12/07/2024
With the failure of the update school levy to pass in November, the school district will be making decisions on where to cut to meet the budget for 25/26 and beyond. One of the options is secondary Immersion. PLSAS SIEF put together a template to send to the school board to urge them to keep secondary Immersion going. We encourage parents to reach out to the school board and district administration and let them know what this program means to all of us. Feel free to use and modify the template. The next school board meeting is Monday (12/09) at pm.
The school board's email is: [email protected]
Superintendent Thomas' email is: [email protected]
Template email follows:
Dear Board Members:
I write in support of maintaining funding for the secondary immersion program at PLSAS.
In addition to teaching our students to become bilingual learners and speakers, our students have also built strong social and cultural connections through this program. The program contributes to district equity goals as it offers access to more content and a welcoming environment to our Spanish speaking ELL learners. Our students have high academic achievement in the immersion program and in their regular courses, and are also getting a head start in earning college credits.
My child reports, “INSERT QUOTE FROM CHILD”
It is understandable and regrettable that the proposed Coordinator position cannot be opened at this time, but now that the secondary immersion program has finally reached stability, it would be a disappointment to give up on it. The District Administration and the teachers in the classroom have spent countless hours shaping this program. Finding qualified teachers is one of the biggest obstacles to establishing secondary immersion programs, and currently both the middle schools and high school have qualified, dedicated teachers, experienced in working with immersion students, who are committed to the success of this program. Also, the district has already made a significant financial investment in the secondary immersion program. The licenses to our curriculum are already paid for four more years. It would be wasteful to cut the program completely now and not utilize those resources.
Furthermore, the Immersion program has long had a cohort of dedicated parents that surpasses many other booster groups in the district. The time, efforts, materials, and funds the parents have provided or raised for the Immersion program, both elementary and secondary, has been immense. This includes books, curriculum material, building features, and of course the Amity interns. The district has effectively gotten the program at a discount of what it would cost to fund the program by itself.
Cutting the program now will make rebuilding it later even more difficult.
As a parent of a Spanish Immersion program student, I urge the Board to maintain funding for the secondary immersion program.
Sincerely,
NAME
