Board hears proposal to open Mandarin dual‑immersion program at Toledo after strong community interest

Redondo Beach Unified School District officials presented the possibility of launching a Mandarin dual‑immersion program at Toledo Elementary during the Feb. 24 board meeting, reporting strong community interest and outlining next steps for planning and approvals.

The presentation: Assistant Superintendent Lisonbee Garland, Executive Director Roy Lopez Jr., and Toledo Principal Alexandra Glunt described outreach steps taken to date: a parent interest survey that generated about 190 responses with 87 verified kindergarten‑eligible families for 2026–27, visits to existing Mandarin programs, creation of a working group, and job postings that attracted multiple applicants. Staff emphasized the district already has a K–12 Mandarin pathway at the middle and high‑school levels and cited Redondo Union High School Chinese program leader Kathy Wang as a resource for curriculum and vertical alignment.

Public reaction and board concerns: Dozens of public commenters — parents, preschools and community partners — urged the district to move forward; supporters said a local Mandarin option would reduce family commutes and expand bilingual opportunities. Several board members welcomed the idea but cautioned about implementation complexity, capacity, equity and timeline. Board members asked whether the item was agendized as an action (it was not) and requested regular updates and careful curriculum and hiring approvals before any fall 2026 launch.

Enrollment, admissions and capacity: Staff said Toledo currently has spare classroom capacity and that Measure S includes funds for modular classroom work if needed. The district intends to prioritize Redondo residents in enrollment; if demand for heritage Mandarin seats exceeds local supply, staff said the district would use its existing permit and lottery procedures (similar to the Spanish DI program at Washington). Staff noted the intention to aim for the two‑way model (roughly 50% heritage Mandarin speakers and 50% English‑only students) but said program composition and language‑exposure model (e.g., 50/50 or 80/20) remain to be decided by the working group.

Next steps: Staff requested board concurrence to continue planning (no vote was required) and proposed a parent information night in early March, with enrollment tentatively opening March 17. Curriculum purchase, teacher hires and final program action would return to the board in a future meeting (staff suggested June for formal approvals). Staff also offered to develop concurrent after‑school language enrichment if demand outpaces immediate DI capacity.

That ended as discussion: The board did not vote to adopt the program on Feb. 24; instead members asked staff to continue planning, provide clear updates on curriculum costs and capital needs, and return with formal action items for curriculum adoption and hiring.