RPS proposes phasing out Latin, reshaping German/French offerings and adding American Sign Language

District staff told the school board Tuesday that they recommend phasing out Latin for new cohorts, restructuring German, French and Spanish upper‑level offerings based on enrollment and launching American Sign Language (ASL) to expand equitable in‑person world language access.

“Natalia Benjamin, our Director of Multilingual Learning, said the district’s student survey (grades 8–11) showed strong interest: nearly 55% of students said they are interested in taking a world language, and American Sign Language ranked at the top of emerging choices,” Natalia Benjamin said during the presentation. The district reported the survey reached roughly 800–1,000 students in grades 8–11.

Key elements of the staff proposal:

- Phase out Latin for new cohorts after the current school year while allowing currently enrolled students to complete their sequences. - Retain German 1 and 2 (online) but phase out German 3 and 4 unless enrollment supports advanced sections. - Continue French 1 and 2 in person; offer advanced French only where enrollment meets thresholds and consider consolidating advanced sections. - Maintain Spanish 4 at sites with sustainable enrollment; explore consolidating advanced sections across sites. - Launch ASL with a two‑track implementation that focuses on curriculum, licensure, community engagement and sustainability.

Staff framed the plan as a data‑driven, student‑centered response to declining enrollment in particular courses, a need to diversify language offerings and a demand for in‑person access. Benjamin also outlined work to ensure staffing and curriculum availability, noting state initiatives and partnerships — including a heritage teacher licensure pathway (PELsi) and curriculum development collaborations with the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota Humanities Center — that could support less‑commonly taught languages.

Board members asked for further details: Director Wertz asked how many students responded to the survey and was told the survey targeted grades 8–11 with about 800–1,000 student responses. Several members pressed staff on monitoring and contingency: schools can include courses in the course registration guide but only run sections if enrollment meets site thresholds; staff said they can report enrollment data periodically and that the board will approve the course registration guide on Oct. 21.

On outreach and support: staff said they plan Q&A sessions for parents during upcoming parent‑teacher conferences, targeted community listening sessions and continued engagement with language communities — including consideration of PSEO or university partnerships for indigenous languages such as Dakota and Ojibwe where in‑district enrollments currently do not support full sequences.

Implementation timeline outlined by staff included finalizing registration guidance in winter 2026, curriculum and professional learning work in spring 2026 and program launches following that planning, with Latin phased out for new entrants after the current school year. Staff emphasized the need to recruit licensed teachers, build curriculum for less‑commonly taught languages and monitor enrollment trends to keep offerings aligned with demand.

There was no formal board vote at the study session; the world languages plan and the course registration guide will be on the Oct. 21 meeting agenda for action.