Unlike most public schools, where Spanish-speaking students are segregated for English classes and Spanish is taught to English-speaking students as an elective second language, the Academy will be truly bilingual. The goal is to fully immerse young students in both languages from the opening bell, with classes taught in English one day, Spanish the next.

Diversity, and increased cultural awareness, will be positive side effects of the Academy. Half the slots at the 350-desk school will be reserved for students whose families speak Spanish at home. Those students will be paired off in a buddy system that allows Spanish-speaking students to assist English-language students, and vice-versa.

But the focus is on education, where trial programs have shown that bilingual instruction brings results. At Dixie Elementary School in St. George, which debuted a dual-language program last fall, Principal Dale Porter said everybody benefits, particularly Spanish-speaking students. "Spanish-speaking children learn English more rapidly if they're taught half-time in Spanish. School makes sense to them."

But dual-language programs recognize that bilingualism, long considered the pathway to success for Latino immigrants, is a two-way calle (street).

Latinos have found that proficiency in English is essential to climbing the job ladder in the United States. Likewise, English-speaking students will discover that speaking fluent Spanish will help them in a job market that increasingly rewards, and sometimes requires, bilingual employees.

State and local education officials need to follow this experiment closely, and embrace the concept if the Academy finds success. As Utah's Latino community, which already represents roughly 11 percent of the state's population, continues to grow, bilingual programs like this will become increasingly important. They can go a long way toward bridging the language gap, and narrowing the cultural divide.