The Mission of the English as a Second Language Program at the Octorara Area school District is to provide support and intensive instruction in English to non and limited English proficient students, which enables them to become successful in the mainstream classroom, the school environment and the community at large.

ELD/ESL Specialist(s) Contact Information

OPLC: Lori Boldt lboldt@octorara.org

OES, OIS: Suzanne Schurr sschurr@octorara.org

Middle and High School: Cara Pakes cpakes@octorara.org

Bilingual Translation Specialist

K-12: Sandra Mendez Click here to e-mail Sandra

Most Frequently Asked Questions About ESL:

What is ESL?
ESL stands for English as a Second Language. The ESL program is designed to meet the linguistic, academic, cognitive, and social needs of non-English speaking students.

Who is eligible for the ESL program?
Upon enrolling your child in the Octorara Area School District, a Home Language Survey must be completed by the parent(s)/guardian(s). Any indication that a language other than English is spoken in the home requires that the ESL professional staff determine a need for further language assessment.

Who delivers ESL instruction?
ESL services are based on students' English proficiency levels. For the purpose of instruction in ESL, students may be grouped according to language proficiency levels, or they may be grouped across grade levels. Instruction is always age and grade appropriate.

Both ESL teachers and content area teachers deliver instruction to the ESL student population.