Parents, students and teachers urge Pasco School District to preserve and expand high school Japanese classes

Dozens of students, parents, and teachers urged the Pasco School District Board of Directors to keep and expand the district’s Japanese language program, saying current zoning and course placement risks forcing learners to restart a different language and delaying graduation timelines.

At the board’s public comment period, Emerson Elementary principal Dan Horn introduced several speakers who then spoke at length about the district’s Japanese offerings. Esaka Erdman, a Japanese teacher who said she has taught the language at Chiawana High School for seven years, asked the board to ensure students who complete first-year Japanese can continue into a second year regardless of which high school they attend. “Denying students the ability to continue their studies simply because their school does not offer Japanese is inequitable and forces them to restart a new foreign language,” Erdman said.

Students and parents who spoke described the Japanese program as academically and culturally valuable.…