Strategic Advocacy: CEEL’s Journey Toward Equitable Mathematics Excellence
The Center for Equity for English Learners (CEEL) is committed to ensuring that all multilingual learners have access to high-quality, equitable instructional materials (HQIM). By leveraging research-based insights and culturally responsive pedagogy, CEEL advocates for systemic changes that place the needs of English learners at the center of mathematics policy and classroom practice.
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Mission and Strategic Evolution
CEEL is mobilizing its expertise to bridge the gap between state policy and classroom reality, ensuring that California's multilingual learners are the primary beneficiaries of the new Mathematics Framework. Having successfully navigated a multi-year advocacy phase (2021-2025) to shape state standards and adoption criteria, we have now transitioned into a robust implementation phase for 2026. Our leadership is now focused on equipping local educational agencies (LEAs) with the high-level technical assistance and evidence-based tools required to turn statewide policy into equitable district practice.
The Advocacy Foundation (2020–2023): Driving the Framework
Throughout the development of the California Mathematics Framework, CEEL served as a voice for the "equity lens" that as part of the High Quality Instructional Materials Learning Partners Coalition (est. 2021) has in state guidance. This lens is transformative: it requires LEAs to shift from a legacy of remediation toward providing all students with rigorous, grade-level content access through intentional instructional scaffolding. By providing rigorous written and oral testimony to the Instructional Quality Commission (IQC), CEEL ensured the framework moved beyond theory to address the persistent achievement gaps facing multilingual learners.
CEEL’s advocacy is anchored by three core guideposts:
- Asset-Based Approaches: Leveraging the unique cultural and linguistic strengths of every student as a foundation for mathematical reasoning.
- Culturally and Linguistically Sustaining Practices: Promoting pedagogy that affirms student identity while delivering high-cognitive-demand content.
- Integrated English Language Development (ELD): Strategically weaving language support into math instruction to enable students to construct and critique mathematical arguments.
The Foundation of Advocacy (2020–2023): From Framework to Collective Action
During the "Founding & Framework Advocacy" stage (2020–2023), the members of the HQIM-LPC mobilized to influence the development and adoption of the 2023 California Mathematics Framework. Through iterative review cycles, the coalition ensured that the Framework moved beyond generalities to include specific mandates for equity.
Shared Coalition Achievements (2021–2023):
- Legislative & Policy Influence: Delivered comprehensive written and oral testimony to the Instructional Quality Commission (IQC) to ensure math instruction remains accessible to the state's diverse student body.
- Pedagogical Advocacy: Successfully secured the inclusion of Integrated English Language Development (ELD) within mathematics instruction, ensuring language acquisition is embedded in content learning.
- State Board Engagement: Submitted strategic sign-on letters to the State Board of Education (SBE) emphasizing that the assets of ML/EL students must be the guidepost for high-quality instruction.
The HQIM-LPC Coalition
The coalition is made by eight member organizations, with the Loyola Marymount University Center for Equity for English Learners (CEEL) providing strategic expertise and thought leadership to ensure the assets and needs of Multilingual Learners (ML) and English Learners (EL) remain central to state policy. The partners include:
- Loyola Marymount University Center for Equity for English Learners (CEEL): Strategic lead on language development and culturally/linguistically responsive pedagogy.
- California Mathematics Council (CMC): Professional engagement lead for statewide mathematics educators.
- Californians Together: Policy advocate for English Learner success and the expansion of multilingualism.
- EdTrust-West: Advocacy and policy lead focused on educational justice for students of color and low-income communities.
- English Learners Success Forum (ELSF): Technical advisor for the design of materials that support linguistic development in content areas.
- Partnership for Los Angeles Schools: Implementation partner promoting systemic changes and school-site supports in Los Angeles.
- San Joaquin County Office of Education (SJCOE): Regional lead providing technical assistance for equitable instructional implementation.
- UnboundEd: Professional learning provider focused on GLEAM (Grade-Level, Engaging, Affirming, and Meaningful) instruction.
The Power of Partnership: The Five-Part Definition of High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM)
CEEL is a founding leader of the High-Quality Instructional Materials Learning Partners Coalition (HQIM-LPC). This alliance of advocates, researchers and practitioners is united by a shared mission to raise the bar for math education. Central to our work is a precise definition of HQIM, synthesized into five essential criteria. The HQIM-LPC asserts that materials are only high-quality if they leverage student assets and provide meaningful access to rigor. This standard is defined by five core elements:
- Alignment to State Grade-Level Standards: Materials must integrate math, language, literacy, and ELD standards. They must make the mathematics instructional shifts explicit, adhering to the aspects of rigor: a balance of conceptual understanding, procedural skills/fluency, and application.
- Access for All Students to Grade-Level Content: Materials must use spiraling concepts to develop proficiency over time. They must support a student's full linguistic repertoire through translanguaging strategies. Per CA Education Code Section 48985, materials must be available in home languages for populations representing 15% or more of the student body.
- Clear Guidance to Facilitate Implementation: Resources must align with the 2023 California Math Framework, providing user-friendly lesson layouts and vertical/horizontal alignment to build coherence across grade levels.
- Informed by Culturally and Linguistically Sustaining Pedagogy: Materials must act as "windows and mirrors," leveraging students' prior knowledge and cultural "funds of knowledge" to build curiosity and deep thinking models.
- High-Quality Assessments of Both Content and Language: Materials must include formative and summative tools that measure math mastery alongside language development. Students must be assessed on their ability to use mathematical language to negotiate meaning and communicate understanding.
The Advocacy Journey: Strategic Stages of Impact
The coalition’s trajectory through California’s Path to Math Equity timeline:
- Founding & Framework Advocacy: Although representative members of our various organizations worked together since 2020 to advance the revision of the framework, the coalition was established to uplift a unified voice to support the revision and adoption of the 2023 CA Mathematics Framework.
- Ensuring Equity in State Review: Mobilizing partners to review state-submitted materials. A critical milestone was the May 18, 2025 letter to the IQC regarding the lack of EL-focused training for instructional material reviewers.
- SBE Math Materials Approval: Influencing the November 2025 state approval of math materials and releasing the HQIM-LPC Joint Statement, which provided essential guidance for districts to implement the new adoption list with an equity lens.
- Local Adoption & Implementation Support: Transitioning to field support by launching tools to assist Local Educational Agencies (LEAs) in equitable selection.
- The work ahead: As LEAs select and adopt mathematics materials, the High Quality Instructional Materials coalition will pivot its efforts and become the High Quality Mathematics Instruction-Learning Partners Coalition, and move towards advocacy for high-quality professional learning and ML/EL-centered instruction in order to serve California’s 1.1 million ML/EL students.
Strategic Milestones and the November 2025 Math Materials Adoption
The transition from policy to practice reached a critical juncture in late 2025. CEEL, together with the HQIM coalition, exerted continuous pressure on state bodies to ensure the formal adoption of materials was not merely a compliance exercise, but a standard-setting event for equity.
- March - August 2025: CEEL co-signed multiple letters to the IQC demanding EL-focused reviewer training and equity-centered messaging in the review process.
- August 2025: Release of the HQIM-LPC Infographic, establishing the coalition’s definitive five-point criteria for high-quality materials.
- September 17, 2025: Delivery of public comments to the IQC, providing critical observations on the adoption process and the necessity of rigorous, EL-centered review.
- October 30, 2025: Submission of coalition public comment letter to the SBE regarding the "Item 17" release of approved materials, urging the state to provide deeper implementation guidance for multilingual learners.
- November 2025: SBE Approval of Mathematics Instructional Materials, marking the formal release of the state-approved list.
- November 7, 2025: Release of the HQIM-LPC Joint Statement on the 2025 Mathematics Materials Adoption, signaling the coalition's pivot toward supporting local implementation.
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With the state list finalized, CEEL has mobilized a suite of tools to assist LEAs in navigating the complexities of local adoption. These resources ensure that district leaders make decisions based on instructional vision rather than surface-level compliance.
Math List Hub: Developed in collaboration with UnboundEd, this digital filtering tool allows district leaders to winnow the California adoption list based on specific instructional needs. It enables LEAs to identify programs that truly align with the equity goals of the California Mathematics Framework.
"Between the Greens" Tool: This strategic resource is designed to help decision-makers look beyond surface-level ratings. It provides educators with the practical insights needed to evaluate if materials fit their specific local context, community language ecologies, and instructional vision for multilingual learners.
Evaluating Math Materials for Equity and Access, an HQIM Coalition report that highlights how recently approved materials support diverse learners, particularly multilingual learners. The report outlines what review teams should expect, identifies areas for adaptation, and recommends targeted professional learning to strengthen implementation.
Math Materials Adoption Support and Guidance | CEEL’s HQIM Partner UnboundEd, part of CalCurriculum has launched the Math List Hub, an innovative new filtering tool to support users with identifying and winnowing math programs on the California adoption list, and Between the Greens, a tool designed to help decision-makers better understand HQIM and giving educators clear, practical insights so they can make informed decisions about which materials best fit their instructional vision and local context.
ELSF’s Curriculum Adoption - Math Must Haves! | Check out ELSF’s Guidance signaling three non-negotiable features every math curriculum must include to truly serve all students, especially multilingual learners (MLLs).
Biliteracy by Design Playbook: A cornerstone of CEEL’s 2026 support, this playbook is a comprehensive capacity-building framework for sustaining high-quality dual language systems. It moves beyond technical guidance to center Foundational Commitments, honoring linguistic rights and community language ecologies as non-negotiables in educational planning.
Join the Movement
We invite district leaders, school board members, and educators to partner with us in this implementation phase. By connecting with CEEL you gain access to the collective expertise of the HQIM Learning Partners Coalition and our comprehensive Mathematics Resource Hub to guide your local adoption journey.
HQIM Definition
CEEL leads advocacy efforts as part of The High-Quality Instructional Materials Learning Partners Coalition (HQIM-LPC).
HQIM-LPC At-a-Glance
An infographic overview of our coalition’s vision and guiding principles, with links to resources and guidance your team can use to advance math materials adoption and move your work forward.
Equity Resources
Resources and Links to support the implementation of specific Math strategies as highlighted in the New Framework.
Math Equity Toolkit
Resources and guidance to support the development of Black, LatinX, and Multilingual students in grades 6-8.
CA HQIM Coalition: Resource Page
Delve into resources carefully curated by the HQIM learning community partners to empower educators and enhance student learning.
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CEEL's HQIM Selection Criteria for ML/ELs
Criteria for Selecting High Quality Instructional Materials with Considerations for Multilingual/English Learners.
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