Illegal Immigrant Children In The Classroom, Schools Brace For 50,000 New Students

Illegal immigrant children are entitled to a free public education under federal law. Schools across the country are preparing for an influx of new students in the coming weeks. Up to 50,000 illegal immigrant children are expected to enroll in American schools this fall, USA Today is reporting.

Although illegal alien children have become an increased percentage of the public school student population in many states over the past several decades, the sheer number of unaccompanied children who have crossed the Texas border this year alone has administrators concerned.

This is a whole new wave of immigrant students that are coming without any guardians whatsoever. One of the challenges here is the large number of unaccompanied minors,” National School Board Association general counsel Francisco Negron said. We don’t know the educational background of the students, if they’ve been to school, the language issue and operational issues that could raise costs, Negron added.

School support assistant director for Dalton Public Schools in Georgia, Caroline Woodason said, “We haven’t started school yet, so we are all just holding our breath to see what’s going to come on the first day of school.” In 2013 Montgomery County Publci Schools in Maryland enrolled 107 illegal immigrant children, an currently have no idea how many more new students with little or no English speaking skills will be coming their way this year. Last month more than 2,200 unaccompanied minors arrived in the state. As previously reported by The Inquisitr, illegal immigrants have now been transported to all 50 states from Border Patrol detention centers.

The added expense of educating the illegal immigrant children has been a source of angst for many taxpayers. Parents and teachers concerned about over-crowded classrooms and a slow-down of the learning process due to the language barrier alone is becoming another often-voiced complaint. School nurses, educators, and parents alike are also worried about communicable disease such as lice, scabies, and chicken pox, spreading more rapidly. As previously noted by The Inquisitr, Border Patrol agents at Texas border detention facilities have stated that such conditions and ailments have presented frequently among the unaccompanied children being released into communities across the country.

The United States Department of Education has created a team to field “inquiries received from the field” and to identify additional resources for school districts feeling overwhelmed by the influx of new students.
States can set aside additional money for school districts who have a “significant increase” in illegal immigrant children walking through the building doors. But, a state must actually have additional funds to set aside for such endeavors and be willing to face political backlash from taxpayers over the expense.

What do you think about the concerns over illegal immigrant children attending public schools this fall?

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