The Edina Public Schools Board approved a comprehensive Language Access Plan during its Oct. 13 meeting, establishing formal procedures to better serve non-English speaking families in the district.

The plan, presented by Dr. Franny Peak, director of achievement equity and multilingual learning, outlines families' rights to receive information about their children's education in their home language and to have interpreters for important meetings. The state of Minnesota required all school districts to implement language access plans by the 2025-26 school year.

"Families have a right to participate fully in their child's educational experience and we eliminate the barrier of language," Peak told the board. The plan will be translated into Somali and Spanish and posted on the district website by Nov. 1.

The board also heard presentations on expanded multilingual family support services and the Edina Education Fund's impact. Cultural liaisons Hussein Osman, Blanca Diaz Dion, and Monzerat Seploveda reported on the successful EDINA Resource Night held Sept. 25, which was expanded from a technology-focused event to include transportation, counseling, and other district services for multilingual families.

Kathy Rendleman, executive director of the Edina Education Fund, reported the organization provided $384,511 in district support during the past year, with the majority funding literacy programs including science of reading initiatives. The fund also supported mental health services, scholarships, and a tutoring program at Valley View Middle School that will expand to Southview Middle School after MEA break.