OELA provides national leadership to help ensure that English learners (ELs) and immigrant students attain English proficiency and achieve academic success.
The U.S. Department of Education's Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA) provides national leadership to help ensure that English learners and immigrant students attain English proficiency and achieve academic success. In addition to preserving heritage languages and cultures, OELA is committed to prompting opportunities for biliteracy or multiliteracy skills for all students. OELA accomplishes this in the following ways:
Department of Education’s Newcomer Toolkit designed to help schools support immigrants, refugees, and their families with a successful integration process. This toolkit will provide information, resources and examples of effective practices that educators can use to support newcomers in our schools and communities.
We are thrilled to announce Beatriz Ceja-Williams as the new Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA) at the U.S. Department of Education. She has served at the Department of Education for over 20 years in various capacities. Most recently, Ceja-Williams was the Senior Director for Institutional Service (IS) in the Office of Postsecondary Education at the Department where she was responsible for the Divisions that administer the discretionary and formula grant programs to Hispanic Serving Institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions, Predominately Black Serving Institutions, and other minority serving institution programs. Prior to that she was the Division Director for Hispanic Serving Institutions.
Find information and resources for English learners as well as useful information on state education agencies, state assessment directors, grant policies, grant guidance and other reference information on and assistance with administering and managing Title III projects, Title VII continuation projects, and other Department of Education grants.
A listing of helpful resources from OELA.
Learn how educators and technologists can approach EdTech with English learners’ unique needs in mind.
Office of English Learners (OEL)
The OEL has lead responsibility for English learner (EL) activities and English Language Acquisition State Grants – Title III, Part A programs and activities that will strengthen and enhance the work of the office and others in supporting and addressing services to EL students. The office will accomplish this mission by overseeing and drawing together critical office and Department requirements under Title III, Part A of the ESEA including strategic planning, Government Performance Results Act (GPRA) requirements and Performance Indicators for Title III under the Planning and Performance Management Database (PPMD), the National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition (NCELA), and other appropriate resources. The office will work to link resources and information, promote, and enhance the involvement of families in the educational process, and support and undertake special initiatives to coordinate, strengthen and unify services to ELs across the office, the Department, with SEAs, LEAs and other EL service providers.
Office of Multilingual Initiatives (OMI)
The Office of Multilingual Initiatives is responsible for the administration of all the agency multilingual initiatives, the National Professional Development Program, special initiatives to support multilingualism, and the Native American and Alaska Native Children in School Program. OMI will also be responsible for its own GPRA requirements and Performance Indicators.
Funding Updates
US Department of Education Grants Forecast This document lists programs and competitions which the Department expects to invite applications for new awards and provides actual or estimated deadline dates for the transmittal of applications under these programs.
Federal Register This directory contains documents published in the Federal Register by the U.S. Department of Education.
ED Grants
The Department of Education provides a non-technical summary addressing questions on the discretionary grants process and the laws and regulations that govern it.
Evaluation and Guidance:
National Professional Development program performance guidance
Native American and Alaska Native Children in Schools program performance guidance
Asian American Pacific Islander Data Disaggregation Initiative program
Learn how to contact the team at OELA.
Find the names and phone numbers of OELA staff members.
Find the names and phone numbers of OELA's Discretionary Grants Division team.
Find the names and phone numbers of the team in the Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary and Director
Learn about legislation that guides our programs.
See the Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) Part 75 Amendments (Expanded Authorities).
Read a summary the the demographic characteristics, educational attainment, and employment status of of young adult English language learners.
U.S. Department of Education
U.S. Department of Education
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