NEWBURYPORT — With little hope that a shelved middle school foreign language program will soon be restored to the school budget, Newburyport Youth Services announced last week it will step in and offer "tuition-based" language enrichment classes to both elementary and middle school students beginning in April.

NYS announced it will partner with the 16-year-old Canton-based company Global Child to administer the program, which will feature language courses in Spanish, French and Mandarin, and cost somewhere between $15-$20 per class for a 10-week session.

"We always try to work with the school to support their efforts, and this was something we've heard from families — how hungry they are for a foreign language program," said NYS Director Andrea Egmont.

Egmont said the enrichment program will be open to all Newburyport students. She's encouraging parents to weigh in on how the program should be designed by filling out an online survey listed on the NYS Web site. There they can let NYS know how many children they'd consider enrolling, what days of the week they prefer and whether morning or afternoon classes are more convenient.

"At this point what I'm hoping to get out to parents is for them to fill out the interest survey on the Web site so we have a sense of how to create the program to meet people's needs," said Egmont.

"We'll be planning an information night that coincides with our spring and summer registration, which happens at the beginning of March. At that time we'll have registration information and we'll have the program defined."

The enrichment program was the brainchild of Superintendent Kevin Lyons, who told the School Committee last September the program might offer a great "place marker" for the language program they were forced to cut from the budget in spring 2007. He said he'd heard great things from his colleagues about Global Child, adding they were offering similar school language programs to 27 communities across the state.

"I had opportunity to speak with superintendents of districts where this group (Global) has been teaching," said Lyons. "The reports from other superintendents were very positive."

Some concerns were raised at that time that the program might discourage future efforts aimed at incorporating foreign language into the formal elementary and middle school curriculum, as has been the stated goal of the current School Committee. But Egmont said taking the place of an official school language program is not the aim of the school administration or NYS.

"Dr. Lyons and I have spoken very frankly about the fact that Youth Services runs enrichment programs, and we are in no way trying to replace (the old language program)," said Egmont, adding that she's a firm believer that after-school programs don't have the same impact as courses offered to students in the normal school day.

"I am one that would fight to see it part of the normal curriculum," said Egmont. "After-school programs limit how many people can participate. And people have to choose to do them, so not every child is exposed to them the way they would be in school."

Egmont said by offering the program through Youth Services, all students will be given the same opportunity to participate, including those who might need financial assistance.

"It's part of our contract to ensure there are spots open for people who can't afford it," said Egmont. "We've always negotiated fees with families and been as flexible as we can."

According to the NYS Web site, the Global Child program emphasizes listening and speaking skills, incorporating the use of movement, singing, games and snacks. Classes are kept small and grouped according to grade level.

The NYS survey may be found online at HYPERLINK "http://www.newburyportyouthservices.com" www.newburyportyouthservices.com.