Here we go again..

It's been an emotional roller coaster around here lately, at least in regards to the school district budget cuts and the incredible Spanish Immersion program. They're waffling again on whether or not to retain the program. Grrr. Here's a little background; about three weeks ago the Governor of our esteemed state announced a ginormous budget shortfall in the general fund which then in turn trickled down to an additional 3 million dollar shortfall for our school district. So some brilliant person suggested that they cut the SI program, despite its raging success. Facts were slanted to make the program look as though it was going to cost too much to retain, rumors were spread, tempers raged, and the debate began. It culminated a little over a week ago in a ridiculously long seven hour school board meeting and a vote of 3-2 in favor of retaining the program. A bunch of parents from schools without an SI classroom got mad and filed a grievance. A bunch of teachers from those schools helped. Then a bunch of teachers decided to retire, a couple others accepted positions in other districts and still others were shuffled around within our district and suddenly it appeared that the crisis was over. No one was going to be "layed off" and class sizes weren't going to swell to over 30 kids per class, life was looking good. Unfortunately something has triggered the school board to meet again and the only item on the agenda is the S.I. program. Great, lovely, please make up your freakin' minds! Because I'm not sure how much more I can take of this back and forth. So I've started exploring other options. As it stands, if they vote to cut the program, we can either enroll her in private school or move to another school district and hope that she gets in. I put her on the waiting list for the other school district today and scheduled a tentative interview for Caitlin to under go an assessment at the private school. The private school will accept students after preschool/kindergarten level only if they demonstrate age appropriate language proficiency. I'm not concerned about her proficiency level at all, but I'm extremely concerned about our ability to afford the tuition for the private school. The other school district indicated that if we moved into their school zone, she would be highly likely to make it into their program. I like that option a lot because my friend Sara lives in the same town and works primarily at the school Caitlin would attend. So right now I'm praying that they decide (again!) to keep the program in our district because it would be so much easier all around to stay where we are, but I feel relieved (slightly) that if they do not keep the program, there are alternatives available. Wednesday's the day, so wish us luck!