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Janesville School Board candidates consider expanding Chinese instruction

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Karl Dommerhausen

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Kristin L. Hesselbacher

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Peter D. Severson

JANESVILLE — Most candidates for the Janesville School Board said they’d consider cutting a European language to make room for Chinese in the middle and high schools, but they differ on the details.

The question arises because Mandarin Chinese instruction began at Harrison and Roosevelt elementary schools last fall, but no decision was made about continuing that instruction in the higher grades.

The candidates are vying for three seats on the school board in the April 6 elections. They were asked to respond to the question via e-mail.

Kristen Hesselbacher and incumbent Peter D. Severson support expanding Chinese to the higher grades. So does Diedre Richard, who dropped out of the race Tuesday but remains on the school board until late April.

Candidate Karl Dommershausen was more cautious. He said facts on this topic are difficult to find. Before deciding, he would need to know what languages are offered in the various grades, enrollment trends, global trends, recommendations from teachers and administrators and community sentiment.

The district currently offers French, German and Spanish in seventh through 12th grade. The numbers taking those languages in all those grades combined this year is 2,196 for Spanish, 471 for French and 291 for German.

“Personally, I am in favor of foreign-language teaching in our system because it provides for a well-rounded education, even though foreign-language instruction is not desired by everyone,” Dommershausen wrote.

Hesselbacher said German might have to face the budget ax.

“English and Spanish are of course the most widely spoken European languages, and Spanish is very useful for anyone who resides anywhere in the U.S. in terms of a job skill,” Hesselbacher wrote.

“As a proud German-American, it pains me to say that French may be the more useful language,” because it is spoken over a wider area, Hesselbacher wrote. “However, I would seek input from our curriculum coordinators and language instructors before making any final decisions.”

Hesselbacher said Chinese might be the most useful foreign language.

“Mandarin Chinese is spoken by more people on the planet than any other language, and China’s national economy ranks third in the world. As a trade partner, a political entity and a cultural force, China’s importance on the world stage will only increase over time,” Hesselbacher wrote. “An understanding of Chinese language and culture will be an asset for job-seekers across the globe for the foreseeable future.”

Severson supports expanding Chinese to higher grades, but only if the budget allows.

“For the coming year, this would mean adding some type of programming for sixth grade at Marshall (Middle School),” Severson wrote.

“I do believe that if a language offering were to be cut, it would be one of the European languages, likely French,” Severson said. “I would say that Spanish is our most important offering. Chinese would be next, even in the limited form we now provide. German would be next, followed by French.”

Severson suggested the district might save money by buying online Chinese instruction.

“I think that idea of being able to use the virtual classroom for language studies is truly one of the areas that online education can shine. As we have seen with the expansion of a language offering, budget concerns arise mostly because of high per-student staffing costs,” Severson wrote.

Richard said she’s willing to look at cutting a European language or other “special-area” course to make room for Chinese.

“When decisions are made to add new curricular offerings, it is important that our district is able to afford the corresponding costs or that other programs which do not have strong enrollment are removed to balance the cost,” Richard wrote.

“The Chinese offering is a great opportunity to positively differentiate the Janesville School District, provide our students with an appreciation for different cultures, and it is hard evidence that our district has a strong global vision in terms of academic planning,” Richard wrote.

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Candidate interviews online

Forward Janesville has once again recorded videos of candidates for Janesville City Council and Janesville School Board and posted them on its Web site.

The “Candid-ate Camera” effort asked council candidates: “Janesville has endured some challenging economic times for the past several years. If you could wave a magic wand and make three things happen to help assure Janesville’s economic future, what would they be and why?”

School board candidates were asked: “If you could wave a magic wand and make three things happen in our schools over the next decade, what would they be and why?”

The videos can be viewed at gazettextra.com/candid.

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The Janesville School District’s teachers union is endorsing one incumbent and two newcomers in the April 6 elections for three seats on the school board.

The Janesville Education Association announced it endorses Karl Dommershausen, Kristin Hesselbacher and incumbent Peter Severson.

The JEA screening committee arrived at its recommendation after private interviews of the candidates and a poll of JEA members.

The JEA said in a news release that the three candidates have a passion for serving students; a willingness to meet the needs of all students regardless of ability or background; a basic understanding of the “Fund 10 balance,” a reserve fund in the district’s operating budget; a realization of the importance of hiring and retaining the best educators; a desire to work for a stronger relationship with all district employees to achieve students success and a respect for diverse points of view.

One other candidate, Rene’ Bue, is listed on the ballot but has announced she has dropped out of the race.