Oregon Measure Would Curb Bilingual Education

Supporters of a proposed Oregon ballot initiative that would put a two-year cap on the amount of time that English-language learners could receive instruction in their native languages or take English-as-a-Second-Language classes have gathered enough signatures to put the measure on the November ballot, state election officials announced Wednesday.

The proposed statutory amendment says that public school students who aren’t proficient in English “shall be immersed in English, not sidelined for an extended period of time, but mainstreamed with English-speaking students in the shortest time possible.”

Supporters gathered the 82,769 voter signatures needed to put the measure before voters on Nov. 4, said Carla Corbin, a compliance specialist for the elections division of the Oregon secretary of state’s office. She said the measure would be officially certified Aug. 2 and assigned a number. Currently, it...