FILLMORE : Bilingual Preschool Program to Be Cut
After losing federal funding, Fillmore Unified School District will drop its bilingual preschool program next fall, said Chuck Weis, assistant superintendent for instructional services.
The district will continue the program until June 14. Based at San Cayetano and Piru elementary schools, it provides English-language instruction to 32 pupils who are 3 or 4 years old.
The program was an important part of the district’s bilingual instruction, Weis said. The district is unable to make up the $95,000 in funds needed to keep the program going each year, Weis said.
“It’s a good program, but we have to focus our services on kindergarten through high school kids,” Weis said.
Bilingual instruction will continue for students in the kindergarten through high school grades.
Roughly a third of the district’s nearly 3,300 students are children of migrant workers, and more than 40% of the district’s students come from predominantly Spanish-speaking families.
The program was funded through a special Department of Education grant earmarked for bilingual education.
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