The Harnett County Board of Education ratified on Monday the “consolidation” of its bilingual immersion program, after rejecting two formal complaints from parents for alleged violations of the law and civil rights.
A panel composed of the Chairman of the Board, Joseph W. Powell Jr., y Members Sharon Gainey and Don Godfrey, escThey heard testimony from parents and the administration before deliberating. Then, they voted to keep the administrative decision.
The measure will affect around 1,000 students. Instead of operating in 14 schoolsThe program will be maintained only in Highland and Dunn Primary Schools. It will not be offered in middle schools.
Parents allege violations of procedure and laws
Mothers Leighann Murphy and Dulce López filed a formal complaint with the district regarding the closure of the bilingual immersion program in several schools.
During the meeting, Murphy said the district omitted legally required procedures before closing the program in 12 schools.
“We are here to demand structural accountability, strict adherence to board policy, and factual honesty from an administration that has evaded established legal procedures,” Murphy said.
Murphy alleged that the district violated board policy requiring review by an external, independent committee composed of education experts, teachers, and parents. However, he argued that the administration failed to convene such a committee to audit the data before any academic program was finalized.
The parents also alleged that the district violated several North Carolina statutes, including tuition study requirements and impact assessments.
Furthermore, he maintained that the requirement for 10 days' public notice prior to the community hearing was not met. He stated that the consolidation was announced without board authorization and that even board member Sharon Gainey learned of the plan on the same day as the public, without prior information about its impact.
The parents stated that the district removed public comments defending the DLI program from two board meetings from its public records. They also noted that the district obstructed public records requests by charging fees close to $300 for data that the district simultaneously claimed did not exist.
Murphy also requested the recusal of board member Bradley Abate. Abate used social media to disclose personal information about one of the mothers and made public comments before the evidence was presented.
The parents argued that consolidation could also involve the application of federal law, citing the Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964They argued that using students' language profiles and national origin data as a trigger to eliminate an educational pathway constitutes discrimination based on national origin.
Father asks for protection for students
Patrick Riley, a parent at Coats Elementary with two children enrolled in the program, filed a separate complaint. His focus was on the lack of transparency in the process and the lack of protections for enrolled students.
“My children didn’t fail in this program. They trusted it,” Riley said. “They entered a pathway. Now they’re being told that pathway no longer exists at their school.”
At Coats Elementary alone, the measure would affect around 200 students.
Riley posed three questions to the panel: who made the decision, where is the evidence, and why were enrolled students not allowed to complete it.
Riley noted that the timing of the decision raises serious concerns about due diligence. Instructional Policy Superintendent Chris Pearson assumed curriculum duties on March 1, and the decision was made the following day, Riley said. Families were notified on March 4.
Riley also argued that the district's own data showed the dual-language model performed better in some schools than in others. This, he said, suggests local implementation problems rather than an overall failure of the program.
Furthermore, the district did not present Spanish literacy data, biliteracy assessments, or long-term outcomes to justify the consolidation, he mentioned.
“The district doesn’t have to keep all campuses open forever to protect current students,” Riley said. “It simply has to separate future program planning from the harm being done to current students.”
Related: Complaints continue regarding the closure of bilingual programs before the Harnett School Board
The administration defends its decision
Pearson told the panel that the district did not violate board policy 3100. He argued that the policy regulates changes to the state curriculum, not teaching methods. language instruction.
“This wasn’t a curriculum change,” Pearson said. “It was a change in the way the language was taught within the same curriculum.”
Pearson said he also did not believe the state statutes cited by the parents applied to the decision regarding the DLI program. According to his interpretation, those statutes address the merging of school buildings, not the restructuring of academic programs. Furthermore, he said the decision stemmed from declining enrollment in the program and imbalances in class sizes.
At Coats Elementary, Pearson said the bilingual program had a maximum enrollment of 46 students in some grades, while other grades had as few as 20, creating operational pressures for the principals.
In addition, he mentioned that enrollment in the program tended to decrease in the upper grades of elementary school, which he described as a sign that families were losing confidence in the program over time.
He also said the district wasn't eliminating the program but consolidating it. He compared the move to North Carolina's magnet programs, where families typically provide their own transportation.
Pearson mentioned that the district carried out a similar consolidation of the bilingual program at Boone Trail and Johnsonville elementary schools in previous years.
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The Board ratifies the decision
After a brief closed session to consult with the board's lawyer, the panel returned to open session and deliberated publicly before voting.
Chairman Powell said he did not believe the parents had shown that the administration acted outside its legal authority.
“Most of what I’ve heard are accusations, many of which I believe to be false and unjustified,” Powell said.
Godfrey and Gainey They agreed with him. Gainey He said he valued the parents' activism on behalf of the students, but agreed that the evidence did not meet the required standard.
Both complaints, the one filed by Murphy and López, and the one filed by Riley, were rejected by unanimous votes of the three-member panel. The parents will receive the decisions in writing no later than June 15.
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