The trilingual leader who oversees Portland Public Schools translation services to help families who speak languages including Spanish and Somali communicate seamlessly with their children’s schools won national accolades Wednesday for her leadership.
Marifer Sager, the district’s senior manager of language access services, makes sure that all districtwide written communications go out in the five most prominent non-English languages --Spanish, Vietnamese, Chinese, Somali and Russian -- and that those missives are clear and culturally appropriate, according to national education news outlet Education Week, which chose her for the honor.
Sager constantly brainstorms new ways to make sure that parents who don’t speak English receive the same information as English-speaking families at the same time, the education news outlet said.
Education Week on Tuesday announced 11 outstanding school district leaders selected for their innovative and effective leadership. Winners were chosen from among nearly 350 nominees submitted by readers, journalists, school administrator groups and education experts.
Too often, Sager told Education Week, parents who don’t speak English feel like an afterthought, which can lead them to disengage from the school community or be less likely to speak up about what their child needs.
Sager, from Puebla, Mexico, immigrated twice as an adult -- first to Canada, then to the United States, where she became a citizen last spring. She speaks Spanish, English and French.
She told the national news outlet that she vividly remembers what it felt like to be in a room where she knew people were talking about her, but she didn’t know what they were saying.
“Being in that medical appointment and not being able to understand what is said about my health and having to trust someone else?” Sager said. “It’s not a nice place to be, let me tell you that.”
-- Betsy Hammond; betsyhammond@oregonian.com; @chalkup
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