🔐 Account type(s) with default permissions to manage this: Administrator (Specialist permissions may vary)
💻 Tier(s) this is available for: Foundation, Essential, Pro
Texas Local Education Agencies (LEAs) must complete the required Emergent Bilingual (EB) student identification assessments and convene the Language Proficiency Assessment Committee (LPAC) within four calendar weeks of a student's initial enrollment in a Texas public school. This toolkit walks you through conducting an Initial Review LPAC using Ellevation Forms, from template selection through generating Parent Letters.
Jump to a step:
Quick Resources and Learning Opportunities
Ready to start now? These resources support every stage of the Initial Review LPAC process and are designed to fit your role and experience level.
For Administrators: Configuration and Setup
- 5 steps to Initial LPACs (orientation doc): your end-to-end checklist. Read it first and keep it open as a reference during setup.
- Ellevation Academy course: self-paced foundational learning. Best for Administrators newer to the platform who want structured guidance before configuring. See how to access the Texas Initial Review LPAC course.
- Video pathway: Texas Initial LPAC Video Pathway: short-form videos for each setup step. Best for Administrators who learn by doing.
- Live webinar: Preparing, managing, and conducting Initial LPACs with Ellevation Forms: a live walkthrough of template selection and Cycle setup with Q&A. Most valuable after completing the course or video pathway.
- Microlearning: Reviewing and selecting templates: a 30-minute live session focused on Step 1. Attend after the webinar with specific template questions ready.
- Microlearning: Creating the LPAC Cycle: a 30-minute live session focused on Step 3. Attend after the templates microlearning so Cycle setup is informed by your completed template decisions.
- Microlearning: Conducting and Managing the Initial LPAC Meeting: a train-the-trainer session that helps district staff prepare campus ESL/Bilingual Specialists to conduct and manage Initial LPAC meetings in Ellevation Forms. Participants explore the in-meeting workflow, including completing LPAC forms, documenting decisions, and managing contributor input.
- Microlearning: Generating Reports, Meeting Minutes, and Parent Letters: a 30-minute train-the-trainer session focused on the post-meeting workflow in Ellevation Forms. Participants learn how to generate required LPAC outputs, including reports, meeting minutes, and Parent Letters, after Initial LPAC meetings.
💡 Quick Tip
Complete the microlearning sessions in order: finish the templates session before the Cycle creation session. This ensures your Cycle configuration is informed by your finalized template selections.
For Specialists: Conducting and Managing LPACs (Steps 4 and 5)
Specialists take over after the Administrator has completed setup and set the Cycle to Live. The Administrator-to-Specialist handoff happens once Steps 1 through 3 are complete.
- 4 steps to meetings (quick-reference doc): covers the four key actions Specialists take during and after the LPAC meeting. Read it before watching the videos.
- Video: Managing Initial LPACs: short-form videos for each step of conducting and managing the LPAC process. Not yet available. The microlearning above covers this content until the pathway is released.
Watch the overview video to see how Ellevation Forms supports the Initial Review LPAC process in Texas:
Before the LPAC
Step 1: Review and Choose the Initial Review LPAC Form Template
Ellevation Forms comes preloaded with Texas-specific, TEA-aligned Form Templates that help you identify Emergent Bilingual students efficiently. You can use and reuse these templates throughout the school year. For requirements and updates, review TEA's Initial Review Checklist and the TEA Bilingual/ESL Education Programs page.
Step 2: Identify Students
A home language survey must be administered to every student enrolling for the first time in a Texas public school, in any grade from pre-kindergarten through Grade 12. If any response on the home language survey indicates that a language other than English is or was used for communication, that student must be assessed in accordance with Chapter 89.
Your school district can add students to Ellevation in one of the following ways:
- [Best practice] Add students to Ellevation automatically through your district's Student Information System (SIS).
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[If SIS automation is not available] Have central office or campus staff manually add new students to Ellevation. Add students manually here.
- Manually adding students can create duplicate student records. If you are unsure how new students are added to Ellevation in your district, contact your Ellevation Administrator for guidance.
- To ensure manually added students are linked to the correct records in your SIS, enter the correct Student ID numbers.
- If you generate Ellevation Parent Letters for students who qualify for services, add each student's Home Language to their Student Profile so letters are translated correctly.
- If you need to add LAS Links scores, watch the video below.
- Manually adding LAS Links scores can create duplicate test result records. If you are unsure how scores are added in your district, contact your Ellevation Administrator.
⚠️ Warning
The Student List filters used to identify eligible students may differ based on your district's configuration. If you are unsure which filters to apply, contact your Ellevation Administrator or Partner Success Manager before proceeding.
To identify students eligible for an Initial Review LPAC, use the filters in the Student List to create a saved Student List View. Watch the video to learn how:
Step 3: Create an Initial Review LPAC Cycle
Cycles assign forms and structure form assignments into time-based workflows. For Initial Review LPACs, we strongly recommend creating a single, district-wide Cycle that stays open for the entire school year.
For more details on Cycles, review the Create Form Cycles article in the Resource Center.
During the LPAC
Step 4: Launch and Manage Forms
After a Cycle is created, Initial Review LPAC forms are assigned to students from the saved Student List View you selected. Preview the generated forms, and when ready, set them to Live for the LPAC committee. For details, see the Generate Matches and Assign Forms article.
Newly enrolled students must be added to the Initial Review LPAC Cycle. Use the Add student to cycle or Get new students action to add enrolled students to an existing Cycle. You can also add new students directly from the Student List or a Student Profile. See the Adding students to a cycle article for details.
💡 Quick Tip
Use a saved Student List View or a dashboard tile to track newly enrolled students on your campus or across the district. See the Manage Student List Views article for instructions.
⚠️ Warning
Before conducting the LPAC, confirm that all committee members have the correct permissions. Any user completing an LPAC in Ellevation must have Manage access to Form Assignments if they are not on the student's schedule. Review the Manage Forms Permission article for guidance.
Step 5: Complete Forms and Conduct the LPAC
The LPAC meets to review relevant information about all students who qualify to take the ELP Test for Identification. The committee reviews each student's home language survey, ELP assessment scores, and other available data to determine identification and recommend program placement.
LPAC committee composition: The committee must include a Bilingual or ESL-certified teacher (based on the program the student may enroll in), a parent representative, and a campus Administrator.
A student is identified as an Emergent Bilingual (EB) student if any of the following apply:
- In pre-kindergarten through Grade 1: the student's listening and speaking scores on the state-approved ELP identification test fall below the level designated for English proficiency.
- In Grades 2 through 12: the student's listening, speaking, reading, and writing scores on the state-approved ELP identification test fall below the level designated for English proficiency.
- The student's English ability is so limited, or their disabilities so severe, that the ELP assessment cannot be administered. This determination is made in conjunction with the Admission, Review, and Dismissal (ARD) committee.
Once students with a home language other than English are added to Ellevation and their ELP scores are uploaded, you can conduct Initial Review LPACs. Watch the video to see the full process:
After the LPAC
Step 6: Generate Reports and Parent Letters
After the LPAC, the committee provides written notice to each identified student's family, informing them of the student's classification as an EB student and requesting approval for program placement. Parent Letters must be sent within 10 days of a student's classification.
Some LPAC decisions must also be documented in PEIMS. You can generate a spreadsheet of LPAC decisions to share with your PEIMS coordinators. Saved Student List Views that highlight Language Program Recommendations make it easy to generate Parent Letters and export reports in one step.
⚠️ Warning
When creating a Student List View for ESL identification and placement Parent Letters, select both ESL Pull-Out and ESL Content-Based (if applicable), because both recommendations apply to ESL placement.
For additional help generating reports and letters, review the Generate Parent Letters article in the Resource Center.