Tom Horne loves parental choice. Unless parents choose a program he dislikes

State Superintendent Tom Horne is all about giving parents choices.

It’s why he’s such a big proponent of the state’s universal voucher program.

“When I took office, the commitment I made is that the Arizona Department of Education is a service organization committed to raising academic outcomes and empowering parents,” he said in January.

Unless, of course, those parents have children who don’t speak English.

On Wednesday, Horne sued state officials and the Creighton Elementary School District for daring to offer a program that allows English language learners to spend a portion of their day learning in their native language.

Horne says dual language violates the law

Dual-language immersion programs have become increasingly popular in recent years, an alternative to English-only programs that require those not proficient in English to spend all day being taught in English.

Horne contends the dual-language programs violate a voter-approved law passed in 2000, requiring non-English speakers to be taught only in English.

That law, Proposition 203, envisioned an “intensive one-year English immersion program.”

But one year became multiple years as kids didn’t become quickly proficient as hoped.

Meanwhile, they became isolated from their English speaking peers and fell behind in every academic subject, as it’s difficult to learn science or history or math if you can’t understand the language in which it’s being taught.

Another law allows approved programs

Finally, in 2019, alarmed that these children were falling behind academically and at the request of immigrant parents, the Legislature unanimously passed and then-Gov. Doug Ducey signed a law directing the State Board of Education to adopt alternative English instruction models “that are based on evidence and research.”

The board then adopted four new models for the state’s 93,000 English language learners — one of them the dual language approach that allows children to be taught for half the day in English and half in Spanish or some other language.

The program has become popular, with at least two dozen school districts now offering that alternative to parents.

Horne claws back: Millions in funds granted under Hoffman

Horne, however, doesn’t approve.

Earlier this summer, he threatened to defund any school district that offered dual language immersion, but Attorney General Kris Mayes slapped him down, pointing out that he doesn’t have the authority to defund anything.

So now he’s suing her, Gov. Katie Hobbs and Creighton, hoping to kill dual language instruction.

By my count, that’s four sets of lawyers we’ll be paying.

If it's really about parental choice ...

I get it. Horne believes the best way for children to learn English is to be immersed only in English.

But what about what their parents believe?

This same superintendent is spending $10 million to market Empowerment Scholarship Accounts to Spanish-speaking families.

Families that could chose to take a taxpayer-funded $7,200 voucher and spend it on a private school that teaches in Spanish, in Swahili or in Klingon, if that’s what they want.

And Horne would cheer them on.

It’s the parents’ choice, after all.

Unless they choose a public school program in which they believe their children will actually learn something, in which case … .

Reach Roberts at laurie.roberts@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @LaurieRoberts.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Tom Horne sues to stop dual language. So much for parental choice?