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Families wanting their young children to take advantage of quality bilingual public education are clamoring for the expansion of the popular Mandarin Immersion program at Orion Alternative School in Redwood City.
A grassroots parents group has taken to school board meetings and so far submitted two dozen letters to district leaders, expressing frustration that a number of students equivalent to an entire class face waiting lists for a program described as invaluable for its academic, bilingual, cultural and other opportunities.
District leaders applauded the parents’ advocacy of the program and assured a collaborative process with the community to continue MI’s success over the long haul. That process includes bringing formal recommendations to the district board this spring.
“I truly appreciate families’ enthusiasm and strong desire to enroll, which reflects the incredible efforts of our dedicated Mandarin Immersion program teachers and staff,” Orion Principal Winnie Chen said in an email to the Pulse.
According to the parents’ group and as confirmed by the district, the 2025-26 school year program has received 56 applications for 40 transitional kindergarten seats, while 25 families applied for 19 kindergarten spots.
“The current demand for a MI education far exceeds capacity, leaving many students without access to the unique benefits of Orion’s unmatched bilingual education,” Justin Chung and Lily Fu, parents of a prospective TK student at the school, wrote in one of the letters.
“Adding more classrooms, staff or locations would help meet this demand and ensure more families can take advantage of this valuable program,” they wrote. “We urge the district to prioritize its growth and ensure equitable access for all interested students.”
In another letter, Michelle Stroebe – a parent of a prospective kindergartner at Orion – called for the district to add another kindergarten classroom or expand an existing one to accommodate up to 28 students.
“We understand this would necessitate the addition of two teaching aides (one for each class),” Stroebe said in her letter, “and we have a group of dedicated parents who are ready and willing to help with fundraising for this effort.”
As it is, she wrote, her family was told that the odds of her daughter getting a kindergarten spot “this year are extremely unlikely. It’s truly heartbreaking.”
Orion’s Mandarin program represents the ideal bilingual public education she wants for her family, Stroebe added. “However, the anxiety and stress I feel over the enrollment process … has led me to reluctantly consider private Mandarin immersion schools.”
According to district spokesperson Jorge Quintana, the program started in 2015-16 with one class of 26 students and has grown to about 300 children today in TK- eighth grade across the Orion and Kennedy Middle School campuses.
“The program’s growth and popularity are a testament to the community’s enthusiasm for bilingual education and the district’s ongoing commitment to supporting and expanding this valuable opportunity for students,” Quintana said in an email to the Pulse.
Just this current school year, he said, “the district added a second TK class, ensuring that our youngest students had access to the program.”
He noted that the Orion Growth Plan Committee – made up of parents, school staff and district representatives – “has met regularly this school year to analyze enrollment trends, facility capacity and program needs. Key data points reviewed include classroom space, budget implications and projections for future growth.”
The committee has also gathered community input to help shape a long-term plan for the school and its programs, Quintana said. The committee will present its findings to district Superintendent John Baker, who is expected to make recommendations to the board this spring.
District board President Mike Wells pointed out that MI application numbers are analyzed annually to determine how many classes are needed for the following school year.
“These decisions are data-driven as enrollment numbers directly impact planning,” Wells said in an email to this publication.
But parent advocate Meghan O’Reilly-Green argued that families don’t understand why the district doesn’t expand the MI program when there appears to be capacity for it amid projected enrollment decreases across Redwood City schools.
“Families want to know why in a district with declining enrollment … students are being denied entry into their program of choice and (it) is not planning to expand seats for the Mandarin Immersion program,” O’Reilly-Green said.
According to district data, Orion currently serves 512 students but has a capacity of 728. Orion’s enrollment is projected to continue to fall to 357 in 2033-34. Districtwide, the current enrollment of 6,452 with a capacity of 10,902 is forecasted to go down to 5,302 during that span.
At the same time, the parents’ group contends interest and demand for MI remain strong as applications continually exceed available space each year.
“The Mandarin program is valuable because it attracts motivated and engaged families – an essential factor in helping students progress and ensuring the program’s continued success,” said Oscar Flores, a parent member on the school growth committee.
Does this program still have a donation requirement to fund teacher assistants?