The American Promise, Deferred : What Rural Kansas Teaches Us About the Risk of Losing Title III
Intro by Tricia McGhee | Commentary by Kasey Van Dyk
My grandmother, a public school teacher, taught me the values of rural America without so much as a word.
When her small town community recruited a doctor from Poland - who was then living in a major US city with his family - my grandmother didn’t just welcome them to rural life. She moved his entire family into her home while they got settled.
That family became part of ours. My summers in Kansas were filled with memories with those cousins. I roomed with one of them my freshman year at KU (the stories she could tell!) That aunt and uncle became the godparents of my firstborn. And at my grandmother’s funeral, one of my cousins stood up and shared that she had quietly tutored him in English for years when he struggled in school. I had no idea. That’s just what you did, to make sure every child was thriving in your community.
This is what I saw each summer: rural America at its best - rooted in humility, care, and shared responsibility. A place where new families aren’t just welcomed - they’re integrated, celebrated, and vital to the community’s future.
It’s that version of rural America I heard echoed in my conversation with Kasey Van Dyk, a longtime Title III educator and statewide leader in multilingual learner advocacy. Her reflections below are shared with permission, edited only slightly for clarity and flow, and serve as a deeply informed perspective on what’s at stake when rural schools are left without federal support.
Reflections from the Field
By Kasey Van Dyk
Thank you for the opportunity to share information about Title III funding and how it is used to support rural communities across the state of Kansas. Many states have larger numbers of students who qualify as English or Multilingual Learners (ELs or MLs); however, the percentage of MLs in Kansas is on par with the national average—around 9%.
Understanding the impact of Title III funding on rural Kansas requires awareness of two key things:
How funding to support MLs is acquired and used.
How that funding contributes to the economic growth and community life of rural Kansas.
A Brief Summary of How Funding Works
In Kansas, schools receive financial support for MLs in two ways:
Federal Title III funds
Formula-derived bilingual state aid
Despite what the name implies, bilingual state aid, in conjunction with federal dollars, works to do three main things that are required by district and supreme court precedent.
Support ML students in attaining English proficiency
Ensure access to grade-level content
Provide opportunities for family participation and community integration
These obligations are rooted in federal law and precedent: Lau v. Nichols (1974), the Equal Educational Opportunities Act(1974), Castañeda v. Pickard (1981), and United States v. Texas (1971, 1981) among others.
Districts receive these funds through the state by reporting the number of students receiving support. Here’s what that looks like:
Federal Title III funds are awarded to districts with at least 10 MLs. If the award exceeds $10,000, it’s distributed directly to the district.
Bilingual state aid is based on the average daily minutes of support provided by a highly qualified staff member.
Why Rural Districts Are Often Left Behind
This has real implications for education funding in rural Kansas:
Many districts have more than 10 MLs but still receive less than $10,000, meaning they must join a consortium to access federal support provided through the state.
Many other districts have fewer than 10 MLs and therefore don’t qualify for Title III funds at all - relying solely on bilingual state aid (if they have qualified staff).
Kansas has 286 school districts. Of those:
41 receive Title III funds directly.
78 receive them through consortia.
More qualify but are unable to join due to capacity issues.
When you're a superintendent or director doing the job of five people, it’s easy to overlook - until you experience the consequences.
My Role and What’s at Risk
Over the past two years, I supported 24 rural districts across east and central Kansas - and directly assisted over 80 districts in total. The vast majority were rural, many with fewer than 10 ML students.
As the cost of living and need for agricultural labor have grown, we’ve seen more ML families move into rural communities. But these same districts struggle to find staff in general- let alone staff with ESL credentials.
And here’s the catch: if a district doesn’t have qualified staff and serves fewer than 10 MLs, they’re still legally required to provide services - but receive no federal or state aid to do so.
This is where state-level support and service centers come in - but those are stretched incredibly thin. For example:
Kansas has 10 consultants supporting students with disabilities (17% of students).
There is 1 consultant supporting all ML students (roughly 10% of students).
My former service center supported 24 districts, led ESL endorsements for 20+ teachers, and negotiated $40,000+ in savings for districts - and these gains still did not amount to sufficient impact nor savings to support the continuance of my position.
Title III Is Not a Culture War - It’s a Community Tool
Let’s be clear: Title III is not DEI, as it has recently been mischaracterized. It’s federally mandated support for educational efficacy - strategic, measurable, and targeted to ensure students and families can access what is already provided to all students.
Practices like frontloading vocabulary, keyword translation, and using interpreters benefit all students, but they are essential for MLs. These supports allow students to leverage their home language and background knowledge to learn English.
We don’t learn to read or understand the world twice. Title III ensures all students can participate the first time.
The Communal and Economic Impact of MLs
It is no secret that Kansas is a conservative state. Regardless of one’s opinion about this, it is also worth noting that Kansans have a distinct culture founded in faith, respect, and kindness for one’s neighbor. This same culture is commonplace for the families of MLs moving into our rural communities. “Midwest nice,” and endless “Midwest goodbyes” are real. They are also an instrumental common ground in which community-wide relationships are built.
Rural communities want to support their ML students. They do care. But they cannot do this work without proper funding. The absence of support stifles students’ acquisition of English and threatens graduation rates - two things rural communites need to maintain qualified employees, ensure a sustained economy, and attract opportunities for growth.
The economic case is clear too:
Kansas agriculture generates $57 billion annually.
Addressing the farmworker shortage could add $11.7 billion more.
ML families are vital to sustaining that growth.
Rural communities need these students and families - not just as workers, but as neighbors, community members, and future graduates.
In Conclusion
The federal courts, as well as our elected lawmakers, have upheld that MLs deserve support in learning English, accessing curriculum, and integrating into their communities. Title III makes that support possible. It doesn’t dictate curriculum. It doesn’t override local control. It simply gives communities the tools to welcome all learners - and strengthen themselves in the process.
Title III funds are a legal obligation, a moral necessity, and a practical investment in rural America.
The elimination of roles like mine - and the threat to Title III funding overall - puts rural districts at risk of failing students, through no fault of their own.
Working with MLs, their families, and their communities is hard - but incredibly rewarding work. But we cannot do it without support.
If you want to learn more about the use and impact of Title III dollars in Kansas, hear from other experts across the Midwest, and be part of the movement to hold our elected officials accountable to the promises they’ve made to our students - join us for a live webinar continuing this conversation.
Together, we can ensure the American promise reaches every student, in every classroom, in every corner of this country.