Maryland

The Task Force for the Preservation of Heritage Language Skills in Maryland, established during the 2008 legislative session, completed its work and submitted a report and recommendations to Governor O’Malley in January.  Implementation of several key recommendations has begun.  Maryland’s Voluntary State Curriculum for World Languages was unanimously accepted by the State Board of Education; an electronic toolkit of resources will be developed.

Governor Martin O’Malley has officially proclaimed November 2009 as International Education Month.  A group of educators and community representatives is planning an international education summit to “kick off” the month of activities.

Following the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP)’s successful 2008 colloquium on building the global expertise of current and future teachers, a statewide network of K-16 educators with the focus of internationalizing teacher education has been formed.  An eCommunity will facilitate discussions and collaborative planning of initiatives to enhance international education in Maryland.

Contact Information:      Susan Spinnato sspinnato@msde.state.md.us   James Greenberg jdgg@umd.edu