The Lau vs. Nichols Supreme Court decision of 1974 defines the right of language-minority students to equal access to a meaningful education.

The IDRA South Central Collaborative for Equity helps school districts design and implement programs for these language-minority students. The center can help your local education agency do the following:

• Meet the language-related needs of national origin minority and limited-English-proficient (LEP) students.
• Understand state and federal regulations.
• Develop education plans.
• Provide instruction to national origin minority and LEP students.

For example: The only campus in a particular school district in Oklahoma that was providing Spanish and English instruction to its students requested assistance in preparing its staff and teachers. The SCCE developed training sessions on multiple intelligences for the campus trainer of staff. The center also worked with school staff to develop lessons at each grade level with activities using the seven ways children process information.

For example: As a result of the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) finding of discrimination against language-minority students, the SCCE assisted a New Mexico school district to create and implement a correction plan. The center provided training and technical assistance to campus administrators and bilingual education and English as a second language teachers. The training included strategies for including English as a second language in the classroom, appropriate assessment for language-minority students and validating students’ culture in the classroom.

For more information on the South Central Collaborative for Equity contact Bradley Scott, Ph.D., at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or 210-444-1710.