Language shouldn't be an issue in school

It's a simple mathematical formula, really.

Write a story that could in any way be related to immigration and it's guaranteed comments.

The issue's a hot button.

Last week, we ran a story about a College is Possible bilingual town hall meeting to educate students and parents about financing and readying for higher education.

The event, which took place Tuesday, was held for the first time at a local college - Elgin Community College.

Nearly 7,000 students from heavily Hispanic area high schools - Larkin, Elgin and Streamwood - were invited to attend, along with their parents.

The event was open to all students, but Spanish translators were on hand for those who couldn't speak English.

Organizers were psyched. And by all reports, the night was a success.

Hundreds of area families heard presentations on college preparation, scholarships and financial aid. They also had the chance to talk with representatives from individual schools - the American Academy of Art, Columbia College, Eastern Illinois University, the University of Minnesota.

Still, nine of the 10 comments posted on our Web site below the story were chock full of rage.

"I am so angry about this I want to spit!," one wrote. "It's discrimination to those of us who can speak the language!"

"This country is going down the tubes," another typed. "I am sick of Spanish getting forced down our throats."

The story, together with the comments, brought to mind a study released this spring by Chicago's Consortium on Chicago School Research, finding that weak support and financial aid hurdles can derail even the most qualified students on the road to college.

The three-year study looked at data from more than 5,000 Chicago public high school graduates. Researchers interviewed and tracked the academic progress of 105 students.

"Knowing how to choose a college and apply to college and then get to college is not something people are born with," study co-author Jenny Nagaoka told us this spring.

Among the study's key findings was the necessity of teacher support, particularly among first-generation college students.

The study, the authors argued, can be applied to almost any district, including those in suburban Chicago, where immigrants and their children made up 33 percent of the population in 2005, according to the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. The majority of those individuals are Latinos living in the Northwest and Western suburbs.

Among minority groups in the consortium study, Latino students fared the worst, with 46 percent applying to colleges, yet only 30 percent actually enrolling in the fall.

"I think a lot of people think Latino parents aren't supportive of their children going on to college," Nagaoka said. "That's not an issue. Latino parents are interested, but if they themselves have not attended college, they have less of an understanding of the higher education system."

Until presentations like these come along.

Students have no choice what language their parents learned first. If they've got the grades, shouldn't they get help around the barriers?