Immigrant Children and Youth Program
The Immigrant Children and Youth Program targets local educational agencies (LEAs) experiencing a substantial increase of immigrant children and youth. This program provides financial assistance to LEAs with immigrant students through a formula. Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education informs LEAs that returned their counts and qualify for this program. Funds for this program are known as Title III-Immigrant because they are a part of Title III of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).
Definition
Immigrant Children and Youth are individuals:
(1) who are ages 3 through 21;
(2) who were not born in any State; and
(3) who have not been attending one or more schools in any one or more states for more than three full academic years.
Allowable Use of Immigrant Children and Youth Funds
LEAs experiencing a substantial increase in immigrant children and youth are targeted to receive funds that must be used to pay for activities that provide enhanced instructional opportunities for immigrant children and youth, and may include:
- Family literacy, parent and family outreach, and training activities designed to assist parents and families to become active participants in the education of their children;
- Recruitment of and support for personnel, including teachers and paraprofessionals who have been specifically trained, or are being trained, to provide services to immigrant children and youth;
- Provision of tutorials, mentoring, and academic or career counseling for immigrant children and youth;
- Identification, development, and acquisition of curricular materials, educational software, and technologies to be used in the program;
- Basic instruction services that are directly attributable to the presence of immigrant children and youth in the LEA, including the payment of costs of providing additional classroom supplies, costs of transportation, or such other costs as are directly attributable to such additional basic instruction services;
- Other instructional services that are designed to assist immigrant children and youth to achieve in elementary schools and secondary schools in the United State, such as programs of introduction to the educational system and civics education; and
- Activities, coordinated with community-based organizations, institutions of higher education, private sector entities, or other entities with expertise in working with immigrants, to assist parents and families of immigrant children and youth by offering comprehensive community services.
Answers to Questions about Immigrant Children and Youth Programs
- The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education does not collect information on the legal basis for any student’s current residence in the US (e.g. citizenship status, permanent residency, visas, etc.). Districts must stay away from asking questions that may create a chilling effect and discourage students and families from enrolling in school. The definition target will determine the total cumulative number of months that the student has attended schools in the United States. Date and place of birth, and prior schooling may help to determine eligibility. Immigration status questions have no bearing on whether or not the student meets the definition.
- Students adopted by U.S. citizens and foreign exchange students may be identified as Immigrant (Title III) code if they meet the definition above.
- According to the U.S. Department of Education, students born in the territories of the United States other than Puerto Rico are not considered born in the US for purposes of determining immigrants under Title III. These territories include American Samoa, Guam, Marianas Islands, and U.S. Virgin Islands. These students are considered 'not born in the US'. Children born outside the US to military personnel and children born outside the US and adopted by US citizens are considered 'not born in the US'.