Our family recently learned of plans to end the MPS Italian Immersion Program as envisioned by our father, Tom Balistreri, and approved by the Milwaukee Board of School Directors in 2004. The proposed change would convert the Italian immersion school from an immersion program into a diluted “world language model,” merely consisting of one language course.

In an immersion school, students learn a second language in most subjects by “immersing” them in the language and culture. By contrast, the proposed change strips the program of the immense benefits of full immersion.