Audit: Dual-language immersion funding fell sharply; external funds no longer cover incremental costs in 2023

External auditors from BDO presented an analytical review of the district’s Dual Language Immersion (DLI) program and flagged funding and retention trends the board will need to consider.

Jill, an auditor with BDO, summarized the review of school years ending 2021–2023. She told the board that DLI elementary teacher FTE by school ranged from roughly 9 to 14 with an average near 13 FTE; the student-to-FTE ratio varied but averaged about 27.3 students per FTE. "Elementary DLI enrollment ranged from about 40% to 46% of total school enrollment by language," the auditor said.

On teacher retention, BDO reported elementary DLI teacher retention averaged about 76% (range 70%–85% across schools). Junior-high DLI honors-teacher retention averaged about 83% (range 50%–100%), compared with other world-language teacher retention in junior high of about 82%–83%.

BDO also reported that funding sources changed during the review period: roughly 51% of DLI funding came from the state, about 24% from district weighted pupil unit (WPU) funds and about 24% from the Confucius Institute in earlier years. "Confucius funding decreased year to year and 2023 was the last year it was used," Jill said.

The auditors estimated total program funding fell from about $834,000 in the school year ended 2021 to about $275,000 in the year ended 2023. They said external funds (excluding district WPU) were sufficient to cover incremental DLI costs in 2021 and 2022 but were not sufficient in 2023. BDO presented an "all-in" cost per student for DLI that ranged roughly from $2,200 to $2,800 over the period reviewed; incremental cost differentials relative to comparable programs varied between about $65 and $300 in different years.

Board members asked clarifying questions about where to find the cost figures in the draft report and whether the $2,000+ figure represented incremental or all-in costs. Jill said the $2,200–$2,800 figures were the total all-in per-student cost (including teacher FTE and salaries) and that incremental-cost pages appear in the draft report.

District staff and board members acknowledged the audit will inform future program decisions, noting that funding shifts at the state or from external partners may require changes to program placement, feeder patterns and which languages the district can sustain.

The board did not vote at the workshop; staff said the board would have the opportunity to accept the audit at the upcoming business meeting and the audit committee may bring recommendations in follow-up sessions.