Please find below a list of current programs as of February 24, 2024. There are now 387 schools that I’m aware of in the United States that have Mandarin immersion programs.
And special thanks to districts that list the schools where their programs will go for middle and high school. It’s often impossible to find this out on many district websites.
Here’s the latest list:
To see the list, click the link above. It will download to your computer and you can open the file there. There are also tabs at the bottom for international programs and Cantonese programs.
Mandarin immersion schools Changes & Updates
February 2025
ADDITIONS:
Holland Christian High School, Holland, Michigan
Offering continuation from Zeeland Christian School, which is K – 8
Intercultural Montessori Language School
Their main campus is 114 South Racine Avenue, Chicago, IL
It’s also K – 8, not K – 5
Spring Lane Elementary in Granite School District UT has closed.
Students in the Chinese DLI now attend Oakwood Elementary 5815 South Highland Drive Holladay, UT 84121
Riverview International Academy, K – 5
Tierra del Sol Middle School, 6 – 8
El Capitan High School 9 – 12
The first two are in Union School District, Lakeside, CA, high school is Grossman Union High School District
ICC Mandarin Immersion School
K – 5, traditional, launched 2024-2025
Houston, Texas
Washington County School District
May win for the most Mandarin immersion programs.
Include multiple towns. Elementary is K – 5, Intermediate is 6 – 7, Middle is 8 -9 and High School is 10 – 12
Arrowhead Elementary
Bloomington Elementary
Crimson Cliffs High School
Crimson Cliffs Middle School
Dixie High School
Dixie Middle School
Horizon Elementary
Hurricane High School
Hurricane Intermediate School
Hurricane Middle School
Lava Ridge Intermediate
Santa Clara Elementary
Snow Canyon High School
Snow Canyon Middle
Sunrise Ridge Intermediate School
Three Falls Elementary
Tonaquint Intermediate
Washington Fields Intermediate
Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy
K – 6, Lafayette, Louisiana
Acadian Charter
K – 6 Opening 2025-2026
Mandarin immersion learning pod, https://acadianacharter.charterschoolsusa.com/mandarin-immersion
Jump Immersion, East Hannover NJ 2015
The Berryessa USD Program in San Jose 95132
The program will be moving from Cherrywood Elementary to Ruskin Elementary beginning 2025-26 school.
The program is Mandarin with simplified characters.
Sierramont Middle School
San Jose, CA
Continuation of the program at Cherrywood Elementary founded in 2018. It reached middle school in 2023-2024
Zhi-Ler Pattana Trilingual School
Bangkok, Thailand.
October 2024
ADDITIONS
ARIZONA:
Desert Canyon Middle
Mountain High School
Scottsdale Unified School District
Continuation of immersion program that begins at Desert Canyon Elementary
CALIFORNIA:
Dalton Elementary School
Public
Azusa, CA K- 5
Opened September 2024
Hiba Academy
Private
San Francisco CA K – 5
Launching 2026-2027
It calls itself “bilingual” so not sure it’s actually going to be immersion. It’s being run by Westwood US Inc., an American subsidiary of Wellington College China, which appears to be a Chinese-run company that’s “in association with” a private school in England called Wellington College which was founded in 1859. It’s not clear that the English school runs the 10 or so international schools the Chinese wing has opened.
MARYLAND:
Bilingual Global Citizens Public Charter School
Charter
Launching 2025-2026
Baltimore International Academy
Baltimore International Academy East
Baltimore International Academy West
Charters, Baltimore, K – 8, also offer Spanish, French, Arabic and Russian
Three charter schools in Baltimore. I can’t tell what percentage of the day is spent in Chinese for the schools’ Mandarin track. Also don’t know when BIA East was founded.
MISSOURI
Foreign Language Academy, Kansas City Public School, Kansas City Missouri. K – 8. Public
NEW JERSEY:
Maurice Hawk Elementary School, K – 3, 2018
Village Elementary School, 4 – 5, 2022
Community Middle School, 6 – 8, 2024
West Windsor-Plainsboro Regional School District, New Jersey
OREGON:
Jacob Wismer Elementary
Beaverton School District
K – 5, Public
2024-2025 (two Kindergartens)
Utah:
Oakwood Elementary
Spring Lane Elementary School in the Granite School District in Utah closed due to low enrollment and other factors, see this article. The Mandarin immersion program was moved to Oakwood Elementary.
INTERNATIONAL
Singapore American School
Private
Singapore, K – 5
Offers a Chinese immersion track for lower school.
Hong Kong International School
Private, Hong Kong, K – 12
Founded by Lutherans from the United States as an American school in 1966, HKIS will be adding a Mandarin-immersion track in 2025-2026, led by the long-time Chinese program coordinator at San Francisco’s Chinese American International School.
CLOSURES/CHANGES
Peregrine School
Davis, CA Private
This school had originally billed itself as immersion but now appears to only have language enrichment.
Pacific Rim International School
Emeryville, CA. Closed at the end of the 2023/2024 school year.
Note that their San Mateo campus continues to operate.
Robert Randall Elementary, Milpitas, CA
Was to have had Mandarin immersion but only offers Spanish immersion.
San Miguel Elementary, Los Angeles CA
Was to have had Mandarin immersion but it’s only a world language class. The school does have Spanish immersion.
Balboa International Education
This is a K – 12 school which appears to be mainly focused on international students though it isn’t a boarding school. Back in 2019 it has said it would be adding a Mandarin immersion program in its grade school but there’s not notice of that on their website now. It is part of an international company, Aston Education Group, which seems to be based in China. According to the California Department of Education, it closed in 2024. https://www.cde.ca.gov/SchoolDirectory/details?cdscode=37680987077357
However the website indicates it is still in operation
Cornerstone School aka Cornerstone Mandarin Immersion School
Palo Alto, CA. It appears to have closed, unclear when.
Avenues: Silicon Valley has changed its name to AEON School in Silicon Valley
It is also now a 5th grade through 12th grade school, though it doesn’t appear to have opened yet. It’s also not clear if it still offers Mandarin immersion, so I am removing it from the list.
Avenues: The World School
New York, now only offers Mandarin immersion K- 5. I’ve changed the listing to reflect that. I’d never been clear to me exactly how immersive their Mandarin is, but I’m giving them the benefit of the doubt.
Green Ivy Silicon Valley
This Silicon Valley outpost of New York’s Green Ivy International Schools was supposed to open in 2024-2025 but did not.
Lincoln High School, San Francisco
The San Francisco Unified School District Mandarin immersion program no longer continues into high school. Instead, students that whatever Mandarin is offered at the high school to which they are assigned. Or they take Spanish.
ShuRen School, San Jose, CA
Closed, Berkeley campus still open.
Global Village Academy, Ft. Collins CO
Closed 2018
Socratic Language School
Washington D.C. K – 5 private school that launched 2018-2019
Now offering only Spanish immersion
Palm Bay Academy
Palm Bay FL, Charter
At various point this school has said it would have Mandarin immersion but it only offers Spanish immersion according to its website.
Dutchtown Elementary School
Henry County Schools, Hampton GA
Cpl. Michael Middlebrook Elementary School
Lafayette, Louisiana
Closed due to low enrollment
Polis Montessori World School
Manhattan, NY
Was supposed to open in 2017, not clear if it ever opened but it is no longer operating.
Tooele County School District, Utah
Is phasing out its Mandarin program and keeping French, Spanish and Portuguese. This means it will eventually close these programs:
Tooele High School
Tooele Junior High
Northlake Elementary
Spring Lane Elementary School
in the Granite School District in Utah closed due to low enrollment and other factors, see this article. The Mandarin immersion program was moved to Oakwood Elementary.
Bel-Red Academy
This private school in Bellevue Washington lists itself as a bilingual school. However it only appears to offer one hour of Chinese instruction a day, which means it’s not immersion. It might be geared towards children coming from Chinese-speaking families.
Tzu Chi Walnut Elementary School
Walnut, CA
Opened 2019, closed 2022.
CHANGES
Chinese American International School
Private
San Francisco, CA K – 8
The school has consolidated from three buildings to one to a new campus (formerly a Catholic girls high school) at 3250 19th Ave, San Francisco.
Cupertino Language Immersion program
San Jose, CA
The elementary school has moved from Meyerholtz Elementary, which closed, to John Muir Elementary
Houston’s Mandarin Chinese Language Immersion Magnet School finally shortened its name to Mandarin Immersion Magnet School
Updated as of February 1, 2024
ADDITIONS
Pacific Academy
Private
Costa Mesa, CA K – 8
Launched 2023 – 2023
Global Citizens Public Charter School
Washington DC
Charter, K – 5
Opened 2022-2023
Also offers Spanish immersion
Baton Rouge Foreign Language Academic Immersion Magnet (FLAIM)
East Baton Rouge Parish School System
Baton Rouge, LA
K – 5
Opened 2015-2016
Barrington High School
Barrington School District
Public, 9 – 12
Barrington, IL
Began 2019-2020
Triad International Studies Academy
North Carolina
Greensboro, NC
K – 8
To open 2025-2026
MOVES
Portland, Oregon
Portland Public Schools – Lots of movement
The Mandarin immersion program that was once at Harrison Park Elementary has moved to Clark Elementary.
Harrison Park is now a middle school and hosts the Mandarin immersion students who have completed the programs at Clark Elementary and Woodstock Elementary.
Hosford Middle School, which formerly took MI students from Woodstock no longer does as those students now go to Harrison Park Middle School.
Jefferson High School added classes for students coming from Portland’s Mandarin immersion schools.
CLOSURES
Camelot Academy of Arts, Science and Technology
Esplanade, CA
They don’t appear to offer Mandarin immersion anymore so I’ve removed them from the list.
Dutchtown Elementary School
Henry County Schools
Hampton, GA
Opened in 2013-2014, can’t tell when they ended it.
Box Canyon Utah
Blue Valley Utah
Valley Park Elementary School
Programs ”sunsetting” due to low enrollment.
Kensington Elementary
Union County Public Schools
Waxhaw, NC
Program phasing out in 2023-2023, Spanish phasing in.
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This list is available to those using it for non-commercial purposes (i.e. parents to find schools and academics doing research.) If you are interested in using it for your business, please contact me at immersioneducation (at) gmail (dot) com. I have it available with school addresses and phone numbers.
As always, please tell me if you know of a school that’s not listed here and should be, or one whose listing contains errors. I strive to keep the list as up-to-date as possible but don’t always hear about new schools or changes.
Please note that the list doesn’t include preschools, only elementary, middle and high schools.
I use the Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition (CARLA) definition of immersion. This is that at least 50% of the day in elementary school is taught in Mandarin and that academic subjects are taught in Mandarin, not simply that Mandarin is taught. I do include a few schools that offer triple immersion, using English, Mandarin and a third language.
Note that the 50% rule only applies to K-5 schools. For middle and high school programs, they simply need to be continuations of an elementary school immersion program. Most offer one or two classes per day or Mandarin immersion students, so typically 20% or 30% of the day is taught in Mandarin.
In the column listing grades offered, 0 = Kindergarten. That way it’s easier to sort by grade, Excel didn’t know what to do with K’s. So 0 – 5 means the school offers immersion in Kindergarten through fifth grade.
Thanks
Elizabeth Weise, author, A Parent’s Guide to Mandarin Immersion
immersioneducation (at) gmail (dot) com
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If your school is not listed or is listed incorrectly,
Please refer to the list of questions below. Answer as many of them as you can and email me and I’ll update the list. If you don’t know all the answers, don’t worry. I’d rather list a school even with a few boxes empty!
School Name
School District name
Address
City
State
Phone
Grades at school
Public/private/charter?
Date the Mandarin immersion program began (Kindergarten only, not preschool)
Percentage of the day taught in Mandarin/English.
Whole school or strand within a school?
Do you teach Simplified or traditional characters? [you can tell if the word for school is written as 学校 (simplified) or 學校 (traditional)]
Website address.
Other languages offered? (i.e. some schools have multiple immersion strands.)
Mandarin Immersion Parents Council 
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