January 2026 – In this interview, Meghan Hill, Superintendent and Chief Financial Officer of the St. Louis Language Immersion School, shares how the school’s French Dual Language Immersion program supports bilingualism and academic success while serving a diverse public school community in the heart of St. Louis.

Could you introduce yourself and explain your role within the school?

I serve as the Superintendent and Chief Financial Officer of the St. Louis Language Immersion School (SLLIS). SLLIS is a public charter school with dual language immersion programs in French, Spanish, and Chinese. In my role, I oversee both the academic vision and the operational leadership of the organization. This includes supporting instructional quality, guiding the leadership team, hiring and developing staff, ensuring financial stability, and collaborating with the Board of Directors on the long term sustainability of SLLIS. In sum, my work is about aligning mission and practice! 

How would you define a French immersion school for someone who may not be familiar with this educational model?

A French immersion school is one in which French is the primary language of instruction rather than a subject taught in isolation. In our Dual Language Immersion model, students spend 50% of their core instructional time in French and 50% in English. Our students in The French Program learn French Language Arts, Science, and Social Studies in French, and they learn Math and English Language Arts in English. This structure allows students to acquire French naturally and meaningfully with a strong foundation in English. At SLLIS, our goal is bilingualism and biliteracy, not at the expense of English, but alongside it.

What is the profile of the students who attend your French immersion programs?

At SLLIS we serve approximately 525 students across all three language programs. Our French Program has been growing and currently serves about 140 students. Overall, our students come from diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds across St. Louis City, and about 85% of our students qualify for Free and Reduced Lunch. Most of our students enter SLLIS with little or no prior exposure to French, and we intentionally design our programs to support a wide range of learners.

What are the main challenges and successes of your school in recent years?

As a public charter French immersion school, we continue to navigate the realities of providing a highly specialized program while also ensuring we meet the needs of our diverse student population. These challenges require flexibility, thoughtful resource allocation, and ongoing collaboration to support both students and staff within the public charter school framework.

At the same time, we have seen strong and encouraging successes! Student achievement has continued to rise across grade levels, and our enrollment has grown 39% since 2022. We are very proud of these successes and are looking forward to continued growth.

What specific projects are you currently developing for the future of your school?

We have been focused on expanding our Pre-K program and currently offer Chinese and Spanish Dual Language Pre-K. In Fall 2026, we will add a French Dual Language Pre-K classroom! In addition, we continue to strengthen our instructional coherence across grade levels with a focus on our Dual Language Immersion Model. 

As we grow and expand our programs, we are also working on improving our facility, which is located in the heart of St. Louis City. Some of our upcoming improvements include a renovation of our Middle School spaces and numerous outdoor improvements to our campus!