(Ana Varela/Borderzine.com)

New immigrants face a language barrier in the U.S.

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EL PASO – Due to the high level of violence in Cd. Juárez, many families are migrating to El Paso in search of a better life, but as their children enter school here many of them struggle to learn English. The El Paso Independent School District saw an increase of 8 percent in the number of Limited English Proficiency (LEP) students between 2007 and 2010. The number of students enrolling in English as a Second Language (ESL) programs also continues to grow, according to the Texas Education Agency. LEP students are eligible to receive ESL or bilingual instruction.  Therefore out of the 8 percent of LEP students, some receive bilingual instruction and some receive ESL instruction.  Not all of the students identified as LEP receive ESL or bilingual instruction.

(Raymundo Aguirre/Borderzine.com)

El Paso school districts have no idea how many new students fled Juárez

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EL PASO — As the drug war rages on in México, the number of students that have enrolled in El Paso schools due to the violence remains unknown and unrecorded by schools. Ysleta and the Socorro Independent School Districts said there is no clear indication that people fleeing México to escape the violence have dramatically affected either district. “I know students are coming in from México, but I cannot say with any certainty and there is not any data that I can look at right now that tells me that we have grown by any significant number and that we can directly attribute that to students coming in from México to flee the violence,” said Hector Giron, director for Bilingual/ESL/LOTE Department for YISD. For students that have already made the transition to U.S. schools, the main challenge for them has been overcoming the language barrier. A junior from Montwood High School in the SISD, who wishes to remain anonymous, said he has been going to school in the U.S. for six years and due to his level of English he felt intimidated when he began school here.

School district budget cuts kill jobs and crimp the arts

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EL PASO – In 2010 the El Paso Independent School District (EPISD) was looking for ways to cut $2.5 million from the district’s budget. Part of the solution came last week with a sting – the EPISD saved $5.6 million by cutting 116 positions. Before that decision, the situation had escalated to the possible closing of two elementary schools, Schuster and Zavala. Kenneth Parker, chief officer for the EPISD said the closing of the two elementary schools would save the district about $2.5 million. In the past five years the district has cut $43 million from the budget, without hurting academic courses.