State of Oregon faces teacher shortage as districts add bilingual programs.Hannah Keen has a plan: English in the morning, Spanish in the afternoon. But just a few weeks into the school year, sometimes she has to deviate.On a recent Monday morning, her kindergarten class was practicing “S” words — sock, sun, spoon, straw.

On one of the first days of class at Dos Puentes Elementary School in Upper Manhattan last month, a new student named Michelle peered up through pale blue glasses and took a deep breath.

Tammara Mejia asks her first-grade students something in Spanish and they respond in English.
Down the hall, Jaime C. Torne teaches science in English and his fifth-grade students converse with each other in Spanish.Both classrooms in West Chicago Elementary District 33 feature a mix of native Spanish-speakers and native English-speakers."We're actually honoring and keeping both languages," Torne said. "We want them to be bilingual, we want them to be bicultural and we want them to be skilled in biliteracy, so they can read, write, speak and listen in both languages fluently."

The number of students participating in noncredit internships programs, including internships, service learning, and volunteering abroad, continues to rise. But with many students enrolling independently, without involvement from their home institution, how can participation be recorded, monitored, and assessed for any risk or safety issues?How can relevant stakeholders stay apprised of these activities? What best practices can institutions put in place to capitalize on student participation in noncredit programs?