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AUSTIN, September 1, 2004 — In Edcouch-Elsa, the school district had its bilingual summer-school budget thrashed, and in Pharr-San Juan-Alamo, Spanish-speaking students don’t have enough computer programs, a consultant testified Tuesday in a school finance trial.
State District Court Judge John Dietz on Tuesday said he plans to look closely at how much money the state gives school districts to teach bilingual students when he rules later this month on whether the Texas school finance system is constitutional.
Dietz wants to hear more testimony on how much it takes to educate students who are considered to be limited English proficient, or LEP, he said.
“I’m very much interested in the notion as to what constitutes adequate funding for bilingual, LEP students,” he said. “Because every superintendent that’s testified has talked about increased LEP populations, and it’s also borne out in the statistics.”
In one study of eight Texas school districts, all eight districts surveyed had either not implemented most or all of a list of nine necessary elements that constitute a quality bilingual program, said Delia Pompa, an independent LEP consultant from Washington, D.C., who testified Tuesday for the plaintiffs.
About 400 Texas school districts, including Brownsville, Harlingen, PSJA, San Benito, Raymondville and Roma, are suing the state over the way it funds education. The plaintiffs represent a varied group of wealthy and poor school districts claiming property tax caps are unconstitutional and the state funding is not adequate, among other things.
Pompa’s survey found that in the PSJA district, 37 percent of the 25,000 students were in bilingual programs in 2002, according to the Texas Education Agency. PSJA is bursting at the seams with students, using 155 modular units as classrooms at last count, said superintendent Arturo Guajardo.
The district reached its cap six years ago on property taxes — $1.50 per $1,000 assessed value – and is constantly searching for money to pay for education of students who must learn English, as well as other life skills to make sure they can survive in the United States, Guajardo said.
“We need a lot of help, and I don’t know how the state doesn’t understand this,” he said. “We have a different type student that we’re educating, and it costs a lot more than (educating) people who have already been to banks, they know what checks are, they know what credit cards are, and they know how to check into a hotel.”
Defense attorneys for the state said Pompa’s study did not paint an accurate picture, since it included only the districts’ deficits, and not their strong points. Many of the school districts had large numbers of bilingual teachers with master’s degrees and had support services for LEP students, for example.
Much of the testimony Tuesday morning was spent discussing state and federal grant opportunities for school districts. Defense attorneys told Dietz they are not contending that federal grants to schools should relieve the state of responsibility, but rather that schools can use a combination of federal and state grants to pay for programs.
Guajardo and other Rio Grande Valley superintendents know well how expensive it can be to educate students who don’t speak English. In the Region One Education Service Center, which stretches from Laredo to Brownsville, almost 40 percent of the 342,000 students are labeled as “limited English proficient,” or LEP, said spokeswoman Annette Garcia.
The students usually come to school enthusiastic to learn English, but it costs more to help them catch up on language and other skills, said Linda Wade, the Harlingen school district superintendent. About 13 percent of its students in 2002 were LEP, according to TEA.
Harlingen school district plans to receive $483,000 for bilingual programs from the state this school year. The district takes advantage of state programs when it can, but it’s not enough, Wade said.
“I do not believe we get enough money from the state to fund regular students, let alone special education students that take additional time and resources,” said Wade, whose district is one of several in the Valley signed on with a group of plaintiffs in the case.
In the Brownsville school district the number of LEP students have grown proportionately with the general student population, said Maria Gonzales, bilingual program administrator. The district received $6 million last year in state funds for LEP students.
About 66 percent of Brownsville elementary students, about 16,400 students, are in a bilingual program. About 27 percent of secondary students, or 6,000 students, are in bilingual programs, Gonzales said.
The plaintiffs will continue calling witnesses this week, with the defense starting its case on Tuesday.
Source: The Brownsville Herald
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