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. Christian Ramirez, a senior who said he has taken Japanese for three years, said the class builds cultural understanding and future career opportunities. Several speakers — including students Zinae Gonzales, Brenda Navarro, Daniel Aldo Alus, Lilla Wen and Kira Banta — described needing a consecutive two-year sequence to meet graduation language-credit requirements and warned that relocating or discontinuing the program would force them to start a different language and lose a year.

Student speakers also proposed a concrete alternative: offering second-year Japanese online to permit current first-year students to continue the sequence even if their boundary assigns them to a different high school next year. “By providing online classes, all of us who would have completed first-year Japanese by the end of this school year would have the opportunity to continue second-year Japanese next year,” said Kira Banta.

Nae (Nao), who said she is originally from Tokyo and works for the state of Washington, described the program’s curriculum as “hands on” and said the district’s single-site offering currently serves as “the only public school in this area offering Japanese classes.” Several speakers asked the district to pursue University of Washington (UW) dual-enrollment opportunities; Erdman said she had been approved by UW in 2022 to provide college-level instruction for Japanese.

Scott Lerman, who identified himself as a parent and a member of the Commission for Asian Pacific American Affairs, urged the board to gather enrollment data and consider offering Japanese at both comprehensive high schools or through districtwide enrollment options so student demand is not suppressed by geography.

April Miller, an online commenter who identified herself as a Pasco School District staff member and parent, reiterated the request for online options and warned that budget and staffing concerns should not be used to abruptly remove course pathways that affect students’ on-time graduation.

The board did not take action on the program during the meeting. Superintendent Michelle Whitney acknowledged the comments and later told the board she had scheduled follow-up conversations; Director (unnamed in the transcript) said she planned to meet with parents and staff to explore options.

Why it matters: Students need two consecutive years of the same world language to meet the district’s graduation-language requirement; moving or eliminating the offering at one campus could force many students to restart another language and delay graduation. Speakers asked the district to consider online coursework, cross-campus enrollment, or adding the offering at both high schools so current learners can complete second-year Japanese.

What’s next: Superintendent Whitney and board members acknowledged they would continue discussions and that staff would explore options and data about enrollment demand and staffing. One board member said they would meet with the teacher lead to seek an “innovative path forward.”