Azusa Unified School District officials on Nov. 4 presented an update on the district's dual-language immersion (DLI) pathway, saying the program now runs from preschool through high school in Spanish and is expanding in Mandarin, and reporting measurable academic improvements for DLI students.

Margarita Gonzalez Zamador, AUSD's director of multilingual and categorical programs, told the Board of Education the district's goals are bilingualism and biliteracy, academic excellence, and multicultural competence. Principals from participating sites described classroom practice and family engagement that support those goals.

"We are building a strong preschool through high school DLI pathway so that students graduate fluent and literate in English and another language and earn the seal of biliteracy," Gonzalez Zamador said.

Valleydale Principal Horacio Trejo presented data the district emphasized as evidence the DLI model is working. He said overall English-language arts proficiency at Valleydale rose from 21% to 33% this year; DLI students at Valleydale reached 44% proficiency. In math, Trejo said overall proficiency rose from 12% to 29% and DLI students posted 36% proficiency.

"This is not a story of delay. It is a story of depth, of persistence, and of promise," Trejo said, adding that early growth in dual-language instruction can look slow before students demonstrate deeper gains.

Principals said the Spanish DLI runs preschoolgrade 5 at Valleydale and Hodge, while Dalton Elementary's Mandarin DLI is in its second year (TK and first grade, expanding one grade level each year). Jeanette Flores, Hodge principal, said 244 students are enrolled in Hodge's DLI classes (preschool through fifth grade) and that some of the first cohort has now reached Azusa High School.

Board members pressed for comparative and cohort data. Boardmember Greer asked for figures that show cohort-size changes at each grade ("drop-off" data) and comparisons to similar programs in other districts; staff agreed to prepare a follow-up report and historical cohort data.

A parent and several staff members also praised the program during the presentation. Dalton Principal Jessica Estrada and family speakers said the Mandarin pathway provides cultural as well as linguistic benefits.

The board did not take action at the meeting beyond requesting additional comparative data; staff said they will return with more detailed cohort and comparative figures.