Welcome to the Multilingual Learners (MLL) page!

Our MLL teaching team serves students from many cultures and linguistic backgrounds. Crossroads Elementary provides many wonderful learning opportunities for our MLL students through targeted language instruction and by valuing and encouraging our students to express and preserve their individual cultural identities and languages.

The goal of the MLL program at Crossroads Elementary:

The mission of both the Saint Paul Public Schools MLL department and Crossroads Elementary is to provide English language support to all ML learners by making grade level content accessible. The aim is for all ML Learners to become bilingual, bi-literate, and culturally proficient in both the majority and partner cultures. 

We want all students to be:

• Proficient in at least two languages, with a strong foundation in academic knowledge, communication skills and cultural understanding.
• Proud of their own cultural heritage, appreciation for the many cultures which compose the richness of our community.
• Challenged, supported and inspired to graduate on time. 

We want all families to:

• Feel welcome in a language they understand, by staff who embrace the diversity within our schools.
• Empowered with the knowledge and tools to nurture their children's academic success.
• Share their cultural heritage with their school, community and district-wide. 

How we work towards this goal:

MLL teachers at Crossroads support and instruct ML Learners by:

• Providing access to grade-level standards and curriculum
• Support in the language development process, including students in Special Education
• Bilingual Educational Assistants (EAs)
• Full inclusion at elementary age
• Co-Teaching instructional models
• Small group instructional models

 MLL Crossroads Elementary Staff:

(For more information regarding a teacher, click on their name on the right-hand side of this page)

Ms. Brita Eckman--MLL Teacher Crossroads Science 

Ms. Lori Thomas-Williams--MLL Teacher Crossroads Montessori

Ms. Kayla Elftmann--MLL Teacher Crossroads Montessori and Science

Ms. Mooka Bei--Bilingual EA (Karen)

For more information about MLL, please visit 

https://www.spps.org/mll