 60 teachers from northwest Iowa schools participated in the five-year PUP program and added ESL endorsements to their Iowa teaching licenses.