Families, teachers, and experts filled the Harnett County School Board room on Monday, some holding signs, to protest the end of bilingual immersion programs in most of the schools that offered them.
The program, which was implemented in 14 county schoolsIt will be limited to only two primary schools, leaving middle school students without this educational opportunity.
“We came here so they know that our voices are heard too, so they listen, so they can’t decide something for them without taking the community into account,” said Maria Perez, whose daughter is in fourth grade at Coats Elementary. Enlace Latino NC .
Families learned of the program's closure at their respective schools through a letter sent to their homes in March.
The notice stated that the program would end at the end of the school year, but did not indicate when the decision was made. Enlace Latino NC He contacted the Harnett County School Board to clarify the date and process of the decision, but received no response at the time of publication.
Limited options and an uncertain future
Families questioned why the district offered them so few options. The letter provided only two alternatives for elementary school students to remain in the program: transferring to Dunn or Highland Elementary.
“It’s impossible for us to move our children to another school because of transportation,” said Pérez, who explained that the district would not provide transportation.
Saara Bocanegra, with children in various grades and one also at Coats Elementary, agreed.
“The district only gave us two options, and that’s not realistic for families with jobs and other responsibilities,” she said.
Some families said they might transfer their children to schools that still offer bilingual immersion. But they cautioned that the closures create uncertainty about long-term access to the program. Chris West, whose son has been in the program for six years, plans to transfer his fourth-grade son to another school.
“We can transport it, but I really feel sorry for the families who can’t. They have to travel from Coats to get there, and they can’t because they won’t be provided with transportation,” West said.
He also highlighted a major concern: the program will no longer be offered beyond elementary school.
At the middle school level, there will not be a formal dual immersion program, although it could exist as an elective subject or in a virtual format, Monica Thompson, assistant director of Human Resources, explained at a previous School Board meeting.
“We don’t want to move it to a school and suddenly have it participate for only one year, and then eliminate the program,” he said, pointing to conflicting information about the program’s duration.
West highlighted the academic and social benefits for her son. “In fact, he can help us with our after-school program. We have several Spanish-speaking children there, and he can converse with them when they are very young and help them get to where they need to be,” she told Enlace Latino NC .
“I’ve seen him working on his Spanish homework, saying things in Spanish to his Hispanic friends. I think it’s great. It unites two cultures,” she added.
Related: Diplomatic program 'Connections' promotes bilingualism among North Carolina students
Students feel the loss
Hailey Avila, a high school student who has been in the program since kindergarten, described its impact to the Board of Education.
“This long-term commitment to bilingualism has provided me with unique tools that go beyond the classroom,” she said.
“Bilingualism opens doors to creators, international business, healthcare, and the legal field, where clear communication with native Spanish speakers is vital to providing quality service and care,” he noted.
For currently enrolled students, the closure threatens more than just the class schedule; it puts years of effort and cultural growth at risk.
Sophia Rodas, a seventh-grade student, said the program allowed her to communicate with her family in Spanish.
“I didn’t speak Spanish when I was little, so it was very difficult to communicate with my parents,” she told Enlace Latino NC .
“I felt very sad and devastated because I thought the show was going to last forever and that I was going to end it,” she added.
Cora McCurley, a sixth-grade student, described the closure as a betrayal of years of dedication.
“They promised us Spanish credits for high school and the opportunity to be globally competitive,” she said.
“We seventh-grade students have completed almost eight of our eight years. That means you only have one year left. We’ve worked too hard and waited too long for all our effort to go down the drain,” he said.
McCurley also highlighted the cultural impact. “It has taught me a lot about Hispanic culture. We did activities about Day of the Dead "And we learned how people dress," she told Enlace Latino NC.
“I hope they don’t cancel it, or at least give us more time before we finish it,” he added.
Experts defend the program and question the process
During public comments, Maria Coady, a distinguished professor of education and professor of multilingual education at North Carolina State University, cited decades of research that support dual immersion programs.
“The evidence for the effectiveness of dual-language immersion is that it develops bilingualism and literacy, as well as strengthening academic performance and cognitive skills. This is irrefutable,” Coady said.
“More than sixty years of high-quality research have repeatedly demonstrated these facts,” he emphasized.
Coady, a member of the board of directors of the Carolina Association for Bilingual Education and the National Association for Bilingual Education, where he serves as a representative for the eastern region of the country, also questioned the district's process.
He pointed out that families, teachers, and students were excluded from the decision-making process.
During the comment period, technical difficulties also prevented the comments from being posted online. This left parents who were following the meeting virtually without access.
“The community does not have the data on the DLI (bilingual immersion programs) that are being abruptly closed,” Coady said, also questioning whether it is a gradual elimination, as the board has indicated.
Diana Wyld, a bilingual immersion teacher in the county, said the programs are key to students' intellectual development.
“People who learn a second language develop many critical thinking skills and are much more open to meeting and learning,” he told Enlace Latino NC .
Related: Complaints continue regarding the closure of bilingual programs before the Harnett School Board
Board presents arguments
District officials said there were difficulties in continuing the program in all schools during the March 30 meeting, citing class sizes, resource allocation, and academic standards.
Chris Pearson, assistant director of Auxiliary Services, pointed out that splitting classes 50-50 between English and Spanish can create imbalances. He said that students must meet state standards in English, which they say has affected performance in some schools.
“It was important that we had geographic options on both sides. Also, please know that both schools can accept additional students,” Pearson said, referring to Dunn and Highland Elementary.
For high school students, following the complete elimination of the programs, Pearson suggested online courses through Virtual Public SchoolsParents and experts warned that these options do not replace in-person instruction.
Board member Don R. Godfrey expressed his confusion about the program changes. “I just have a problem… I don’t understand the philosophy behind making these changes. We’ve been at Coats all this time… and suddenly we’re going to send these students to Dunn, who are doing well at Coats. That doesn’t sit right with me,” Godfrey said, prompting applause from the audience.
They question the Board's reasoning
After the meeting, teacher Wyld said that many of the reasons given for closing the program were inconsistent and based on incomplete information.
“They couldn’t say what levels students needed to be in order to get high school credits. They talked about numbers in the classes and didn’t know the exact number,” Wyld said.
Coady shared that concern. “A lot of misinformation has been circulating about how dual-immersion programs work. To say that elementary school children haven’t reached English proficiency levels by third grade is an injustice to bilingual education programs, and we are failing those children when we don’t assess them with rigor, validity, and reliability,” she stated.
He added that bilingual children should be assessed in both languages and warned that decisions based on inaccurate information could harm students.
“I want everyone tonight to keep this in mind: the district is making decisions based on information that is neither true nor accurate,” he added. “The proper way to assess our bilingual children is to assess them in both languages, and we know it takes many years—five years or more—for bilingual children to surpass monolingual children.”
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Looking Ahead
The parents emphasized that the impact could be especially significant in this rural area, where access to alternative programs is limited.
Attendees asked the district to pause the decision and consult with stakeholders before proceeding. It is unclear whether the board will reconsider the issue.
“Families took time off work to come and speak, and many didn’t even get a chance. The board only gave five three-minute opportunities, and our concerns weren’t addressed. People left frustrated, angry, and unheard,” said Terri Ashchi, a doctoral student at NC State who attended the meeting. Enlace Latino NC .
Community members, including parents, students, and teachers, vowed to continue defending the programs.
“They may think this is over, but it’s just beginning. We know we have to keep following up, keep writing to them, keep meeting with community members,” Carol Bono, a community member present, told Enlace Latino NC.
“To ensure that the school board remains accountable and remembers who it truly serves: the families and students of Harnett County,” he added.
A petition has been created to save the programs.
Ashchi, along with the affected families, created a petition urging the Harnett County School Board to maintain bilingual immersion programs in public schools. You can access it at the following link.
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