Taking Action

When you need to act to protect your program, these documents and ideas will help you figure out what to say, to whom to say it, and who can help advocate for and with you.

Advocacy Checklists: Start Here! 

 These documents will help you get organized

• Introduction to Checklists: Things to keep in mind as you plan
• Advocacy Checklists: K-12
• Advocacy Checklists: Students
• Advocacy Checklists: Teachers
• Advocacy Checklists: College & University 

15 Advocacy Arguments

 Information, models, sources: something for every situation

15 Arguments to Frame a Letter (summarizes powerful reasons why French is valuable)

Advocacy Arguments and Letter Models (suggests model arguments which teachers can adapt in their own communication)

What Can I Learn from Others?

Documents written by teachers who have advocated for--and saved--their French programs 

Read these success stories from teachers whose French programs have been sustained or reinstated. See what made the difference for them!

• Success Story: School Board Changes its Mind (Rhodes)
• Success Story: Middle School French Teacher Foils Cutback
• Success Story: French Teacher Rallies Families to Save French V Course
• Success Story: A Phoenix Success Story

These articles have advice on working with advocates:

• FLES Advocacy and Promotion (Lipton)
• Toot Your Own Horn (Sandburg)
• Working Against the Odds in FL Instruction (Gramer)
• Advocacy: The Role of the AATF Chapter President (Jourdain)
• Essay: Advocacy from a Board Member's Perspective (Sugarman)
• Advocacy for College and University French Programs (Duvick)
• Working with Guidance Counselors (Malone)

How Can I Get Others to Help?

 Ways to get the information you need and mobilize your allies

Find out who can be good allies for your program, in order to determine who can be influential and organize others. You can solicit replies to these documents:

• Interview of Parent or Family Member by Student
• Survey-Parent Booklet
• Survey-Colleagues and Staff

Send a note or make a telephone call to key parent allies. This letter might be adapted:

• Sample Letter: Teacher to Parent (French V)

Provide a key parent ally with a sample letter that can be tailored to meet the need.

• Advocacy Letter: Parent to Parent

Collect testimonials from current and former students, parents, and other supporters. Here are examples:

• Testimonial: Sample Quotes from Students
• Testimonial: Sample Quotes from Parents
• Testimonial: Sample Quotes from Allies

Here are some prompts you can use, and a release form that provides fair use of photos, videos, and texts.

• Sample Testimonial Prompts
• Sample Release Form (.docx)

What Can Advocates Do?

 Suggestions for ways allies and advocates can communicate with decision-makers

Advocates can contact administrators, Board of Education members, and the press:

• Sample Advocacy Letter: Teacher to Parent (French V)
• Sample Advocacy Letter to Board: Elementary French Cut

The Advocacy Arguments and Models document has multiple examples of real letters and other communication with decision-makers:

• Advocacy Arguments and Models

Advocates can speak at Board of Education meetings:

• Speech: High School French Teacher Addresses Board to Preserve Elementary French Program
• Speech: Advocacy for Early Language Education
• Speech: High School Student Addresses Board (Passion for French)