Diversity Doubles in District 196

Shadowing state demographic trends, student diversity has doubled over the last decade in the Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan School District.

According to 2010 U.S. Census figures, 24.7 percent of students in the Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan School District are students of color – twice as many as a decade ago, said Tony Taschner, communications specialist for District 196.

And there are now 85 separate languages spoken in the district.

Scott Thomas, District 196 integration and equity coordinator, said the increasingly diverse mix of the south metro district includes children from Asia, Africa, Central America and South America.

African American students make up the largest minority in District 196 at 9.7 percent. Asian students represent 8 percent of the district’s students, while 6 percent of students are Hispanic.

The top three languages spoken by District 196 students are English, Spanish and Vietnamese, said Thomas. In addition to Mexico and other Hispanic countries, students attending District 196 schools now come from India, China, Vietnam, and the African countries of Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan and Nigeria.

Not all students with foreign heritage came to the U.S. from the lands where their home language is spoken, so the actual percentage of English Language Learners, or ELL, students, is far below the 24.7 percent of District 196 students who are not Caucasian.

ELL students now make up just over 5 percent of District 196 students – below the state’s average of 7.4 percent. Thomas said that District 196’s 24.7 percent of students of color is close to the statewide school district nonwhite average of 24.3 percent.

One of the ways District 196 has approached the diversity issue is by creating elementary magnet schools with higher percentages of minority students.

Taschner said those magnet schools include Cedar Park Elementary School, a minority-majority school that features a STEM curriculum that focuses on science, technology, engineering and mathematics; Glacier Hills Elementary School, an arts and science-focused school; and Diamond Path Elementary School, a magnet school with a curriculum focusing on international studies and Spanish and Mandarin language courses.

The district is also trying to improve opportunties for minority students by "creating pathways so all families have greater access to educational opportunities," Thomas said.

"[In addition], we have a family school and our cultural family advocates [make] home-school connections to [ensure] the schools can communicate with families, and to make sure students are seeking out all the opportunities available to them," Thomas added.