Greater Clark County Schools announced it will launch a two‑way Spanish dual‑language immersion kindergarten at Parkwood Elementary in the 2025–26 school year.

District staff said the program will use an 80/20 model (80 percent Spanish instruction, 20 percent English) for kindergarten and will add one grade each year as the cohort advances. The district has contracted a consultant (TAJU) to support planning and has posted teacher and specialist positions for bilingual staff, staff said.

District presenters said Parkwood’s high concentration of Spanish‑speaking students made the site a logical pilot. Staff told the board the district expects to use existing Spanish components of the math curriculum and a Spanish ELA program (likely Amplify’s Caminos) plus a Spanish version of Heggerty for phonemic awareness. Staff also said the program will include assessments to track bilingualism and biliteracy as the students progress.

The district described planning steps already taken: site visits to other Indiana dual‑immersion schools (including Lawrence‑area sites), consultant support, parent information sessions this spring, and a targeted recruitment goal of about 50 students (roughly 25 students per kindergarten class) for year one. Staff emphasized families must commit to the model because it requires sustained participation and parent engagement.

The board was told the district will phase in the program year by year so the same cohort moves through the grades together and that district leaders will monitor academic performance and language proficiency. Staff also said some temporary dips in achievement can occur in immersion programs early on but that research and local site visits show rising benefits over time.

Staff invited board members to attend upcoming parent sessions and noted that the program will be supported by state and grant resources already secured for planning.