Parents urge advisory committee after board review of Juntos program data

District staff presented an update on the Juntos dual-language program for San Miguel Elementary and Columbia Middle School, highlighting enrollment patterns and student assessment outcomes. Dr. Tasha Dean and data lead Jonathan Fox told trustees the program includes many English learners and that the district set a 70th-percentile growth target as a stretch goal. "The average Juntos growth percentile is right around the 50th percentile," Fox said, noting that a subset of students meet the 70th-percentile growth target.

Multiple parents who spoke during public comment praised Juntos as culturally affirming but pressed the board for clearer program goals and deeper statistical analysis. Katie Roland, chair of the Sunnyvale Education Foundation, said the program has been "a gift to my family" and asked the district to create measurable program goals and a family advisory committee. Veronica Brand, a parent in the Humboldt Bilingual Immersion program, urged more rigorous comparison methods: "It's hard to interpret the data that was shown tonight if it's statistically significant. Are we following the same students? How do we account for newcomers?" she asked.

Staff answered questions about data sources and methods, noting packet materials included NWEA and local assessment breakdowns and that sample-size limitations make some subgroup comparisons tentative. Board members and staff repeatedly emphasized that Juntos is open-enrollment and that any program changes should proceed only after parent input and further analysis. Trustees directed staff to consider forming an advisory committee and to return with clearer, grade-by-grade tracking so the district can evaluate retention and outcomes into middle and high school.