Being bilingual or even multilingual should be seen as an asset and resource to schools and communities, rather than a deficit that needs to be remedied, said Maria Franquiz, a bilingual education expert and University of Utah professor who spoke at Baylor University on Tuesday.

Franquiz spent time before her lecture touring schools in the Waco area and speaking with educators about bilingual education.

Standards for bilingual education vary from state to state, with more than 30 states having English-only statutes that do not require schools to offer instruction in another language, Franquiz said. She worked in Texas for 12 years as a professor at the University of Texas in Austin and San Antonio before moving to Utah.

Read more here