WALDORF, Md. — Students at Arthur Middleton Elementary School are starting the new school year with a brand new Spanish immersion program, the first of its kind in southern Maryland.
More than 27,000 students attend Charles County Public School, and superintendent Dr. Maria Navarro says she noticed the need for this program in the county.
“Being able to speak, read, and write in multiple languages is an asset for our young people. It really opens doors for them, and we know that brain research shows us how much the brain lights up as it's learning two languages at the same time,” said Dr. Navarro.
Dr. Navarro is the first superintendent of Latin descent in the county’s history.
"We have great representation in female superintendents in the state; I think we’ve done some strides there, and I look forward to just having our students experience diverse leaders at all levels of our educational systems," said Dr. Navarro.
The program is currently for preschool and kindergarten students at Arthur Middleton Elementary School who will learn simultaneously in English and Spanish.
“They will spend part of their time learning content... so science and social studies in English and then part of the time in Spanish. We want to create students that are biliterate,” said Dr. Navarro.
Michelle Hicks signed her preschool student up for the program and says she’s excited about what this means for his future.
“Spanish is going to start advancing, and people are going to speak that primarily in this country it’s inevitable. I think that it’s important for these young children to really start learning about language and being bilingual early on,” said Hicks.
Just under 12,000 people identify as Hispanic or Latino in Charles County, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. For these families, Hicks says this program creates a safe space.
"It creates a level of comfort for them, inclusion that is important, and I think that’s what America represents," said Hicks.
Dr. Navarro also spoke with WUSA9 about the district's cell phone policy. Elementary students have to have permission from the principal to have a cell phone in the building, and it must be turned off. The rules are a bit different for middle and high school students. Dr. Navarro says they allow some flexibility when students are on the bus or at lunch, or if there is a classroom activity that students need their phone for, the teachers will monitor that.
“I think the cell phone policy is also about building relationships with students' strong relationships of respect for the time that students are in the classroom, and this is a work in progress,” said Dr. Navarro.
Ahead of the school year, WUSA 9's Randi Ayala also spoke with Dr. Navarro about staffing. Dr. Navarro says the district is in a much better place than last year, with over 95% of their positions filled. One issue parents voiced to WUSA 9 was regarding transportation. Parent Michelle Hicks said she opted out of bussing her kids to school last year because of delayed buses and last-minute changes. This year she said she’s undecided if she wants her two youngest to take the bus.
"I would much rather just know that I could take my kids and drop them off, and I don’t have to worry about changes at the end of the day and worrying about the delays when I’m still working, so then I’m at the bus stop waiting, and then I have to keep waiting because the bus is not coming on time," said Hicks.
Dr. Navarro said last year they started using an app to provide parents with real-time bus information, and over this past summer they worked to upgrade that app.
“We heard from families that had a couple of hiccups. We’re a growing county, so a lot of development happens in a couple of months, and so the GPS of tracking all these new houses was a little tricky,” said Dr. Navarro.
Superintendent Navarro said she’s confident parents will see an improvement this year.