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About 38 million people in the United States - one in eight - are immigrants (legal and illegal). Immigrants are no longer concentrated in states such as California and Florida but are on the rise in record numbers in states such as Alabama, Indiana and North Carolina. Ten million English Language Learners (ELLs) are enrolled in U.S. schools and roughly half of these students are identified as "limited English proficient," a federal government designation. This designation indicates that these students need additional support in developing their academic language proficiency to fulfill school requirements. ELLs represent a diverse group. In terms of first language alone, these students speak more than 400 languages. The majority of them, however, speak Spanish as their first language. By all accounts, ELLs constitute the fastest-growing group in North Carolina's public schools. Our schools have experienced more than 370 percent growth in the number of ELLs between 1995 and 2005. This growth is striking because of the relatively flat growth in the state's total K-12 population for the same period. These demographic realities present the educational system with significant challenges. Substantive changes are necessary to meet the educational and language needs of these students. The commitment to serve these ELL students is an educational and social equity imperative, as well as an economic necessity. Revamping our educational systems to accommodate ELLs is an issue of civil rights, as some human rights organizations contend. These groups maintain that the No Child Left Behind Act should be considered the civil rights legislation for these underprivileged students. Despite the numerous problems with No Child Left Behind, many educators argue that the federal legislation has moved the conversation from whether a commitment to educate ELLs is needed to how to best serve this population. No Child Left Behind has brought the educational needs of ELLs into the limelight, but this is only the beginning in terms of putting into place an educational system that effectively accommodates the needs of a large segment of our student population. The economic welfare of our country and our state is contingent on our ability to provide quality education to immigrants and ELLs in order to bring them into the work force and to stay competitive in the world market. Against this background, the UNCG School of Education Access and Equity Committee is hosting a conference to address the changing demographics, socioeconomic needs and community integration realities facing our state and area today. The conference presents two national speakers, professor Margarita Machado-Casas, from the University of Texas at San Antonio, and H. Nolo Martinez, from UNCG, along with community leaders who will discuss vital issues pertaining to immigrants in North Carolina. In closing, I remind you that immigrants' stories are the history of the United States. I, for example, consider myself to be a privileged immigrant, someone who came here for graduate school, made a career and integrated into communities relatively seamlessly. Mind you, I grew up in a war-torn Beirut and was the first member of my family to attend college. Yet I have experienced both personally and professionally that the door to successful immigration and advancement is opened via education. |
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