There are two sides to the story
I’m deeply concerned with the way the question of the dual-language program in the Urbana school district is being reported.
Only one side of the issue has been voiced, ignoring the interests of most other stakeholders. From recent reporting, you’d think that the problem is simply a David and Goliath story of minorities versus White racists.
Never mind the fact that within five years Leal will be too small to accommodate all the DL programs; or that 68 percent of the families with children in a dual-language program don’t want a DL-only school at Leal; or that when Guadalupe Ricconi says “students of color” she’s only referring to Latinx students, not African American or Asian American or poorer students, many of whom would have to be bused much longer distances; or that no one ever asked how it would affect monolingual teachers at Leal, all of whom — most having tenure and over a decade of service — would be forced to reapply for their own jobs at other schools; or that the Spanish-speaking teachers in the DL program don’t even need a teaching degree to teach, even though monolingual teachers do, and most have endorsements in English as a Second Language to teach non-English native students; or that any time teachers voice their concerns about the proposal, they are accused of being ignorant racists, even though they are defending their other minority students. None of these issues has been reported in the local media, and it’s disappointing.
JACK HUTCHENS
Champaign
