Bess de Farber Collection on the Bilingual-Bicultural Program at Coral Way Elementary

In the sixties, the dramatic shift in immigration from Cuba to Florida called for a shift in education practices that would address the needs of students. As a result, a dual language instruction curriculum was instituted in Coral Way Elementary school. The program was the nation’s first public school with a program for both English and Spanish speakers.

Shortly after the introduction of the first class in Coral Way Elementary, the Bilingual Education Act of 1968 was passed. The bill was the first federal legislation offering for Spanish-speakers to maintain their culture during their stay in the United States. Despite the program’s historic implications, very little is known about the school’s curriculum and organization under this program.

As a young child, Bess de Farber was (1956- ) one of the first children to experience the Bilingual-Bicultural education program established in Miami Dade County. She received her Bachelor of Music from the University of Southern California and her Master of Nonprofit Management from Florida Atlantic University.

Since 2008, de Farber has been the Grants Manager at the University of Florida. She also previously served in the same position for the University of Arizona Libraries. De Farber has provided grantsmanship instruction to hundreds of nonprofit and academic professionals, artists, and university students in the past 27 years, and has led efforts to secure millions in grant funding for nonprofits and academic libraries. She is also a professional clarinetist. One of her most renowned performances is Composing A Heart and other Jewish Immigrant Stories, a program that combines original music and stories about her parents’ emigration to Florida from Argentina and Poland, plus stories form the UF Price library of Judaica Collection.

She is the author of