Thread: Superintendent proposes making 2 public schools Spanish lang

CMS pitch would close 13 magnets
Gorman to present his plan to the school board next week on revamping specialized academic programs.
By Ann Doss Helms
ahelms@charlotteobserver.com
STF
JOHN D. SIMMONS/Observer Staff
CMS superintendent Peter Gorman said he's been busy preparing the 2008-09 budget for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.

Thirteen schools would lose magnet programs.

Collinswood and Oaklawn elementaries would become K-8 Spanish-language schools.

International Baccalaureate and math/science programs would become tougher to get into, a move that could strengthen schools that house them but push more struggling students back to neighborhood schools.

Those are among the proposals Superintendent Peter Gorman will pitch to the school board Tuesday as the board gets serious about revamping its slate of specialized academic programs.

Gorman sent his plan to board members Friday evening. It wasn't clear how much it would scale back the cost of busing students across sprawling Mecklenburg County, an issue that is gaining urgency as Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools faces a tight budget and soaring fuel costs.

The plan, which would eliminate magnets serving almost 2,100 students next year, is bound to be controversial. Next year's assignments wouldn't be affected; changes would take effect in 2009-10 or later.

And Gorman is leaving some tough issues for the board to grapple with. Among the issues he's putting on the table without making a proposal for:

Should Sedgefield Middle become the district's first Montessori middle school?

What should CMS do about low enrollment in some of its magnets for gifted students?

What does it mean that average test scores for low-income students in magnets are indistinguishable from those of low-income students in neighborhood schools?

The board won't vote on changes Tuesday. Officials have scheduled a series of magnet discussions around the county in July and early August, designed to give parents and students a chance to speak before a vote.

http://www.charlotte.com/local/story/679989.html

This is crazy.

These Suck-Up's have lost their minds ! Mexican Culture
http://tinyurl.com/4u8hgh more infro , same subject .

INVASION USA
'Adios' English school? Super wants all-Spanish
Administrator calls for language program amid soaring illegal immigration statistics


Peter Gorman (courtesy Charlotte Observer)


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: June 24, 2008
9:47 pm Eastern


By Chelsea Schilling
© 2008 WorldNetDaily



Peter Gorman (courtesy Charlotte Observer)


Dissatisfied with teaching in Spanish 85 percent of the time, a North Carolina superintendent is pushing for a $10 million budget that includes a plan for a school where only Spanish is spoken.

Superintendent Peter Gorman pitched his proposal to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board today, with provisions to turn Collinswood Elementary into a Spanish program. Nora Carr, chief communications officer for Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District, told WND the facility will help to preserve Hispanic culture.

"We find that a lot of kids who go there have parents who might be English-speaking immigrants, and they might be very successful," she said. "They fear that their kids might be losing some of the culture or not getting the fluency in the language because they speak English at home."

Carr said one of the top executives with AT&T is Hispanic and sends his children to the school.

"Obviously they are very fluent, well-educated in English, legal citizens," she said. "They're sending their kids there because they want them to have exposure to their native language."

Collinswood Dual Language Academy already provides a K-5 "language immersion program." The school began with a total Spanish curriculum. According to a brochure to promote the Spanish services, "In this dual language program, kindergarteners spend 85% of the instructional day learning the curriculum in Spanish and 15% of the day learning in English."

Carr said the program places equal emphasis on fluency in English and Spanish, but according to a program brochure, Collinswood teachers provide instruction in Spanish while introducing English words. Texts are provided in Spanish as well.

When students reach the first grade, they spend more than half the day learning in Spanish only. Homework is allowed to be completed in either language.

However, the dual language program could place even more emphasis on Spanish and stretch the curriculum into the eighth grade if Gorman's plan is approved.

Collinswood enrolls more than 510 students, and the population is 53 percent Hispanic, 29 percent black and 17 percent white. The school estimates 66 percent of the student population is eligible to receive low-income free or reduced-price school lunches.

With nearly 117,000 students, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District is the nation's 23rd largest public school district. It sparked public controversy last year when a student named Jose Velasquez recited the Pledge of Allegiance in English at his Garinger High School graduation, the Charlotte Observer reported. Immediately afterward, CMS organizers requested that he repeat the pledge in Spanish.

(Story continues below)





Collinswood School


Based on U.S. Census 2000 figures, the Hispanic population increased 571 percent in Mecklenburg County from 1990 to 2000. Likewise, Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools experienced a 822 percent jump in Hispanic enrollments from 1995 to 2000.

According to the City of Charlotte's Mayor's Immigration Study, much of the growth is "due to the high birth rate of Hispanics and illegal immigrants in Mecklenburg County. … However, the full impact of illegal or legal immigration for the school system cannot be determined, as Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools, like schools across the country, do not ask for citizenship status when students are enrolled for the academic year."

CMS claims the cost per student is $8,198. The study multiplies that number by the 13,000 students in the Limited English Proficiency program and estimates that $106 million is spent on illegal immigrants in the district. In 2006, CMS received $6 million in state funding for the LEP program.

"Certainly we have kids who are first-generation immigrants and are learning English, and kids who were born here and don't know English at all who come from all kinds of backgrounds and cultures," Carr said.

When asked if the Spanish program will cost more than typical public schools, Carr responded, "Traditionally magnet programs cost a little bit more, though we're actually combining programs to save money, so this is actually going to be a cost savings for us. Their teachers get paid the same amount as a teacher at a regular elementary school. There may be some additional curriculum costs."

While Gorman has been discussing budget cutbacks for hiring teachers, and many instructors complain that they are forced to pay for school supplies, the district's media division enjoys a budget of $3.57 million and employs 29 people. Some critics say the division is more focused on spinning the image of the district rather than keeping the public informed. CMS even has its own TV department with 36 shows.

Carr said plans for the Spanish program are in preliminary stages at this point, and the board will make its final decision in the fall.

"It's all up for discussion; nothing is firm yet," she said. "It's simply a proposal, and there are a variety of options that we're looking at. We'll be taking those out to a series of community seven forums through August to get input from parents, the community and the general public."





http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php? ... geId=67886

What in the heck is going on in North Carolina????

The vise is tightening!

Dissatisfied with teaching in Spanish 85 percent of the time, a North Carolina superintendent is pushing for a $10 million budget that includes a plan for a school where only Spanish is spoken.

Superintendent Peter Gorman pitched his proposal to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board today, with provisions to turn Collinswood Elementary into a Spanish program. Nora Carr, chief communications officer for Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District, told WND the facility will help to preserve Hispanic culture.

Im speechless!

Dissatisfied with teaching in Spanish 85 percent of the time, a North Carolina superintendent is pushing for a $10 million budget that includes a plan for a school where only Spanish is spoken.

Superintendent Peter Gorman pitched his proposal to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board today, with provisions to turn Collinswood Elementary into a Spanish program. Nora Carr, chief communications officer for Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District, told WND the facility will help to preserve Hispanic culture.

Im speechless!

Charlotte-Mecklenburg, N.C., School District contact:
http://www.cms.k12.nc.us/
"Contact" at top leads to Executive Staff (Superintendent Gorman, Chief Communications Officer Carr) and to the nine members of their Board of Education.

"Carr said one of the top executives with AT&T is Hispanic and sends his children to the school."

"They're sending their kids there because they want them to have exposure to THEIR NATIVE LANGUAGE (evidentally exposure to our native language is no longer adequate!).

"We find a lot of kids who go there have parents who might be English-speaking immigrants and they might be very successful, she said. "They FEAR THEIR KIDS MIGHT BE LOSING SOME OF THE CULTURE OR NOT GETTING THE FLUENCY IN THE LANGUAGE because they speak English at home."

This is absolutely unbelievable to me! Now U.S. taxpayers are to pay for what should be private Spanish language instruction for the children of successful Hispanic immigrants! Not poor immigrants, or those who speak any other language, but "successful" Spanish-speaking immigrants who also want their children to retain their "culture" at our expense!

What about the fears of United States parents who "fear their kids might be losing some of the culture or not getting fluency in the language" because they are now required to to wait while ESL students learn English or are pushed into newly-required classes conducted in Spanish themselves! I will be emailing; I hope others will be, too.