Building a community

Last night the ELL (English as a Learning Language) program at our school held the first of it's monthly ELL Family Nights.
No other school that I have ever worked at or even heard of has a program like this. I think it's amazing. A lot of the time, non-English speaking families want to get involved in the school but feel they cannot, because they do not know how. The language barrier is extreme, and often schools miss out on great parent involvement because of it.
The ELL family night was held in the library. We walked into the school and were greeted by the ELL Paraeducator - she is basically an "aid" - not a certificated teacher, but so dedicated to the school and her students that she organizes these events every month. We were offered nametags and directed to the library by signs in many languages.
In the library, there were three tables labeled "Spanish," one labeled "Punjabi," one "Vietnamese," and one "Russian/Ukraine." At each table, a translator. A volunteer translator. One of the Spanish translators was one of our "Office ladies," and the others were volunteers that the ELL teacher has found throughout the years.
Our school principal spoke first, welcoming the families and telling them about the school and why we have these nights. She said that often the ELL families are the most informed about the school because they come to these nights. Whenever anyone spoke, it took over twice as long as it usually would - the speaker would say a phrase, then wait for it to be translated, and the library was abuzz with all the different languages. Though there were five different languages being spoken in the room, I was overwhelmed with a feeling of community. These families care about their children's education and their futures. They are looking forward to giving their children opportunities that they might not have had growing up, and are working toward that future.
A PTA (Parent - Teacher Association) officer spoke about volunteer opportunities - the fundraiser, the vision and hearing check, and other upcoming events. She and the principal encouraged the family members in attendance to sign up to help out. Many of them did.
I am so heartened by the simple idea of these family nights. One of the most important things that our principal said to the families was that our school is proud of it's diversity. It doesn't matter if you don't speak English well enough to read a newsletter - if you want to be involved in your child's education, you should be. I am excited to be at a school that offers families opportunities to do so.