Each member state in WIDA has a voice and a vote in the direction of the Consortium.
By joining forces and pooling resources, our states are able to meet the requirements of NCLB in an effective, economical manner. For example, WIDA has conducted one bridge study between old and new English proficiency instruments. WIDA is also developing and validating an alternate assessment for use with ELLs with severe disabilities. These are examples of efforts that would be difficult for a single state to undertake alone.
WIDA has already procured the services of contractors in a manner which meets or exceeds typical state procurement requirements for bidding and sole sourcing of contracts on behalf of our member states. We can provide new states with the documentation needed to meet your procurement requirements.
WIDA is affiliated with many leaders in the fields of language education, curriculum development, and assessment. Examples include the Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL), Margo Gottlieb, Rebecca Kopriva, Lorraine Valdez Pierce, and the School for International Training (SIT).
Consortium prices are competitive with commercial companies. Since we are a non-profit cooperative, prices may be adjusted up to reflect inflation or Board priorities or down as new members enter, creating economies of scale. The WIDA base price per student includes printing, distributing, scoring, and reporting the ACCESS for ELLs^®. It also includes the on-line test administration training and face-to-face professional development dates. There is an additional fee for alignment work but there are no membership fees. Contact Tim Boals at 608.263.4326 or tjboals@wisc.edu for information regarding the current base price or additional pricing information.

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