News and Updates

Upcoming Events
​September
9/27/18 Mid Autumn Festival Bake Sale, 11:40am-1pm
9/28/18 MIP Welcome Social, Rancho Niguel Club, Laguna Niguel, 5pm-8pm (note: start time is now 5pm)

​MIP Mandatory Parent Meeting
We had a great turnout on 9/13 for our MIP Parent Meeting!  The MPR was packed with over 120 parents in attendance. The meeting included an overview of MIP, financials, communication plan, ways to get involved, upcoming events, MIP family community services, and a short film from the past CNY celebration at Bergeson. The presentation can be found here. 

Mid-Autumn Moon Festival Bake Sale, 9/27
Every fall, Friends of MIP holds a bake sale as a way to celebrate this Mid-Autumn festival with our Bergeson family while raising funds to support our program.  Tables will be set up in the Breezeway and the bake sale begins at 11:40am. For more information and to sign up to help: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090E4FAEAF29A5FA7-september.

MIP Welcome Social, 9/28
Join us at the Rancho Niguel Club on Friday, September 28th for our Annual Welcome Social! The event is a great way to reconnect with friends after the summer and meet new members of our amazing community. We can't wait to see you! Please RSVP and sign up for food and/or volunteer to assist us as we kick off the new school year using the following link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090e4faeaf29a5fa7-92818.

MIP Volunteer/Committee Sign-Up
MIP needs help with our different programs and projects throughout the year. There are many ways to get involved and we are so grateful for all the parent support we get. Please sign up to volunteer using the following link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090e4faeaf29a5fa7-2018192.

2018-19 MIP Parent Mentor Program
Returning parents, please volunteer to mentor new MIP families who are learning the ropes of our program and are in the process of a big transition. Also, if you are a new family this year and are interested in learning more from returning families, please sign up using the following link as well. https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090e4faeaf29a5fa7-2018191.

Adult Mandarin Classes at Bergeson
Have you ever thought about learning or improving your Mandarin? If so, the time is now! We offer 2 levels (beginner and intermediate) taught by a highly qualified instructor from the Irvine Chinese School. Classes will be on Tuesdays (intermediate) and Thursdays (beginner) from 8-9:15am.  Classes will begin on September 18th and continue for 10 weeks. E-mail mipadultmandarin@gmail.com to register. 

Donations via Kindful.com
A reminder that there is a suggested donation of $650/elementary and $450/middle school for each student enrolled in the Mandarin Immersion Program. In order for our MIP Program to run successfully, we need support from parents to fund programs such as Teacher's Aides, Curriculum Specialist, Chinese textbooks, teacher training, and much more.

Please create your Kindful account and make your donation at: https://friendsofmip.kindful.com/user/sign_in_or_sign_up.

2018-19 Executive Board Members

President:  Thanh Nguyen
Vice President:  Nancy Lu
Financial Controller:  Linh Huynh
Treasurer:  Jake Narey
Secretary:  Kristi Craft Rowley
Outreach Director:  Czarin Chan-Lin
Communications Director:  Monika Pinto Connolly
​Community Liason: Juintow Lin
Parliamentarian: Wade Shepherd

See Board Member Bio here:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1l2avdmBU-m_wvrQ4caFjPU5q2gJ0qJ8W

Mandarin Preschool at Bergeson

For more information about the Mandarin Preschool located at Bergeson Elementary School, please contact  the CUSD Preschool Office at  (949) 234-5341, ​https://childed-capousd-ca.schoolloop.com/

Amazon MIP Links

Find Mandarin Immersion items on our Amazon Links page

Friends of MIP is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

2019-20 Enrollment Information

Application period for the Mandarin Immersion Program is typically December-February

Marian Bergeson Elementary School and Capistrano Unified School District are proud to provide the first publicly offered Mandarin Chinese Immersion Program in Orange County. It is a well-proven educational model that provides academic instruction in English and Mandarin Chinese during the K-5 elementary period (students may continue program in middle school). The specific goals of this language immersion program after the 6th year are for students to develop high levels of language proficiency and literacy in both program languages, to demonstrate high levels of academic achievement, and to develop an appreciation for and an understanding of diverse cultures.

Children must be 5 years old by September 1, 2019, in order to apply for the 2019-20 school year. Mandarin Immersion Enrollment will be done by lottery.. Notification of acceptance into the program will begin in June.

MIP Information Meeting times will be announced in the fall. Current MIP families should stop by the meeting to pick up an application for their incoming kindergartener but do not need to stay for the orientation.

An Information/Orientation Tour is mandatory to in order to submit an Immersion Program Application.

Information meeting times will be announced in the fall.

Meetings will be held in the Multi Purpose Room (MPR) at Bergeson Elementary, 25302 Rancho Niguel Road, Laguna Niguel, CA 92677 More info here:

​Click for more information

$131,578 needs to be raised by October 31, 2018

Friends of MIP suggested donation:
  • $650 per elementary school student
  • ​$450 per middle school student​
As of September 12, 2018, we raised $106,206.49. We still need to raise $131,578.51 to meet our goal of $237,785.
CUSD does not cover the full cost of the Mandarin Immersion Program.  We rely on donations from families and sponsors to pay for;
  • full-time Curriculum Specialist
  • 5 teacher assistants
  • teacher conferences
  • teacher training/subs
  • technology (3rd grade chromebooks, smartboards, etc)
  • Mandarin library books
  • operational expenses

A Special Thanks To Our Generous Corporate Sponsors and Affiliates:

Sea View Pediatrics

Stay informed with our Bergeson Baozhi!
Disclaimer:  This website is not approved by the Capistrano Unified School District (CUSD). This site is owned and designed by the Friends of Mandarin Immersion Program (MIP). The group makes every effort to provide accurate and up-date information on its website, however, parents should contact CUSD for answers to questions critical to their children's education. This site is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.