Migrant students heading back to school in NYC face unique challenges. How they're getting help
NEW YORK — There can be lots of emotions for students heading back to school, and for new migrant students, there are also challenges.
Eric Martinez, 16, and Jeremias Martinez, 12, are two brave brothers who survived a long journey from Venezuela to New York City with their parents earlier this year.
"Just focusing on school and taking precaution when meeting people," Jeremias said in Spanish through a translator.
They live in a shelter in Queens and will be attending school in Manhattan, where the city placed them.
"He's excited about making new friends. He's a little nervous about starting because it's a whole different education, the language barrier, but he's very excited," a translator said of Eric.
"I'm excited for my kids to have an education here. In Venezuela, there's no education, it's just out of order and a lot of gangs," said mom Enizaida Martinez through a translator.
Support for migrant students in NYC
New Immigrant Community Empowerment (NICE) in Jackson Heights has been helping the city's newest neighbors with job training, support services and, these days, even school supplies for kids.
"These families are families coming with their children. Two or three children per family, very young ones, babies, but also teenagers who are about to start high school," said Nilbia Coyote, executive director of NICE. "It means that we need resources also in the educational system to be able to cater to all these new families."
According to a city spokesperson, New York City Public Schools does not ask families to disclose immigration status, so there isn't specific student migrant data, but we're told since July 2022, about 40,000 new students in temporary housing were enrolled in the city's public school system, including 22,000 just in the 2023-2024 school year.
As migrant students navigate their new reality, the city says students-in-temporary-housing coordinators will continue to work with them and their families to help the newcomer students with enrollment, mental health support, transportation to and from school, and English-speaking programs.