Education and Immigration Reform: Status and Prospects Professor Victoria-María MacDonald Dept. of Teaching, Learning, Policy & Leadership University of Maryland Immigration Town Hall - Johns Hopkins University League of United Latin American Citizens April 29, 2013 If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and what never will be… Educate and inform the whole mass of people… they are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty. - Thomas Jefferson

PLYLER V. DOE – UNAUTHORIZED CHILDREN PERMITTED IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS The U.S. Supreme Court currently protects the constitutional right of undocumented children to attend K-12 Public Schools. “By denying these children a basic education, we deny them the ability to live within the structure of our civic institutions, and foreclose any realistic possibility that they will contribution in even the smallest way to the progress of our Nation” Final ruling, Plyler v. Doe 457 U.S. 202 (1982)

Latino/a Educational Status and the Achievement Gap H.S. Dropout Rates by Ethnic-Racial groups, 2010

. Percentage of 16- to 24- year-olds who were high school status dropouts, by nativity and race/ethnicity with Hispanic subgroups: 2005 Race/ethnicity and subgroup NumberTotalNativeForeign-born Total 1 34,602, White21,163, Black4,786, HISPANIC6,190, Mexican4,150, Puerto Rican502, ‡ Dominican172, !17.7 Central American 469, !43.7 South American 267, !11.8 Other Hispanic or Latino 629,

Educational Attainment Levels By ETHNIC-RACIAL GROUPS, 2011 SOURCE: NCES.ED.GOV/FASTFACTS/DISPLAYSP?ID=27

The Impact of UNDOCUMENTED STATUS OF PARENTS on Educational Success 4.5 to 5 Million Children Under 18 have unauthorized Parents Source: Pew Research Center (2013) Low enrollment in pre-K program, such as Head Start. Parent deportation (and fear over deportation) affects student learning and emotion Confines parents to low-income employment; poverty has negative impact on educational attainment. Source: Unauthorized Immigrant Parents and Their Children’s Development: A Summary of Evidence, 2013.

Positive Impact of Immigration Reform on educational attainment Immigration Reform will: Increase parental involvement Increase parental involvement Increase educational advocacy of parents Increase educational advocacy of parents Decrease detention and suspension of students Decrease detention and suspension of students Increase acculturation of parent (e.g. English language training) Increase acculturation of parent (e.g. English language training)

DEFERRED ACTION FOR CHILDHOOD ARRIVALS (DACA) AUG. 15, 2012-MARCH 14, 2013 Source:

Four Obstacles to DACA applications Cumbersome paperwork, especially documentation of past residency.Cumbersome paperwork, especially documentation of past residency. Lack of support for rural population, especially migrant farm workers.Lack of support for rural population, especially migrant farm workers. DACA filing fee ($465)DACA filing fee ($465) DistrustDistrust

POSITIVE EDUCATIONAL AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES OF IMMIGRATION REFORM 1.Democratic Citizenship 2.Social Stability, Social Mobility, Economic Productivity and Economic Competition with Other Countries. 3.Acculturation and Integration of Immigrants into U.S. Society HUMAN CAPITAL + EDUCATION = ECONOMIC HEALTH UNTAPPED HUMAN CAPITAL AS A RESULT OF UNAUTHORIZATION WEAKENS ECONOMY AND SOCIETY

For Questions and Comments Victoria-Maria MacDonald, Department Teaching, Learning, Policy, and Leadership, University of Maryland