New law aims to boost English literacy in the East Valley

A new law authored by Assemblyman Eduardo Garcia is aiming to help improve English literacy in the eastern Coachella Valley. Assemblyman Garcia and teachers from Mecca Elementary School celebrated the passage of AB 1453 Wednesday morning.

AB 1453 will allow school district to use their own busses to pick up adult volunteers and sent them to campus for educational activities. This law comes after the Coachella Valley Unified School District was cited by the California Highway Patrol for carrying adults on their school buses as part of the Read With Me Program.

“The issue was brought to our attention as it relates to the vehicle code not allowing adult volunteers to be transported in public school buses,” Assemblyman Garcia said.

The program assists students in their English reading and writing in order to develop their proficiency in the language. CVUSD has several schools that participate in the program.

Gracie Gutierrez, the principal at Mecca Elementary School, said the new law will mean volunteers will have an easier time getting to her school, especially since many of them commute from the West valley. She said the volunteers provided an invaluable service in helping with English learning as she estimated over 80 percent of her students were classified as English learners.

“They have models. Native English language speakers that can engage in those conversations and dialogue with our students,” she said. “Our students need to hear it from their teachers. They need to hear it from individuals around them. They need to be immersed in the English language in order to master it little by little.”

Joanne Sheridan, a volunteer from Palm Desert, was pleased to hear of the new law and said many of the volunteers consisted of retirees.

“When we had to drive, it was difficult, and you were afraid to go in groups because you weren’t sure who was a good driver, so the buses are fabulous,” she said.

Samuel Aguilar, a fifth grader at Mecca Elementary School, said the interactions with the volunteers were positive and felt being bilingual was a plus.

“A person that knows two languages is as valuable as two,” he said.