“Bienvenidos, welcome,” reads a sign as you enter Dwight Bellizzi Dual Language Academy in Hartford.
“Not just for myself, I think a lot of our educators when we think of why we went into education, this dual language program answers a lot of those questions, about engaging students, about ensuring equity for all,” Dwight Bellizzi Dual Language Academy Principal Tony Davila said.
Dwight Bellizzi began offering bilingual studies to students during the pandemic through Open Choice.
Starting in the 2023-2024 school year, applications will also be open to families who live in the Greater Hartford area through the Regional School Choice Office, also known as RSCO.
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RSCO gives parents the power to choose a school or program for their child to attend outside of their home district.
“Now transitioning to the RSCO program, it really opens up a wide variety of prospective students for us and really creates more opportunity for additional families from the suburbs and other areas,” Davila explained.
This fall, Dwight Bellizzi will become the first and only inter-district dual language magnet school in the Greater Hartford area. The school already offers Pre-K - third grade through Open Choice and now with RSCO, the school will accept Pre-k and kindergarten students from more than 40 towns.
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The goal is to add a grade level each year and build the dual language program up to a middle school.
“As we grow, we are going to get better at what we do, the research is going to get clearer and we are really going to be accomplishing something special with our students,” Davila said.
Over the years, RSCO has seen an increase in the demand for a dual language program.
“We’ve had families who are very interested in wanting to get their child prepared for early college, getting prepared for high school,” RSCO Education Consultant Shola Freeman said.
Davila said research shows there are several benefits to becoming bilingual and biliterate, including language proficiency and cultural responsiveness.
“These kids are coming into college or the labor market with cultural proficiency that some of their peers may not have,” Davila said.
Jianelley River enrolled her daughter and son in the program and said growing up in a bilingual household helped her career. She hopes her children will share the same success.
“It opens a lot of doors for them, a lot of opportunities when you speak two languages or more,” Rivera said.
Classes begin August 29, but families can apply through RSCO until Sept. 15. More information can be found here.
