Oak Park parents save Chinese class

GOOD FORTUNE- Oak Park's Chinese program includes field trips to Chinatown and a tour conducted entirely in Chinese of the Chinese garden at the Huntington Library in Pasadena. The students also participate in an annual Chinese cultural event at the high school in which they and other community members perform Chinese dances, music, martial arts and skits. A tight school budget has spurred one group of Oak Park parents into action.

After Oak Park High school eliminated its Chinese I class from the fall schedule in order to save costs, parents made the necessary donations to retain the program. Supporters have so far raised $12,000 toward the $13,200 needed to fund one Chinese language class. They are continuing to fundraise and are applying for a federal grant to pay for the class not only this fall, but in the following months.

"It is a wonderful foreign language program that we strongly believe in supporting and developing into a full fouryear program at the high school," said Susan Pan, whose daughter Rachel is in Oak Park's Chinese language program.

When Oak Park began offering Chinese two years ago it was the first public high school in Ventura County to do so, Pan said. Conejo Valley Unified School District, Las Virgenes Unified School District and Oaks Christian High School in Westlake Village soon followed Oak Park's lead and began offering Chinese classes, Pan added.

State and local budget cuts caused Oak Park school administrators to initially consider cutting the Chinese III class and only offering the first two years of the language for the 2008-09 school year.

"The student families expressed serious concerns to the school because, in order to be competitive in the college admission application, the students need to have taken at least three if not four years of the same foreign language to be admitted to the University of California and other highly selective universities," Pan said.

I n response, Oak Park High cut Chinese I, "essentially discontinuing the program," Pan said.

Concerned parents formed the Oak Park Chinese Language Program committee; Pan serves as president. The group is under the auspices of the nonprofit Community Foundation for Oak Park.

A letter appealing for financial support was mailed to families of students enrolled in Chinese at the high school. Federal grants to support the program are also being sought.

"The majority of the student families responded generously and strongly supported this effort," Pan said. "We even received donations from local community residents."

About 60 students are enrolled in Chinese I, II and III, and Pan expects that number to grow, not only at Oak Park but at middle schools and high schools nationwide. The trend is a reflection of global economic development, Pan said.

"China has the third largest world economy, after the U.S. and Japan. With its 1.3 billion population and over 10 percent quarterly economic growth rate, it is not only where many products are manufactured but also the market that many U.S. corporations seek," Pan said. "Major investment firms and U.S. companies that have factories in, that trade with and that market to China need employees who can speak the Chinese language and understand the culture."

Two Oak Park Chinese language students are overseas participating in Chinese language and cultural immersion summer programs. Junior Chelsea Toczauer is in Taipei, Taiwan, and senior Reid Esterson is in Shanghai, China. Chelsea, who will take Chinese III in the fall, said she wishes there was a Chinese AP class offered as well.

"Chinese was difficult to learn at first, but you become accustomed to it after a bit," Chelsea said. "It's not so hard for me anymore because I believe my reading and writing abilities to be very good. I really need to work on my speaking and listening abilities, which is why I wanted to travel to an Asian country that used Mandarin Chinese."

Chelsea's mother, Lisa Toczauer, said the Oak Park Chinese program has had a positive effect on her daughter.

"The teacher, Mrs. Sherry Hung, is outstanding. She is always available for help if needed and has been so supportive of the kids. It has been incredible to watch the class and see how their skills have grown and improved," Toczauer said.

Parents providing support to threatened academic and other programs is not new to Oak Park, said Cliff Moore, district assistant superintendent for human resources. Friends of Oak Park Schools, a parent group, provides funding each year for the district's music and science programs. Last year a group of lacrosse parents raised money to support the program, including administrative and supervisory costs, for three years.

"This will hopefully be a temporary solution to the budget constraints that we are currently operating under," Moore said.