Rally defends bilingual education against proposed constitutional amendment
DENVER---Parents and lawmakers rallied in downtown Denver Sunday against a
proposed constitutional amendment that would virtually eliminate bilingual
education in Colorado.
"Stay out of our school districts, stay away from us," said state Rep.
Nolbert Chavez, D-Denver, one of about 40 people who gathered to protest the
proposal, which is championed by U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo.
Tancredo and others are trying to get enough signatures on a petition to
place an "English-immersion" measure on the November ballot.
The proposal, if approved by voters, would virtually eliminate bilingual
education in Colorado and replace it with one year of intense English
instruction.
Tancredo, a former teacher, said Sunday that bilingual education has done
little to lower the Hispanic dropout rate.
An English-immersion program in California boosted test scores and changed
the minds of bilingual education supporters, he said. "It's not just theory
anymore," Tancredo said.
Gully Stanford of Denver, a member of the state Board of Education, defended
bilingual education.
"Any reduction in diversity strategies will only discourage students from
staying in school," she said at the rally.
Denver Public Schools officials also have vowed to fight the initiative. The
district has about 16,000 of the state's estimated 25,000 bilingual
students.
Denver City Council member Elbra Wedgeworth told the rally the proposal is a
shot against public schools. "Our education system is under attack like
never before in the city and state," she said.
Supporters of the English-immersion measure need signatures of 62,595
registered voters to get it on the ballot. |