A state program created by a 2023 law allows teachers to become licensed to teach heritage languages. Since then, the group of teachers getting a license has been growing.

In 2024, on Minnesota Now we spoke to one of the 15 teachers who became the first in the state to teach Hmong. Now a new group of teachers have become licensed to teach in Somali and Karen.

Sahan Journal education reporter Becky Dernbach wrote about this recently and she joined the program.

Ehtalow Zar is a math teacher who also teaches Karen language and culture at Johnson Senior High School in St. Paul. She’s one of two teachers who just became the first licensed to teach Karen language in the state, and maybe the nation. She joined the program as well.