Program ensures immigrants learning, legal

The local Pennsylvania Migrant Education program is one of the most successful in the state when it comes to the number of students who go on to further their education.

BY JILL WHALEN
STAFF WRITER

The local Pennsylvania Migrant Education program is one of the most successful in the state when it comes to the number of students who go on to further their education.

Sandra Medina Lopez, who coordinates the program from her Hazleton office, said 86 percent of the graduates decide to study at a college or another secondary school.

That’s almost double the state average. Figures show that across the commonwealth, about 46 percent of migrant school graduates will continue their education.

The local figures please Medina Lopez, who, as a social worker and team leader for the program, hopes to give the students all the support they need. Statistics are proof that the state- and federally funded program is working.

They’re also proof that students enrolled in the program are here legally, she said, because colleges won’t accept anyone who doesn’t have a Social Security number. Only those who can prove citizenship or immigration status are eligible to receive a number.

“They’re not illegal,” she explained, noting that some individuals believe that illegal immigrants are served by the program.

Enrollment at the school fluctuates from year to year — and even month to month, she said. Ethnicity of the students also varies. It’s all because of the working schedule of the migrant worker.

The migrant education program is for school-age children who have moved from one school district to another within the last three years so that a parent could find temporary work in an agriculture-related business. The program’s goal is to not only help migrant children overcome the difficulties associated with frequent moving but to succeed at school, according to information from the Department of Education, which oversees the program.

“Their parents might be involved in tree farming, seeding, picking tomatoes,” Medina Lopez said.

Because the jobs are mostly seasonal, the students travel with their families.

“There’s a huge turnover,” Medina Lopez said. Enrollment typically picks up during farm season in May, June and July. It drops off in other months, and increases again around Christmas time, when trees are being harvested.

The local program serves 19 counties and is part of the Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit.

Students come from all areas, Medina Lopez said.

“They might be traveling in from Virginia, Florida or California,” she explained. “They’re following the crops.”

Medina Lopez said school districts identify the students and direct them to the program. The Hazleton Area School District, she said, is “wonderful at helping to identify” the migrant children.

“We get referrals from the enrollment office,” she said. “We have very good communication with them.”

Once enrolled, Migrant School workers monitor students’ progress to make sure they’re enrolled in the appropriate grade for their skills. There is also an after-school program where migrant students receive extra attention in classes such as English, math, reading and writing. A summer school is also offered, as are a preschool and in-home programs.

Leah Harris, a Department of Education spokeswoman, said there are nine migrant education program areas across the state — including the Hazleton office — that serve more than 709 school buildings.

Statewide enrollment for 2006-07 — the latest year available from the department — was 8,287 students, Harris noted.

The highest density of migrant students, she said, are in the Hazleton, Philadelphia and Gettysburg areas.

While school districts make referrals, students are also recruited to attend, Harris said. State employed recruiters locate children through growers, other migrant families and industry owners.

Statistics from the department show that 83 percent of students enrolled in the program are Hispanic.

In Hazleton, Medina Lopez said the majority of students’ have Dominican backgrounds. A small percentage are Mexican. It’s quite different from about 14 years ago, when the local school started and the majority of students were of Mexican descent.

Christopher Manlove, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry, said that foreign workers can work in the United States legally by participating in the H2A guest worker program. The program brings non-immigrant foreign workers to the United States to perform agricultural labor. H2A visas authorize aliens to work as temporary farm workers on a non-immigrant basis. Approximately 49,500 migrant seasonal workers work in the commonwealth, according to Manlove.

As for the recent graduates from the Hazleton school, Medina Lopez said a few of them will soon start classes at the Pennsylvania State University main campus.

Like she does with all students who go on to further their education, Medina Lopez plans to keep tabs on them.

“I keep in touch with them,” she said, noting that she rings them at least once a month. “These are not my children, these are our children.”