The ESL department serves students throughout Jackson-Madison County Schools whose first language is other than English and who are limited in their English language proficiency. The goal of ESL services is to ensure that English Learners (ELs) are receiving the language help and instruction they need in order to master not only conversational English but also academic English. Our certified/endorsed ESL teachers work with over 500 active ELs and a total of close to 1,000 ESL students across the district, with a wide variety of home languages including Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, and Portuguese among several others! ESL staff are sensitive to each student’s educational needs and seek to encourage individual progress in language learning so that all students can achieve academic success. Additional initiatives in the ESL department include Adult ESL classes and an after-school tutoring program.