Up to 25 students may register for pilot class

By Nick Hanson

MANKATO — Mankato Area Public Schools will begin offering Mandarin Chinese to high school students in the fall.

The program is part of a push to equip students with skills to compete in an era of international business and relations.

A one-credit pilot course will be available for 25 students from Mankato East and West high schools (12 from East, 13 from West) in an early-bird class form, meaning students will meet before school.

“China will be one of the countries we do trading with,” Supt. Ed Waltman said.

He said he’s received inquiries about a Chinese language course from parents and area business in the past few years, but the district was unable to get the resources to offer the class.

Two people in the Mankato area have expressed interest in teaching Chinese next fall. One is a Mankato Schools employee.

That bodes well for the district because finding a qualified Chinese instructor is probably the largest obstacle to overcome before offering the program. There are only 15 licensed instructors in the states who can teach Mandarin Chinese, according to the Minnesota Department of Education.

The state, however, is recruiting and working to make it easier for people who are Chinese language experts to teach through more training programs and allowing some to receive special community expert status.

The school district is hoping to receive state grants to pay for the program, which will cost about $12,000 to $15,000 in 2007-08, including teaching and material expenses next year, Waltman said.

As part of his budget, Gov. Tim Pawlenty has proposed $500,000 in funding in 2008 and 2009 to expand Mandarin Chinese language programs across the state.

At least 15 students need to register for the program to make it available. If many apply, Mankato schools will use a lottery system, giving junior and senior students priority.

Next year’s pilot will gauge area interest, said Cindy Klingel, Mankato curriculum director.

“There are so many unknowns, to not run it as a pilot would be difficult,” she said. “If there is a huge response, that tells us that this is something needed.”

If next year is successful, the district will consider implementing Mandarin Chinese into the regular school curriculum in 2008-09.

The Mankato Area Public School Board will officially vote to implement the program at its meeting Tuesday.