Mandarin Immersion Parents Council

I’ve decided I’m going to start pulling an Onion, and use the same headline every time a district sets out to mess with a thriving Mandarin immersion program. In this instance, we’re in North Carolina, where a survey found that 41% of families “said they were likely to leave the district if its dual language and world language tracks were split between different schools.”

CHCCS Board of Education discuss what’s next for Glenwood Elementary’s students, acclaimed Mandarin program

From: The Daily Tar Heel

By Sarah Clements, July 21, 2026

The Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education met Thursday in the first regularly scheduled meeting since its vote to closeGlenwood Elementary School after the 2026-27 school year. 

Last month, the board voted to close Glenwood to save money amid declining student enrollment. Researchers from N.C. State University’s Institute for Transportation Research and Education presented the board with possibilities of where to redistrict students based on the capacity of the district’s other elementary schools and how to best minimize any disruption to students and staff. 

“We’re going to see a bunch of numbers that deal with enrollment capacity, transportation models — you name it, and all of that is important for making the decision, but much like we’ve heard tonight from parents and community members, and even prior to tonight, behind each of these data points is a student, is a family. Teachers also need to be a part of that,” Superintendent Rodney Trice said. 

Please read more here.

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Glenwood Elementary Parents Urge School Board to Keep Programs Together as Relocation Conversations Begin

From Chapelboro.com
Aaron Keck | Jul 20, 2026

On June 4, the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education voted to close Glenwood Elementary School next year, due to an expected drop in state-level funding caused by declining enrollment across the district. Glenwood is currently a magnet school that houses the district’s highly acclaimed Mandarin program – meaning the school board now has to decide where those programs will end up next.

That process began on Thursday, as the school board and district staff gathered to receive data points about Glenwood’s magnet program and the options for rehousing it. And while there were many to be shared and weighed, Superintendent Rodney Trice reminded the board members that “behind each of these data points is a student.”

What is certain is that the program and focus on Mandarin will be preserved. Commonly referred to as “STEAM²” – or STEAMM, in other words, with the extra M for Mandarin – the dual-language program has earned Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools a reputation that extends literally around the world.

Please read more here.

Another story here.