If We Care About The Future, The San Mateo Adult School Must Exist

The San Mateo Daily Journal published the following opinion piece by ESL Student Advocate Marina Kravtsova:

OP-ED: My dilemma

November 22, 2014, 05:00 AM By Marina Kravtsova

Marina Kravtsova I could never imagine that I would have to choose between my school and my son’s school! However, today, I am facing this dilemma: I’m a student of San Mateo Adult School, which is the biggest adult school in the Bay Area; my son is interested in studying at Design Tech High School, a new charter school, which wants to use space at the adult school.  I know a good high school is important for teens. I also want my son to have the best opportunity to get educated. However, I also know if I had not been studying at the San Mateo Adult School, I would never have been able to bring my son to the school at which he would love to study. Simply, I would not have been able to find and read information about d.tech. I could not have been able to understand their presentation and ask them questions during the open house. Moreover, I never could have even learned about that school. And I am not an exception. Many of our students are parents or grandparents. We, parents, are making decisions whether our children will enroll in any school. We help our children with their homework, and we volunteer at our children’s schools. Without studying at the adult school we could not have been able to understand anything about the school system here.  The San Mateo Adult School serves more than 7,000 students every year and provides many different courses, such as ESL, computer, citizenship, high school diploma and GED programs, and Fifty Plus classes (classes for seniors). The adult school’s well-qualified ESL program includes grammar, conversation and writing classes, and it is attended by approximately 4,500 immigrants. For most of the immigrant parents, it is crucial that there are not only evening ESL classes, but also morning and afternoon classes. It means that parents can study English while their own children are at schools, too.  Today, our adult school is an affordable, convenient and flexible place for numbers of immigrant parents. Moreover, it is a very special place for every student because of its friendly atmosphere. However, it will not be the same if it is moved out. In that case, not only would a lot of adults would lose the opportunity to learn English, get knowledge about U.S. culture and become helpful members of the Bay Area community, but their children also would lose opportunity to become successful future students of many schools, including Design Tech High School. Parents’ education strongly affects children’s ability to adapt to their new country and succeed in their school life. That goes without saying: If we care about the future, the San Mateo Adult School must exist. Originally from Russia, Marina Kravtsova came to the United States in summer 2011 and became a San Mateo Adult School student in fall 2011. She started in low beginning ESL and is now a student in high advance. She is a child psychologist and a mother of two boys who attend Burlingame public schools.