Dist. 220 parents make last push for Chinese classes

With a week to go before Barrington Unit District 220 officials make their final decision on the future of a Chinese language immersion program that recently lost its federal grant, some parents committed to the program are hoping to convince the school board that they’re willing to help bridge the funding gap.

And though a straw poll at last week’s meeting showed a slim majority of board members tentatively favored keeping the program, parents are not at all convinced that the conversation is over.

“I still feel it’s an uphill battle,” parent Tracy Brienen of Barrington said.

On March 6, the school board hopes to reach a balanced budget that will be sustainable in the face of economic and state-funding uncertainties. The process is further complicated by the federal government’s withdrawal of the final three years of an originally five-year, $1.5 million grant to start the Chinese immersion program.

So far, only kindergartners and first-graders from around the district are in the program. But the plan was to add a new grade level every year and eventually allow graduating high school seniors to continue the program at the University of Illinois.

Several parents, including Barrington Village Trustee Robert Windon, said they’re trying to make the decision a little easier for the school board by promising to set up a nonprofit agency to raise funds for the program and personally seek out other grants.

Though there isn’t enough time to produce ironclad guarantees by next week’s meeting, they are promising to be tireless in their efforts, Windon said.

He added that parents are even discussing whether they could foot the bill for the program’s districtwide busing.

These parents say they know there are others who are arguing that the Chinese program is a small one seeking an unfair share of funding. But the language proponents say the district has long and proudly maintained such other small programs as football, band and gifted classes.

“I still feel there’s a lot of misinformation in the wider community,” said North Barrington resident Alexandra Bernardi, who’s fighting for the Chinese program. “The louder those voices get, the more worried I feel.”