This site wants to make School Choice accessible to Spanish-speaking parents

School Choice is the reality in Delaware – and accessibility issues have always made equity among public, magnet and charter schools a challenge. A nonprofit called DelawareCAN: The Delaware Campaign for Achievement Now, as part of its Juntos Delaware initiative, is working to close that gap with a new website.

MiEscuelaDE (or “My School Delaware,”) is a Spanish language site that offers a straightforward school choice guide for Delaware parents. While the official School Choice website does offer a “View page in Spanish” button, it does not translate the majority of the content.

(Para ver la página MiEscuelaDE, haga click aquí.)

“We built this website because we know Spanish-speaking families experience inconvenient, inconsistent, sparing or no access at all to well-translated school choice resources,” said Atnre Alleyne, executive director of DelawareCAN. “Even the state’s school choice platform lacks translated resources and instructions. Parents shouldn’t be expected to guess their way through information they need to make the best choices for their families.”

The site includes a school locator, school information, application timelines, application instructions, a link to the DE choice application, and a full translation of Frequently Asked Questions, as well as links to resources such as the Latin American Community Center and TeenSharp.

According to state enrollment figures, 17 percent of Delaware’s public school students are Hispanic and Latino, including 18 percent of students in New Castle County, 9 percent in Kent, and 22 percent in Sussex.

“As someone who engages the Hispanic community across the state, and as a mother who used Delaware’s school choice process to find the right school for my children, I know how urgently my community needs access to resources tailored to their needs,” said Erika Gutierrez, coordinator of Juntos Delaware.