Frequently Asked Questions

Interested families will need to complete an online application, which will be available beginning on March 4, 2026. The application window closes on March 27, 2026. The cap for the DLI program at each school is 60. If more students apply, then a lottery will be held. 

Anyone can apply to the DLI program. This is not a gifted program, but students will be expected to acquire the second language, as well as learn in English. 

Full participation in the DLI program is required because half of the day is taught in the target language and the other half of the day is taught in English. The English teacher and the partner language teacher both collaborate to support student mastery of both the core content standards and partner language skills in a full-day program. In order for students to be successful in both languages, students are expected to fully participate in the DLI program. 

No, however, if the situation arises where a lottery is necessary, families who live in the school boundaries are given 1.5 points. If your family resides within WSD boundaries, you would receive 1 point. If your student is accepted into the DLI program, you would be required to submit a boundary exception form. You also would be expected to provide transportation for your child to and from school. 

If a student is admitted into a DLI program and does not live within the school boundary, they will need to submit the boundary exception form and the declaration of acceptance to the DLI school at the same time. 

No, but if a lottery is enacted, families with older siblings in the DLI program will count as one point. The oldest child, only child, or first family opportunity to apply receives 0.5 points. 

As openings occur, students can join existing immersion classes up through the 2nd grade without demonstrating target language proficiency. If a student wishes to enter the DLI program after 2nd grade, they will need to demonstrate grade-level target language proficiency. If more than one applicant has met the guidelines for placement, a lottery will be held for the opening. 

All students within the Weber School District boundaries can learn and achieve success at any neighborhood school. We have all different types of programs available at different schools. The DLI program provides the opportunity to acquire a second language, but if a student is not selected, they will not be at a disadvantage. 

All of our immersion teachers hold a Utah teaching license. They come from a variety of backgrounds. Most have been educated in our local universities and have graduated with an Elementary Education or language degree. Others are International Guest Teachers from countries whose language is being taught. These teachers have been hand-selected by their respective governments to come to Utah to teach in our schools. They represent the “best and brightest” these countries have to offer. Other foreign teachers have spent a year as an intern in one of the immersion schools, and then move to a full-time teaching position the following year. A small number of teachers have a college degree in an area other than education; however, all are screened through a rigorous process by the Utah State Board of Education in order to ascertain their aptness to teach in our schools. If necessary, they take university and state-sponsored classes to complete their coursework in Elementary Education.

The district funds the immersion classrooms, the same as they fund all classrooms, paying the salary of the teacher and providing teaching space. The immersion classrooms receive the same funding for supplies, books, etc., as do other classrooms in the building. District and school funds in excess of what is normally allotted to every classroom are not used to support immersion classrooms. In addition, the immersion programs are given funds through money set aside by the Utah State Legislature specifically for the Dual Language Immersion schools. These monies are used to purchase textbooks, classroom supplies, and other curricular needs, as well as covering the cost of substitute teachers when immersion teachers are at state-sponsored workshops. If a school drops the immersion program, these funds would NOT be available to the school or the district. Because of the legislative money, immersion schools generally have district funds freed up that can used by other classrooms outside of the immersion program.

7th grade students enroll in DLI 3, 8th grade students will take DLI 4, and 9th grade students will take DLI 5. There is a culture class that can be taken in 7th and 8th grade, which will help students learn more culture while increasing proficiency. The 9th graders have an opportunity to take the AP exam for the DLI language. If students don't pass the A.P. test in 9th grade, they can take the AP class in high school. Once they pass the AP exam, they can receive university credit, as well as have the opportunity to take an upper-division university course in grades 10-12. If a student takes all three upper-division courses, they will only be two or three courses shy of earning a minor in the language.

Students who leave a district immersion program can rejoin their cohort if there is still space in the program and the student can demonstrate grade level language proficiency based on the state benchmarks. The AAPPL or STAMP proficiency tests are frequently used to make this determination.