An ELL Collaboration between Moraine Park and Fond du Lac School District

Written by Amy Jacobson, ELL Instructor on Moraine Park’s FDL Campus

This spring, Amy Jacobson, a Moraine Park ELL Instructor, enjoyed a beautiful cultural celebration at her student’s daughter’s quinceañera. While there, she connected with the daughter’s K-12 English Language Learner (ELL) teacher. As the two instructors watched their students celebrate together, they recognized an opportunity for collaboration.

In June, staff from Moraine Park Technical College and the Fond du Lac School District began meeting regularly to identify needs that could be met by working together. The goal was set to build collaborative partnerships between Moraine Park and the Fond du Lac School District ELL programs to provide education and support to our growing population of English language learners in the community.

One of the needs initially defined by the Fond du Lac School District was to increase parent involvement at the K-12 level. ELL families in the district were surveyed, and an ELL class for parents of K-12 students was developed. The content of the class would include the English vocabulary needed to better understand the school experience and increase participation in school events—such as open houses, parent conferences, etc.   

Based on the survey results, the class is being offered at Chegwin Elementary School in Fond du Lac on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1:30 – 3:00 pm. The class is open to all MPTC ELL students, though the content is most useful for K-12 parents. The class will run from September through December. 

The next steps for the collaborative group include defining additional goals, including the expansion of this program into additional schools and school districts within the Moraine Park Technical College District. 

For more information, visit morainepark.edu/academics/ged-and-adult-education/english-language-learners/.

Moraine Park Technical College held its annual General Education Development (GED) and High School Equivalency Diploma (HSED) graduation ceremony on May 26. There were 96 GED/HSED graduates for the 2021-22 school year. 

Jebichi Yator of Fox Lake and Gretta Hanna of Columbus served as this year’s student speakers. 

“I want to thank my teachers at Moraine Park for their support, patience and guidance,” Yator said. “Completing my GED and enrolling in Moraine Park’s Nursing program will change my life and my children’s lives, too. I can’t wait to start changing lives myself by becoming a nurse.” 

The GED/HSED students had to pass all five subject portions of the nationally recognized GED tests: Reasoning through Language Arts, Social Studies, Science, Mathematical Reasoning and Civics. GED students must also complete Career Awareness training. Students obtaining an HSED are required to complete both Employability Skills and Health Literacy training. 

“Congratulations to all of our 2022 GED/HSED graduates,” Pete Snyder, Moraine Park’s associate dean of adult education, said. “Our graduates worked full-time jobs, cared for children, and supported their parents–all while coming to school. These accomplishments are special, and they earned the right to be here tonight.” 

For more information about Moraine Park’s GED/HSED classes, visit morainepark.edu/GED. 

Our ELL GED class is up and running at the West Bend campus! In our ELL GED class, students are given the option of preparing for and taking the GED tests in English or in Spanish. All five GED tests are offered in both languages.

“I want to get my GED because I want a better job and it’s good for me personally,” said Apolinar, an ELL GED student on the West Bend campus.

Preparing For the GED Tests

As with our regular GED program, students choose an area of study to focus on first. The five GED tests consist of Civics, Social Studies, Science, Math, and Reading through Language Arts. Students choose a topic that they would like to study first. We work through the different units, focus on areas of need, work on test-taking skills, and take practice tests to prepare for the GED. There is a bilingual instructor on the West Bend Campus two nights a week to provide support for students in both English and Spanish. MPTC has study materials available in English and Spanish in the SSC at all three of our campuses. Books and study materials are able to be checked out from the Moraine Park Campus libraries as well. Many of our students choose to study on their own at home in addition to here on campus in order to move through the material more quickly. 

Benefits of Spanish Language Materials

Having the GED test and test prep available in Spanish is a helpful tool for our Spanish-speaking students. By having the content in one’s native language, students are able to show their knowledge base without having to face a language barrier. “I want to take the test in Spanish so I can understand everything. My first language is Spanish and I can understand [the material] better,” Marlene, an ELL GED student. Students are often able to read faster in their native language and with all of the GED tests having time constraints, offering the tests in one’s native language helps in this area as well. 

The SSC on all three campuses helps support our ELL GED students. Spanish language instruction is offered on Mondays and Wednesdays from 4-6 p.m. on the West Bend campus. If you or someone you know is interested in taking the GED in English or in Spanish, please have them contact our ELL Program Support Specialist Tony Rodriguez at 262-306-5302 or arodriquez@morainepark.edu.

This spring semester, Moraine Park’s Adult Education department started a new partnership with Hartford Union High School. Annette Meihack, a Moraine Park Adult Education Instructor, is spearheading this new partnership as part of our 5.09 program.

The 5.09 program offers classes to students to help them earn their GED and HSED credentials. It is different from the traditional GED test as the program is competency-based. Students are able to earn a high school credential without having to take the official tests. It is for students who have test anxiety or call another language their home language. Often, students with a different home language have to translate back and forth and the time factor is an issue.

The goal of our partnership with Hartford is to help students graduate after encountering some difficulties due to the Covid–19 pandemic. For example, some students struggled with remote learning. Some students were sick and fell behind in their classes. We want to help these students graduate on time.

Currently, there are five students from Hartford Union High School participating in the program. Students are bussed to the Moraine Park West Bend campus to work with our 5.09 instructor, Annette Meihack, on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. We hope that the program and partnership continue to grow and have great success throughout this semester and beyond.

“We want all of these students to earn a credential, work well in society, and obtain good jobs and skills,” said Meihack.

If you or someone you know is interested in earning their GED or HSED credentials, you can contact Moraine Park Technical College at 920-924-6393 or https://www.morainepark.edu/academics/ged-and-adult-education/ged-hsed/.

Written by Kathy Mueller, Moraine Park Adult Education Instructor

At this time of very low unemployment and a major shortage of workers, many adults who didn’t complete high school wonder why they would go back to earn a high school credential. They can often get a job pretty easily anywhere they want to work. That might be true for getting their foot in the door of a company. However, many are learning that if they want to earn more and move up in their companies, they still have to get a high school credential. One of my students did just that.

Time for a Change

Lester was my former student at the Beaver Dam Student Success Center at Moraine Park Technical College. He worked for about 30 years at his company, but without a high school diploma, he was never able to move to a higher-level position or substantially increase his pay. Lester was not only ready to earn his high school diploma to make an upward move at his company, but he also wanted to show his son that a high school diploma was important enough to be worth the hard work he would have to put in to earn it.

Heading Back to School

Lester was like so many other returning adults. He wasn’t very comfortable when he first started, and he was pretty unsure of his skills. One thing he had in his favor was his willingness to work as much as it took to understand the materials. Today we call that grit, and he is full of grit! Lester was able to get through Language Arts, Science, and Social Studies pretty quickly with relative ease. But math? That was a different story. Lester studied math for months. Months turned into years. Every spring, summer, and fall semester for three entire years! In May of 2018, he finished. I was so happy for him. We were all very excited when he and his son got their high school diplomas at the same time.

An Awesome New Opportunity

Lester has kept in touch with me since he graduated. He contacts me on every holiday and sometimes in between to update me about himself and his family. In the Spring of 2021, he told me a position opened up at his workplace. He was nervous but excited about the possibility of making a change at work. Lester knew his High School Equivalency Diploma (HSED) made him eligible for this new opportunity. I was very excited when he notified me of his promotion to Warehouse Dock Lead Supervisor position. What great recognition of all the loyalty and hard work Lester gave his company for so many years!

The Diploma Changed His Life!

Last week Lester texted me between holidays. He wanted me to know that since he earned his diploma three and a half years ago, great things happened. He earned a promotion to Warehouse Dock Lead Supervisor. Because he just received a raise, he is now making over $5 an hour more than he had been making without his HSED. We joked about him using all the extra money he was making now to help pay for his son’s college tuition. Lester thanked me for my help in pushing him to keep going. I can’t help but think I should be thanking him for getting to work with an awesome student like him. All I can say is that Lester exemplifies all the reasons a person would want to earn a high school credential. Look at the success all the hard work and grit has brought him!

Moraine Park’s Adult Education opportunities serve adults ages 18-65+ who are seeking to improve their academic skills to obtain or improve their employment, earn a high school credential (GED/HSED), and prepare for college. Students may also work to improve their English language skills and get assistance with their college courses. Learn more about Moraine Park’s Adult Education programs at www.morainepark.edu/academics/ged-and-adult-education/.

David Block has worn many hats here at Moraine Park.  He began working at MPTC in 2011 as an ELL instructor at the Dodge County Jail.  He has taught ELL at the Rosendale Dairy and on the Beaver Dam campus, and he served as the ELL Program Specialist in Fond du Lac.  He is currently our wonderful full-time ELL instructor at the Fond du Lac campus and we are sad to see him retire from his position at the end of the Fall 2021 semester.

When David was younger, he never thought that he would be an English teacher.  According to David, “English was not my favorite subject in school.”  This all changed when he relocated with his family to Peru to do mission work.  There, he served as an administrator and an instructor for a religious organization.  The focus of the mission work was on earthquake relief after an 8.1 Richter scale earthquake caused significant damage to the country in 2007.  He and his young family lived there for 15 years.  His experience moving to Peru with his family has given him great perspective on all the challenges that his students face when moving to a new country.  He appreciates how brave our ELL students are to take on such a big change and to “start a new life where the language and the culture are totally different.”  David “is glad to be a part of their process [to help them] to better integrate into their new ‘home.”’

One of the things that David enjoys most about his job is getting to know his students and learning about their cultures and individual stories. He appreciates being able to connect with so many students from different countries and cultures and to foster friendships amongst his students through English classes.  David has found joy and gratification in “helping students take next steps towards achieving their dreams [and] watching as they stretch their wings and fly.”  And his students are very grateful for the time and support that David has given to them. We asked his students to describe David, and here are some of the words that they used: warm, patient, tolerant, responsible, awesome, and excellent. He must be an excellent language instructor to have taught his students such dynamic vocabulary!

David has been a wonderful leader and mentor to our team of instructors in the Adult Ed. department.  He has been an invaluable asset to Moraine Park Technical College, to his many wonderful students, and to the greater Fond du Lac Community.   We wish him the best in his retirement and throughout the next chapter of his life.

Many students come to the Student Success Center at MPTC to get help with their course work, but sometimes our programs partner and instructors will go to the students. Two examples are found in the Medical Assistant and Auto programs. Past partnerships have included working with Culinary Arts, CNC, Welding, and CNA classes.

Bob Mengert has assisted in the Auto courses for several years, and is right in the classroom to help students understand the math and reading skills needed to succeed in those programs. Similarly, Jeani Slaymaker works with students in the Medical Assistant program.

Bob holds classes for any auto students who need skill-building, primarily in math and reading skills, and will tailor the lessons to specific needs for that program. He doesn’t just teach general math lessons, but math skills needed when working in the field of Auto Mechanics. Bob also assists in the labs, where instructors in the program make good use of and appreciate his help!

Jeani does similar work with students in the Medical Assistant program, teaching necessary reading and math skills needed for Pharmacology, Human Body, and other courses. She has created hands-on review materials to make the lessons come alive for students, including the “human game board” and Kahoots quizzes. She also meets virtually with students to review instructor lectures and help with students’ notes and comprehension.

Many students have benefited from Jeani’s help. According to MA instructors, Brianna Matheson and Erika Herriges, Jeani “…is an asset to the program.” She “… cares deeply for the students, utilizes creative study techniques.” Brianna adds, “Students who work with Jeani tend to achieve higher test scores and retain knowledge longer than students who don’t.”

The Student Success Center instructors strive to assist students in their college courses. Whether you come to us, or we come to you, our aim is the same – your success!

!Hola!: “O-la” Means “hello” in Spanish.

Meet our English student Eliud Justo. Eliud is from Ixtapaluca, Mexico. He has been living in the United States for seven years.  In Mexico, Eliud worked for Coca-Cola for over 25 years. Here in the United States, Eliud works for the Elbe family at the Golden E dairy farm helping with the milking process.

He has been working on the same farm for the past seven years. Throughout the day, Eliud helps to milk 2,500 cows. That’s a lot of milk! Eliud lives in Fredonia, Wisconsin, and often makes trips to visit family in Sheboygan and Milwaukee. He enjoys eating seafood and highly recommends Tsunami in downtown Milwaukee.  

Eliud has been taking English classes here at Moraine Park for two years. In his job, many people speak Spanish.  He wants to learn English so that he can better communicate with people outside of work and hopes to teach English to others when he retires and moves back to Mexico. He is always encouraging his coworkers to try English classes and to embrace the language.  

If you are interested in classes, please reach out to Tony Rodriguez at 920-887-4496 or 262-306-5302 arodriquez@morainepark.edu (West Bend and Beaver Dam) or Becky Melo 920-924-6339 rmeloenriquez@morainepark.edu (Fond du Lac).

Justine’s mom wanted her to earn a diploma- she was Justine’s biggest supporter and best friend.

Justine was working toward earning her HSED in the 5.09 program, an option from the state of Wisconsin that allows a student to earn a high school diploma without taking the timed tests. Instead, students work through each competency in the curriculum at their own pace. There are no deadlines or due dates.

Justine was not in good health. She experienced many health concerns and underwent a surgery during the pandemic that did not work. It was very frustrating to have to go through doctor visits and surgery without a support system and then to receive no relief from her pain felt overwhelming. There were extra hoops to jump through because of COVID. Family had to drop her and leave.

Justine worked in a medical health facility and lost her job during the pandemic. Everything was so much harder without an income. Trying to find a job in pandemic circumstances was very difficult.

Her mom had been sick for awhile and passed away as the fall semester was beginning. She was worried she would not be able to finish her goal of earning her diploma. Then her stepdad passed away unexpectedly, too! Justine was devastated! How would she go on without her mom? She was the one that supported Justine the most. It seemed like an impossibility. She was thrown into a world of estates and moving her family’s belonging while mourning her losses. It was difficult to mourn her family properly with social gathering restrictions and everyone so fearful of being in groups.

But Justine came to class whenever she could even if she wasn’t feeling well. She was also a role model to other students. She was kind to them and helped them with their problems and even their homework. They looked up to her. She kept trudging forward, motivated by the knowledge her mother wanted her to take this step. She was doing it in her mother’s memory, no matter how difficult it was.

Justine graduated last month. When her instructor told her she was done, she was incredulous. She couldn’t believe she had made her dream come true. She had been trudging for so long she lost site of where she was on the journey. It was bittersweet without her mom. She couldn’t share in person the joy of her achievement but she knew she honored her mother by graduating.

Next Thursday, Justine will attend her graduation ceremony. Her children and her boyfriend, Mike, will be watching the event live-streamed. Just like during the rest of her journey, she will walk the last bit by herself. But everyone who loves Justine will be watching and celebrating her success with her, including her mom! She is a graduation speaker at this year’s ceremony. She will dedicate her speech to her mom, telling her mom, “This one’s for you!”

If you, or someone you know, is interested in this alternative to earning a GED or HSED, visit morainepark.edu/ged-hsed/ for more information.