Little Rock School District to launch kindergarten dual-language strands at Watson and Chico

The Little Rock School District announced a dual‑language kindergarten pilot that will begin next school year at Watson and Chico elementaries, district leaders said.

"Little Rock School District is the first in the state to roll out a dual language program," a district administrator told the board, describing an 80/20 language allocation in which students in the strand receive roughly 80% of their school day instruction in Spanish and 20% in English. Watson will operate a one‑way Spanish model (heritage Spanish speakers), while Chico will implement a two‑way model that mixes native English and native Spanish speakers in the classroom.

District staff said the pilot will start with one kindergarten class at each school and add a grade each year. The goals the district gave the board include bilingualism and bi‑literacy, strong academic outcomes, and cultural competence. Staff also noted the program is designed to support students who speak Spanish at home and to provide biliteracy advantages to English‑native students who want a second language.

Staff and board members discussed teacher recruitment and certification. Arkansas currently lacks a statewide bilingual teaching certification, district leaders said, and LRSD is assessing internal Spanish proficiency measures and outreach strategies to recruit bilingual staff. Selection for the strand will be limited to students who live in the school zone, and staff said they have engaged preschool centers and parents to identify students likely to remain in the program to ensure cohort stability.

Next steps: The district will begin enrollment outreach, finalize staffing plans and consultant support, and monitor outcomes as the program grows year‑over‑year; board members asked for reports on expansion criteria and teacher pipeline development.