Maine | WIDA
Maine
About
WIDA Consortium
Maine
Member of the WIDA Consortium since 2004.
Assessments
Maine uses WIDA Screener for Kindergarten and WIDA Screener Online for Grades 1-12 to identify multilingual learners. All multilingual learners in Grades K-12 are required to participate in ACCESS. Multilingual learners with the most significant cognitive disabilities, who participate in state alternate assessments based on alternate academic achievement standards, participate in Alternate ACCESS. Both WIDA ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS are administered during the same window: January 5 – March 10, 2026.
Note that WIDA does not offer a screening assessment for PreK at this time
. The Maine Department of Education allows districts to use the PreK screening assessment of their choosing. Reference Maine’s 2025-2026
Identification and Placement Guidance
document for suggested assessments and identification scores. Contact Jane Armstrong with any questions regarding identification at
Jane.Armstrong@maine.gov
Testing Dates
11/20/25 - 3/10/26
WIDA AMS Test Setup Available for Registrations
12/11/25 - 12/12/25
Districts Receive Test Materials
12/11/25 - 2/20/26
Additional Test Material Ordering Window in WIDA AMS
1/5/26 - 3/10/26
Test Window
3/10/26
Deadline for Shipping Completed Test Materials to DRC - Postmark date
4/29/26
Districts Receive ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS Reports and Data - Posted in WIDA AMS
5/15/26 - 5/18/26
Districts Receive Printed ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS Reports
6/11/26
Updated ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS Data - Posted in WIDA AMS for SEA and Districts
Requirements and Resources
See below for state-specific information and resources related to EL assessment, including your state’s WIDA ACCESS Checklist, where you can find each step in the ACCESS testing process from beginning to end.
WIDA ACCESS Online Checklist
WIDA ACCESS Paper Checklist
Identification and Placement Guidance
State Testing Requirements
Maine students in grades 1-12 participate in the WIDA  ACCESS  Online assessment. The Kindergarten ACCESS remains a paper-based assessment only.
Paper-based forms for students in Grades 1-12 are available for students as an IEP/504 Plan accommodation only. The Director/Coordinator of Multilingual Programs must complete a paper-based form request prior to October 24, 2025 and email to:
mechelle.ganglfinger@maine.gov
. The request can be found at:
English Language Proficiency
Assessments | Department of Education (maine.gov)
Beginning in 4th grade, students participate in the Writing domain online. Grades 1-3 participate via student writing booklets.
Grade 4 ACCESS Paper Based Writing Domain option will be available for select students.
Test Preparation and Training
Your personal WIDA Secure Portal account provides access to WIDA Screener and ACCESS training materials.
Training courses and certification quizzes for ACCESS are located in the WIDA Secure Portal.
District ACCESS Test Coordinators ensure that all educators administering ACCESS in SY2025-2026 complete the appropriate training course in the WIDA Secure Portal as well as the certification quiz with a score of 80% or greater.
Required Trainings
Speaking
for Grades 1-5 (and/or 6-12): Scoring WIDA ACCESS Paper
Speaking for Grades 1-5 (and/or 6-12): Scoring WIDA Screener and ACCESS Braille
ACCESS Braille Speaking (if administering Braille)
Kindergarten ACCESS: Administration and Scoring (available beginning 9/29/25)
WIDA Screener – Speaking and Writing
ACCESS 4th grade Writing Domain (paper booklet) - Maine DOE specific
Recommended Annual Recertification
Online ACCESS: Administration
Paper ACCESS: Administration
WIDA Alternate ACCESS: Administration and Scoring
Additional information about ACCESS and Alternate ACCESS testing in Maine is available on the Maine Department of Education ELP Assessment webpage:
English Language Proficiency
Assessments | Department of Education (maine.gov)
Standards and Instructional Support
Together with the
Maine Learning Results
, the
WIDA English Language Development Standards Framework, 2020 Edition
forms the foundation for ESOL programs in the state of Maine. All school administrative units (SAUs) are to implement the ELD standards as an essential part of the core instructional program for students who are multilingual learners.
Multiple professional learning opportunities are available to support schools as they work to implement the standards. Visit
Maine DOE
website for details or, to request assistance, contact Jane Armstrong, ESOL State Specialist, at
jane.armstrong@maine.gov
or Melanie Junkins, Multilingual and Bilingual Education Specialist, at
melanie.junkins@maine.gov
Professional Learning
For Self-Paced Workshops:
All Maine PreK-12 educators have free unlimited access to twelve Self-Paced Workshops that offer relevant, practical content that will build capacity in supporting multilingual learners. Workshop titles include:
Developing Language for Learning in Mathematics
Engaging Multilingual Learners in Science: Making Sense of Phenomena
Exploring the WIDA PreK-3 Essential Actions
Let’s Play! Multilingual Children’s Joyful Learning in PreK-3
Making Language Visible in the Classroom
Newcomers: Promoting Success through Strengthening Practice
Reading Comprehension Across Content Areas with Multilingual Learners
Reframing Education for Long-term English Learners
Teaching Multilingual Learners Social Studies through Multiple Perspectives
The WIDA ELD Standards Framework: A Collaborative Approach
WIDA Español: Desarollando el español: las expectativas del lenguaje
WIDA Español: Evaluaciones del desarrollo del lenguaje a nivel de salón - Classroom assessment for language development
All Self-Paced Workshops are accessible via the
WIDA Secure Portal
. To obtain a WIDA Secure Portal account, contact WIDA Client Services directly at
help@wida.us
or (866) 276-7735.
For Facilitated Virtual Workshops:
Maine will be offering the following facilitated virtual workshops:
Expanding Reading Instruction with Multilingual Learners.
Participation on both dates required: 10/6/25
and
10/20/25 (3:00-4:30 p.m.)
When Language and Disability Meet: Planning Instruction to Support Multilingual Learners Who are Dually Identified
. Participation on both dates required: 11/13/25
and
11/20/25 (3:15-5 p.m.)
Please see the
Maine DOE Event Calendar
as well as the
Maine DOE website
to learn more about WIDA Facilitated Virtual Workshop opportunities and how to register.
Contacts
Maine Department of Education
Mechelle Ganglfinger
Alternate and English Language Proficiency Assessment Coordinator
(207) 242-4244
mechelle.ganglfinger@maine.gov
Jane Armstrong
ESOL State Specialist
(207) 446-3294
jane.armstrong@maine.gov
WIDA Client Services Center
Contact us for questions about training materials or test administration procedures, classroom resources, or for problems with your WIDA Secure Portal account.
help@wida.wisc.edu
(866) 276-7735
Logging In
WIDA Secure Portal
Use the WIDA Secure Portal to access test training manuals and resources, as well as Online Professional Learning modules.
To obtain a new login, contact
help@wida.wisc.edu
, call (866) 276-7735, or contact your District Test Coordinator.
For assistance with your account, contact the WIDA Client Services Center at
help@wida.wisc.edu
or call
(866) 276-7735
WIDA Assessment Management System (WIDA AMS)
WIDA AMS is managed by our partner company Data Recognition Corporation (DRC). You can order ACCESS materials, manage your student and test information, and find technology resources and testing software via WIDA AMS.
To obtain a new login as a Test Administrator, contact your District Test Coordinator.
New District Test Coordinators should contact DRC Customer Service at
wida@datarecognitioncorp.com
to request an account.
For assistance accessing your account, contact DRC Customer Service at
wida@datarecognitioncorp.com
or call
(855) 787-9615