An offshoot of WILL, WILL-O is funded by No Child Left Behind: Oregon University/School Partnerships Program to enhance the professional development goals and activities of WILL. But WILLO offers a specific focus on second language teachers, who work in high-need locations throughout rural Oregon.

Students in rural Oregon traditionally have not had access to the same quality and variety of language courses as their peers in urban and suburban areas. Consequently, WILL-O aspires to create a generation of internationally literate students in Oregon. This will be achieved, in part, by developing long-term networks among teachers working in high-need rural schools. The Oregon teachers will engage in the same interactive and teacher-centered professional development activities as their WILL counterparts.

In Oregon, second languages are a core content area of the state's Proficiency-based Admission Standards System (PASS). PASS is based on standards that describe the academic skills required for students to be accepted into Oregon's public universities. Improving second language instruction will increase the number of rural students meeting PASS standards, thus increasing the percentage who attend and succeed in college.