Dive Brief:
- Indiana unveiled expansions to its Migrant Education Program, a No Child Left Behind-funded initiative that uses federal funds to provide services like tutoring and health care check-ups to migrant children.
- Under the program's expansion, there will be seven new regional centers for migrant 3-to-21-year-olds.
- "Migrant" typically defines those who haven't legally crossed international borders, and the program targets children who have moved between states or districts with their families, who are typically in search of agricultural jobs.
Dive Insight:
The nation's migrant farmers received much recognition from National Farm Workers Association Co-Founder Cesar Chavez, who chronicled his own experiences and hardships. The constant moves take their toll on students who are frequently forced to switch schools — in the case of Chavez, he ended up dropping out of the 8th grade to tend farm with his family.
Chavez's migrant farmers movement shed light on the injustice of the lifestyle and led to the creation of the State Migrant Education Programs (MEP) and High School Equivalency Programs (HEP) in 1967. The goal of these programs is for migrant children to receive the same access to public education as their non-migrant peers. The programs have gone through various iterations, but in 2002, under No Child Left Behind, federal grants were offered to states with MEPs.
Seeing as Indiana's Migrant Education Program is a remnant from No Child Left Behind days is especially significant, given the fact that the state is currently trying to work out whether or not its No Child Left Behind waiver will be revoked or not.