Books and backpacks less easy to carry across the border now than before:  Mexican students who attend U.S. schools face a new reality in the anti-immigrant age of Trump

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EL PASO – Hundreds of students cross the border from Ciudad Juarez to El Paso daily,  carrying heavy backpacks and books and dreams of a better life.  Heightened  anti immigrant  rhetoric across the country and various immigration enforcement executive orders from President Donald Trump have added more stress and uncertainty to their daily lives. Over 1,000 Mexican students attend the the University of Texas at El Paso and about  half commute to campus from their homes in Juarez, across the Rio Grande from El Paso, according to a previously published story. The commute is a hardship for many because of the long and complicated commute from their home in Juarez,  a walk  or a car ride across an international border bridge to have their documents checked, followed by a bus ride  to the UTEP campus some five to 10 minutes from downtown El Paso,

Related: In 2016, commuting daily from Mexico to attend school in the U.S. was no big deal for students who budgeted their time well

Most must wake up before dawn to make it to an early morning class, and often don’t return home to Juarez until well past the dinner hour.  Depending on the amount of foot or car traffic on the international bridge, the crossing time can vary from 20 minutes to two hours.

Educator shares 5 tips for supporting immigrant and refugee students

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By Katrina Landa, Ed.D.

In 2016, the United States welcomed 96,874 refugees, including 15,479 from Syria alone, according to the US Department of State’s Refugee Processing Center. Nearly 60 percent of those refugees were children.  As these families settle into the country and children enroll in local schools, teachers face the unique challenge of ensuring refugee students feel welcomed, while also meeting their educational needs. 
 
As the ESL and bilingual coordinator at American College of Education (ACE), I frequently share my experience in working with refugee, immigrant and foreign language-speaking students and offer teachers these top five tips below. 
 
1. Establish a safe space in your classroom. You must be vigilant and stop any bullying immediately.

Kristin Oberheide, Director of International Programs at UTEP. (Juan Salomón/Borderzine.com)

International students can’t settle in the U.S. after graduation, so they take their learning home

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EL PASO – International student Andres De La Vega is graduating with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering this December from an American university, but with few U.S. employers willing to pay hefty fees to sponsor a foreign worker, he has two choices – go to graduate school or go back home. “Because we have invested in this country, I think we [international students] all deserve to get a job after graduation,” said De La Vega, an international student at the University of Texas at El Paso. So far he hasn’t had much luck landing a job here so he plans to attend graduate school in the U.S. rather than return home to Mexico. “I have been offered job positions, but when the employers find out that I am an international student, they immediately repeal the offer,” he said. Many foreign students attending U.S. colleges and universities face the same dilemma upon graduation.