Immigrant and Refugee Parent Involvement in Schools and the Link to Academic Success and Mental Health of Children Jodie Fishman May 8, 2009

Consider “Juan”….

The Changing “American” Family In 2000, 1 in 5 children in the U.S. immigrated here or had at least one immigrant parent In 2007, immigrants accounted for 1 in 8 U.S. residents Sources: Shields MK, Behrman RE. Children of Immigrant Families: Analysis and Recommendations. The Future of Children. Princeton University and The Brookings Institution. 2004;14(2). Camarota, Steven. Immigrants in the United States, 2007. A Profile of America’s Foreign-Born Population. Center for Immigration Studies: November 2007. Retrieved March 31, 2009, from http://www.cis.org/articles/2007/back1007.html

Unique Challenges Facing Immigrant and Refugee Children Separation from families Refugee camps Exposure to violence Moves from rural to urban settings Cultural barriers Language barriers Poverty Lack of health insurance

The “Caring Across Communities” Project The Center for Health and Health Care in Schools (CHHCS) 3-year, national program 15 sites across the country Immigrant and refugee dense communities School-connected mental health programs

Objectives Further understand attitudes and beliefs of immigrant and refugee parents towards schools and mental health Find ways to increase immigrant and refugee parent involvement in schools by understanding barriers and facilitators to parent engagement

Research Questions Does parent participation make a difference in the success of school-based mental health programs for immigrant and refugee children? What are the barriers and facilitators to engaging immigrant and refugee parents in schools and school-based mental health programs?

Data Sources Eileen Kugler, author of Debunking the Middle Class Myth: Why Diverse Schools are Good for All Whitney Meagher, Program Coordinator for Health and Welfare, PTA National Office Surveys of 500+ providers in the field Case study of UNC’s Creating Confianza program

Results Link between parent involvement in schools and academic success/mental health of child Best ways to engage parents: Collaborate with community Find cultural brokers Tailor outreach to culture Create welcoming schools Common barriers: Transportation Work schedules Language barriers School leadership

Conclusions Integrating immigrant and refugee parents into schools is key to success of children Culturally aware staff Need to treat children and their parents/families simultaneously

Recommendations Cultural diversity and language requirements for administrators and teachers before reaching their own classrooms Teacher training in basic mental health needs Paid positions dedicated to parent outreach

Recommendations, continued Diversifying PTAs and addressing parent and child mental health at meetings Redefine “parent” Immigrant Parent Involvement plans, pilot programs

Remember “Juan”?

How Creating Confianza Helped “Juan”

Acknowledgements Dr. Olga Acosta Price, Center for Health and Health Care in Schools, GWU Dr. Julia Lear, Center for Health and Health Care in Schools, GWU Dr. Mimi Chapman, Creating Confianza at UNC Alejandra Martinez-Lacabe, Creating Confianza at UNC Whitney Meagher, National PTA Eileen Kugler, Embrace Diverse Schools

Thank you! Questions? Preguntas? 물음, 질문, 질의  ? 有问题吗？