Hamden High School is a remarkably diverse community, populated with members from almost every part of the globe. This is one of the school’s most important and powerful assets;  also, one that is becoming frequently adopted by other schools and educational communities. Unfortunately, in many other schools in the United States and around the world, language  barriers can pose a significant challenge for many students who attend school in an unfamiliar language, Hamden High is no exception.  

Organizations such as the Rutu Foundation, and programs such as Language Friendly Schools, support students as well as faculty, to ensure that all students are given the right  to a quality education, with respect to their language and culture. Since most educational institutions are a monolingual environment the needs and education of students can be  overlooked. 

In Hamden High School, we were fortunate enough to welcome Dr. Ellen-Rose Kambel  the Founder & Executive Director of the Rutu foundation, and Dr. Carol Benson International Consultant on Multilingual Education. The Rutu Foundation, which is based in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, has a network of affiliated schools across Europe, Caribbean, South America, Canada, and China. 

A group of students met with language teachers, Multilingual Students, the Hamden  District World Language Director, and the Rutu Representatives, to plot out the steps that should be taken by the district to ensure the rights of our Multilingual Students. Hopefully, this would set the stage for Hamden High School to become the first school in the United States to be affiliated with the Rutu Foundation. As we acquire more students from diverse backgrounds, being affiliated with this foundation will help everyone with tools to be able to communicate more effectively.