Welcoming and overwhelmed, a Denver school is stretched to meet migrant students' needs

Denver Public Schools recently reported that schools across the city are seeing a surge in the enrollment of thousands students recently arrived from the southern border.

About a thousand students registered after the October count day which means the district and many of the schools on the front lines are not being funded to handle the enrollment surge.

In our series 'McMeen in the Middle", we are following how a neighborhood school is welcoming the newcomers and also feeling overwhelmed.

Soledad Montesino is a beloved first grade teacher at McMeen Elementary.

Her ability to relate to kids in Spanish and English, like other bilingual teachers at the school, plus the availability of housing nearby are reasons McMeen's popularity is spreading through word of mouth in the migrant community.

It's happening at select schools across the city.

"We typically welcome new arrivals every year. Never this many. And never this quickly," said Adrienne Endres, executive director of multilingual education for DPS, and overseer of the district's response to the surge in new-to-country students. "We are bursting at the seams. In a lot of individual sites and as a district too in specific regions of the city."

Endres' son also happens to attend McMeen, so she's focused on helping him adjust to the changes as well, "How can I help you navigate being in a classroom with tons of kids that weren't there two weeks ago, and that might not know the rules yet?  And how can I help develop empathy in that space?" said Endres.

The Salloum - Rosas family arrived this year from Venezuela.  Maikol is learning a new language, new country and school rules.  The future's uncertain, but mom Genesis wants to provide her son stability.

In Spanish, Genesis Salloum told us, "I hope he can continue here. Because if I take him out of this school it will be making another change, another process, new friends, new teachers. And it's going to be harder for him."

Teacher Luis Figueroa has 35 kids in his second grade class.  That's the maximum allowed in the union contract.

He says the newcomer children will ask how he got to the United States, and describe their own journeys here.

"There are parts where it's really dangerous. And yeah you can tell that there's some trauma in those children, for sure," Figueroa said. "Their body is in the class but their mind is somewhere else because of their experiences of course."

The McMeen community has been generous, with donations filling the hallways. And every student left for winter break with non-perishables donated by Food for Thought.

Volunteer Jean Boylan organized a special orientation meeting for families who've arrived mid-year. It's the same night lots of families are lining up for free immunizations and free dinner.

But only one mom showed up for orientation, a sign Boylan says many families' main focus is survival.

"They come from a totally different culture, a different system. A different language, it's intimidating, there's so many layers of obstacles. So we have to figure out ways to bridge that," Boylan said.

The biggest need now is money in order to hire more support for students.

"Our staff is starting to experience their own trauma. Because they have certain children that don't behave, and it's getting to the point where they're exhausted, our staff is exhausted," she added.

The stress is taking a toll on the newcomer's classmates too.

The families of at least 13 students - even leaders of the school PTA (or parent teacher association/organization) - withdrew their kids from McMeen. Most citing unsustainable class sizes.

Kathleen Arriaza is committed to the school because her son Julian is learning how to be an ambassador, helping other kids. He reads in English and Spanish.  And the family loves Ms. Montesino.

Arriaza said, "There are a lot of people who are at their wit's end. I just, I'm lucky and Julian's lucky that he's thrived this year, but I know that not all the kids and families are so lucky."

District leadership says it doesn't want to minimize what some schools and its teachers and families are facing.  It's still trying to figure out solutions.

Endres said, "It's not like we're sitting on money we're not giving to schools. We the district isn't receiving funding for the students at this time either. So we're having to dig into other places to find the funding when schools don't have it."

McMeen is now in need of winter coats for elementary-age students, as well as toddler and adult sizes.

The Denver Public Schools Foundation has also set up a fund to help schools like McMeen support migrant students and their families. Learn more here: https://dpsfoundation.org/dps-foundations-newcomer-student-family-fund/

The DPS Foundation will host a virtual event about the Newcomer Student & Family Fund, and ways to support migrant students on Jan. 18 from noon to 1 p.m. Register here: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_N_YH8f9mQ8OBO-NGp-X42A#/registration