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Immigration fears in California schools: Report shows 1 in 8 students have undocumented parents
Much attention has focused recently on a heightened fear of deportation among undocumented K-12 students, but the number of children actually affected is far greater, according to a new report from The Education Trust–West. About 250,000 undocumented children between the ages of 3 and 17 are enrolled in California public schools, says the report, released in...
By Mark Keierleber | May 1, 2017
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LA charter schools commit to students’ safety, join fight against Trump’s threat to sanctuaries
A coalition of Los Angeles charter schools announced Tuesday that they plan to join in the legal challenge against President Trump’s executive order to withhold federal money from “sanctuary jurisdictions” including LA Unified. They also reported that fewer seniors in their high schools are applying to college this year because of fears of their information being...
By Mike Szymanski | March 29, 2017
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Claiming sanctuary: Inside the schools now actively resisting Trump’s immigration crackdown
The girl had already burst into tears when the bold, yellow letters on the man’s jacket came into focus: “Police.” Rómulo Avelica-González had just dropped off his 12-year-old daughter, Yuleni, at a Los Angeles charter school — as he did every morning — and was heading next to the school of his 13-year-old daughter, Fatima....
By Mark Keierleber | March 23, 2017
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Commentary: Keeping the DREAM alive — how to talk to students and what you can do
By Stephanie Kozofsky On a recent field trip, Paola told me that she has not seen her parents in four years. A senior, Paola has a 3.4 GPA, is on the flag football team and the varsity soccer team, and is taking a college course after school. Her love for this school, her education, and...
By Guest contributor | March 23, 2017
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Protesters join family of father arrested by ICE agents outside his daughter’s school at rally in downtown LA
More than 100 parents, educators, and students on Monday rallied and chanted outside the Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement offices in downtown Los Angeles to protest the arrest of a father who was taken from his family outside his daughter’s school. “We’re better than Trump, we deserve better than this, we are not...
By Mike Szymanski | March 6, 2017
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Supporting the success of DACA-mented youth
By Rafael Alvarez There are approximately 1 million undocumented youth currently living in America who were brought here as children. Practically speaking, this is the only country they have ever known, and they speak English fluently. They want to work hard and contribute to society and yet, up until four years ago, they were mostly...
By Guest contributor | December 19, 2016
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Even as they comfort students, undocumented teachers in LA share the same fears about DACA
Francisco Bravo is proud to be an educator and serve students with special needs in Lincoln Heights. Obtaining his college degree and then a master’s degree in education as an undocumented student was hard, but not as difficult as now facing possible deportation and losing everything he has achieved if the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals...
By Esmeralda Fabián Romero | December 4, 2016
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DACA supporters fear what Attorney General Jeff Sessions would mean for immigrant youth
If there was any question whether President-elect Donald Trump would make a U-turn on his immigration agenda after the election, it was quickly answered with this month’s announcement that he was tapping Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Alabama) to be attorney general. For years, Sessions has led the charge in Congress to curb, repeal, and resist efforts...
By Naomi Nix | November 30, 2016
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Los Angeles DACA students fear deportation but remain hopeful they can pursue their college dreams
Undocumented students, known as “Dreamers,” are fearful about their future in this country under the new Trump administration. Thousands of DACA beneficiaries live with the knowledge that the program that has protected them from deportation could end, but they are not ready to give up on their dream of achieving a college education. Kathia García, who was...
By Esmeralda Fabián Romero | November 22, 2016
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Make no mistake: Immigration is an education issue
By Hailly T.N. Korman The DNC kicked off last night with two parallel stories of immigration that are meaningful, especially for those closely watching education issues. Karla Ortiz — a 10-year-old American citizen — spoke along with her mother, Francisca Ortiz, who is undocumented. Another speaker, Astrid Silva — identified on the schedule simply as “DREAMer”...
By Guest contributor | July 27, 2016