(2021). Beyond the Label: Using a Multilevel Model of Intersectionality to Explore the Educational Experiences of Latino English Learners. Journal of Latinos and Education, v20 n1 p62-77
Latinos labeled "English learners" by the school system face social and systemic barriers that limit their access to postsecondary opportunities. Using a multilevel model of intersectionality, this collaborative case study contextualizes influences that impacted the educational trajectories of two Latino students who came to the United States from El Salvador as young teenagers. Despite their many similarities, the data reveal salient differences about factors that affect opportunities and outcomes for these students. Findings for this study reveal the role of identity and social interactions at the meso- and macro-level, meritocracy and the American dream, and the barriers of immigration status…. [Direct]
(2021). Undocumented and Asylum-Seeking Children from Central America and Mexico: Where They Are and How Schools Are Doing. Research Brief. RB-A1326-1. RAND Corporation
In recent years, record numbers of undocumented and asylum-seeking families and children from Mexico and Northern Triangle countries–El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras–crossed the U.S. southwest border in search of safety and opportunity. Some cross undetected, without registering with immigration authorities and becoming "undocumented." Others apply for asylum at the border. Once inside the United States, all children, regardless of immigration status, have the right to a public K-12 education by federal law. Education leaders need unbiased information, data, and good practices so they can be ready to support the newcomers effectively once they enroll in school. RAND Corporation researchers sought to understand how the current increase in undocumented and asylum-seeking children may affect the K-12 school system in the coming years. To do this, the research team collected and analyzed a mix of quantitative and qualitative data and methods. The team reviewed federal and… [Direct]
(2019). Higher Education Regionalization in the Northern Triangle of Central America: Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. Journal of Comparative and International Higher Education, v11 n3 p4-13 Win
The ongoing migrant crisis that engulfs the U.S.-Mexico border is often the source of political and socioeconomic discourse related to the treatment of those caught in the web of immigration politics or the causes of migration to the U.S. from Mexico and Central America. One related, critical conversation involves the future stability of countries neighboring the southern region of Mexico — El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras. Together they comprise the northern region of Central America, increasingly referred to as the "Northern Triangle" (NT). The region is documented for its lower levels of human development, high rates of violent crime, low school completion rates and high rates of poverty (Meyer and Seelke 2015; Congressional Research Service 2019). In recent years, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has supported efforts towards public health, business development, efficient government institutions and the scaling up of postsecondary… [PDF]
(2016). "Out of My Comfort Zone": Understanding the Impact of a Service-Learning Experience in Rural El Salvador. Global Education Review, v3 n4 p146-168
This qualitative case study was designed to explore student's perceptions of the impact of a two-week service-learning experience in rural El Salvador. Students stayed in an economically impoverished village in rural El Salvador and worked on projects that promoted education for children in the village. Participants included 15 graduate and undergraduate students. Multiple data sources were used to understand these impacts including: open-ended interviews conducted two to four months after the trip; field notes from participant observations in large and small group activities, group reflections; and informal incidents and conversations; review of student journals; student final papers, and daily activity and health logs. While the initial process of adjustment was difficult for some students, all students felt that this experience had an important, positive impact on them. Data indicated that this impact occurred in all three major areas addressed in this study, including: personal… [PDF]
(2010). Facing Our Future: Children in the Aftermath of Immigration Enforcement. Urban Institute (NJ1)
The United States is engaged in an intense debate about immigration policy, particularly with regard to unauthorized immigrants. Debates rage about the economic contributions of immigrants to the U.S. economy, job competition, tax payments and fiscal costs, and the integration of immigrants in communities and the larger society. Largely absent from the discussion are the children of immigrants. Today there are an estimated 5.5 million children with unauthorized immigrant parents, about three-quarters of whom are U.S.-born citizens. The nation builds its own future by investing in the futures of children, spending billions of dollars annually on education and health care, preventing abuse and neglect, and supporting when necessary their basic needs for housing and food. Yet, unlike other children in this country, the children of unauthorized immigrants live with the fear that their parents might be arrested, detained, or deported. The federal government spends billions each year to… [PDF]
(1986). Immigration to the United States from Latin America: Past and Present. The Latin American Project: Volume 1, No. 4.
Immigration legislation in the United States is aimed primarily at Mexican migrants, who account for over half of all undocumented immigrants in the United States. Citizens of Central American and Caribbean countries contribute another 20%. The first section of this booklet traces the development of United States immigration legislation from the late 1800s to the present and examines its impact on immigration from Latin America and the Caribbean. Section two examines the peculiar symbiotic relationship between Mexican labor and American business that developed in the American Southwest during the 34-year rule of Mexican President Porfirio Diaz (1876-1910). The bracero program is also discussed at some length. Section three presents four interviews with undocumented immigrants from Mexico, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Guatemala. The interviews include information about why the immigrants left their home countries, how they entered the United States, what type of work they do, what…
(1990). The Houston Community College Eligible Legalized Alien Program. Evaluation Program. Evaluation Report.
The Houston Community College (Texas) program (TOTAL ACCESS) designed in response to the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, is described and evaluated. The program offers classes to eligible aliens (97% Hispanic Americans from Mexico, El Salvador, and Guatemala) wishing to pursue the educational program required for legalization. Program components include English as a Second Language and citizenship instruction, basic literacy, and high school equivalency. This report describes the curriculum; the need for and nature of the program; initial evaluation activities; evaluation data (including enrollment, effect on television viewing for literacy, and use of the local newspaper for literacy lessons); attainment of specific program objectives; student demographic data (previous place of residence, age, birthplace, gender, length of residence in Houston, occupations, marital status, children, educational background); teacher data (background, credentials); student values, goals,… [PDF]
(2002). Latinos: Remaking America.
This book brings together leading scholars in the study of the Latino population in the United States. The papers include: "Introduction: The Research Agenda" (Marcelo M. Suarez-Orozco and Mariela M. Paez); (1) "'Y tu que?' (Y2K): Latino History in the New Millennium" (George J. Sanchez); (2) "Islands and Enclaves: Caribbean Latinos in Historical Perspective" (Juan Flores); (3) "Power and Identity: Miami Cubans" (Alex Stepick and Carol Dutton Stepick); (4) "Community Dynamics and the Rise of Street Gangs" (Diego Vigil); (5) "Gender, Ethnicity, and Race in School and Work Outcomes of Second-Generation Mexican Americans" (Robert C Smith); (6) "Unions and Latinos: Mutual Transformation" (John Trumpbour and Elaine Bernard); (7) "Two Nations under God? Latino Religious Life in the United States" (Peggy Levitt); (8) "Ambivalent Reception: Mass Public Responses to the 'New' Latino Immigration to the United…
(1983). Seeking Safe Haven: A Congregational Guide to Helping Central American Refugees in the United States.
Over the last three years, religious groups and communities around the United States have become increasingly aware of the arrival in this country of large numbers of Salvadorans and Guatemalans seeking refuge from violence and persecution but instead facing arrest and deportation as illegal aliens. This guide is an attempt to mobilize, orient, and support congregational involvement with the people and the issues. It offers the options both to respond to the immediate human needs of the refugees and to examine and respond to the larger issues provoking their flight and the denial of haven to them in the United States. The guide is divided into eight sections. The three initial sections provide overviews and background information on the refugee-producing situations and the conditions faced by the refugees, in particular in this country. The fourth section is a summary of the options for action, from the quick and simple to the more complex. Suggestions are provided for individual…