Families in three Canyons District elementary schools have concrete numbers for what it takes to keep two Dual Language Immersion classes per grade.

The Canyons Board of Education voted unanimously Tuesday, Sept. 15, to set binding enrollment minimums for its Dual Language Immersion (DLI) program. A school must enroll at least 50 students in the target language and at least 19 in a non-immersion neighborhood class to maintain a two-class DLI cohort. The policy takes effect with first-grade classes in the 2027-28 school year and applies each year after.

Board member Katie Dahle moved the policy, and Jackson Lewis seconded. The vote was unanimous.

As we reported Sept. 3, the board had reviewed the proposal but took no vote at that meeting. The Sept. 15 action, presented as a third reading in the board's meeting agenda by Superintendent Dr. McKay Robinson, made the thresholds binding.

What the numbers mean

Schools that fall short of 50 DLI students by Jan. 15 drop to a single immersion class of 30 students, plus at least 19 in the general-education classroom the district is required by law to offer. A school can move back to two classes if enrollment recovers by March 15, when students enter second grade for the coming school year.

The policy also addresses attrition in older grades. Any two-class DLI cohort that shrinks to 30 students or fewer, regardless of grade level, moves to one class the following school year. The board motion stated the rule allows the district to plan hiring and staffing.

Traditionally, a two-class cohort starts with about 56 immersion students split across two rooms of 28, the Draper Herald reported. That outlet identified the three affected campuses as Lone Peak Elementary (Spanish), Oak Hollow Elementary (French) and Silver Mesa Elementary (Mandarin Chinese). The Canyons Board agenda for the Sept. 15 vote did not name specific schools.

Enrollment context

In the year before the vote, some Canyons schools could not fill two DLI classes and dropped to one cohort. The Draper Herald attributed the trend to declining birth rates and rising living costs across Salt Lake County.

In the district's Aug. 20 announcement of the enrollment plan, Robinson said the benchmarks are meant to give families clarity. "As a District, we are absolutely committed to preserving this program," he said at the time. "These enrollment targets are a first step."

Long-term options still under discussion include redrawing school boundaries, creating DLI-only magnet schools that draw from a wider area and consolidating programs into stronger cohorts. No decisions have been made on those fronts.

What families should know

The DLI first-grade application window opens Sept. 30 and closes Dec. 15. Families who want two immersion classes at their school need at least 50 students committed by Jan. 15.