Mobilize Your Team
What To Do When Crisis Strikes
Language Program Crisis Checklist
When your language program is at risk for elimination, faculty positions are being reduced, or a new policy threatens language education pathways or requirements in your state, time is of the essence.
Consider the steps below to empower fellow advocates with the resources you need to stand together in support of multilingualism.
Do Your Homework
- Ask yourself as many questions as you can to map out important context:
- What is being proposed?
- How many teachers and students will be affected by these changes?
- What is motivating this change, and why now?
- Speak with as many direct sources as possible to answer these questions; don’t rely on hearsay or what you’ve read on social media.
- Collect data about the impact of existing programs. Conducting annual surveys can be helpful in gathering this information before a crisis arrives.
- Identify those in the administration who support continuation of the language program.
Craft Your Case
- Collect testimonials from current students, their families, alumni of the program, and local businesses.
- Include specific examples, personal anecdotes, impact stories, and quotes.
- Check out the LCF Blog for some initial testimonial examples.
- Student work can also be a powerful testimonial tool.
- Integrate research on the benefits of language education—including language- and age-specific reports and examples as appropriate.
- Highlight the connection between language learning and future opportunities and/or career success, including the demand for languages in the U.S. workforce.
- Include as many measurable facts and metrics in your case as possible, from enrollment and retention rates to award and Seal recipients, post-graduation honors, and beyond.
- Share how the language program contributes to positive outcomes across disciplines—supporting graduation requirements, other coursework, literacy, and your school’s mission statement/goals.
Activate Your Network
- Consider all the potential fellow language advocates in your sphere of influence who can help to get the word out.
- Be sure to include local, state, and national stakeholders in your outreach, as well as language-specific organizations and media connections.
- Develop specific calls to action for their participation: Can they write a letter (to whom?), post on social media, provide testimony, attend a Board meeting, sign a petition?
Present Your Materials
- Organize your presentation in an easy to scan one-pager, as well as supplemental materials. School Boards will often have a week to review materials pre-meeting.
- Include actionable suggestions to address the specific issues prompting these changes.
- Maintain a collaborative, professional approach while stating your case.
Remain Proactive
- Our work as language advocates is never complete. Even after a crisis is resolved, maintain a robust record of evidence in support of your program, including recent testimonials and program data.
- Follow state and national trends to anticipate potential issues on the horizon.
- Visit the Advocacy Idea Bank for inspiration on how you can maximize your impact, whether you have five minutes or two hours!
Case Study: Examples from West Virginia University
Higher-ed programs under review are often required to generate formal narratives with little time for preparation. These materials leverage targeted data to demonstrate departmental value. We invite you to use examples by advocates at WVU (whose World Language degree programs were eliminated in 2023) to serve as templates in crafting your own case for support.