UWS Councilman Pushes For Dual-Language Yiddish Program: Report

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — A City Councilman representing parts of the Upper West Side, Harlem and Washington Heights is pushing the city to create a secular dual-language Yiddish-English public school program in his district, according to reports.

Mark Levine told the Jewish publication Forward that the dual-language program could be launched at a school in his district by the 2020-2021 school year. The program would be the first of its kind in New York City, Forward reported.

Levine told the publication that meeting with young Jewish activists spurred him to support the program.

"I’ve been inspired by young activists who are looking to keep this language alive, and keep its literature and theater and culture alive by passing it on to the next generation," Levine told Forward.

Public school students enrolled in dual-language programs spend half the school day learning in each language, according to the New York City Department of Education. These programs are intended for both native English speakers and for English language learners. Dual-language programs help students build fluency in both languages.

A number of schools across the city offer dual-language programs in commonly-spoken languages such as Spanish, Arabic and Chinese and also in rarer languages such as Haitian Creole, Albanian and Polish. Many of these programs are located in neighborhoods that have a high concentration of non-English speakers.

Read the full Forward article here.