From the article:<p>"In the Houston ISD, nearly half of this year's highest-ranking students once struggled to speak English, making them among the largest groups of non-native English speakers to be named valedictorians and salutatorians by the district since 2007. About 44 percent of Class of 2017 graduates were once English-language learners, the district reports."<p>"While Spanish speakers make up the bulk of English-language learners, there are about 100 different languages spoken by students and families in HISD."