April 11, 2025 (chicagotribune.com) – Ángel Tierrablanca and Wendy DePaz stood at the front of a jubilant group parading down the halls Friday morning at Back of the Yards College Preparatory High School wearing the orange shirts and blaring Queen’s victory anthem “We Are the Champions.”
Last weekend, the two became the first-ever high school debaters in Chicago to win Spanish-language title in the Urban Debate National Championship. Amanti Washington and Kate’lynn Shaw of Kenwood Academy won the English national championship. The new Spanish debate program — a chapter of Debate en Español started in October at Back of the Yards College Prep — underscores the school’s commitment to supporting dual language amid increased reticence towards bilingualism, made even harder by local budget constraints. It was the first time a Spanish-language division was included at the national competition, hosted at Emory University in Atlanta.
Back of the Yards College Prep is one of three dual-language schools in the district and the only dual-language school on the South Side. “Dual language” instruction refers to academic programs taught in two languages rather than just English.
“We were determined to prove that dual-language education works, that it is necessary for our students to meet their needs, to be responsive to their academic needs and to make a space of belonging for all of our students,” Moreno said of her school’s triumphant duo.