They would never feel entirely safe until Congress enacted it into law – which, of course, never happened and continues not to happen. And despite the fact that national surveys have consistently shown that Americans overwhelmingly oppose deporting law-abiding DREAMers to the countries they and their families came from – countries these DREAMers have never really known – the election of President Trump left no doubt that the Obama DACA order would be nullified by this new president. And now comes the first quantifiable result of the societal version of living on death row for DREAMers, waiting for their appeals to be heard and hoping for reprieve after reprieve. SPOILER ALERT: DREAMers are seriously stressed and afraid, very afraid. 
According to survey results released by First Book, in underserved communities increased anxiety around DACA and racism is impeding learning and increasing demands on educators. The study is part of First Book Insights, First Book’s research initiative that leverages the organization’s 25 years of experience working directly with educators serving low-income communities. First Book aggregates the voices of more than 350,000 educators—representing one in four of the estimated 1.3 million educators serving kids in need—to identify the unmet needs and challenges unique to underserved schools and programs.
“Many students are too frightened to attend school because they fear their parents will be deported while they are gone,” one educator wrote in their survey response.
“I have one honor student in particular who completely stopped working,” wrote another. “After lots of digging and working on our trust, he revealed his immigration status and explained that he was not working because there was no way he would ever be able to go to college.”
Those who are indifferent to the nightmare DREAMers are living, conflating it with building the wall along the Mexican border, are misinformed. This is separate and apart from the immigration debate that is raging in America. And it should be noted that DREAMers are from Asia, the Caribbean, and Central and South America, as well as Mexico. Brought together by the terror of uncertainty, this tapestry of young people targeted by Congressional paralysis and a devastating White House challenge, which created a self-imposed deadline for action, feels as American as apple pie and are “yearning to breathe free” in this, the only country they have ever known and loved. 

Research Highlights

The First Book Social Issues Impact Survey was distributed in September 2017 to members of the First Book Network, which is comprised of more than 350,000 educators serving children in need. 
•    According to educators, DACA and immigration policies (cited by 70 percent) and racism (cited by 67 percent) were cited as two of their top social issues.
•    DACA/immigration policies, police interaction and racism top the list of social issues brought up by kids in the classroom. 
•    On average, more than 70 percent of First Book educators do not feel adequately prepared to address urgent conversations affecting students’ health and wellbeing. Additionally, only 10 percent of educators indicated they felt they had adequate resources to address DACA and immigration.
•    Nearly all respondents—95 percent—said they need fiction and nonfiction books and resources that teach empathy and address the top social issues, as well as resources that can be shared with family members.
•    Nearly 50 percent of respondents said DACA and immigration policies directly impact their students, where there are instances where students express fear being deported and never being allowed to come back home. •
 

DACA, DREAMers and Dread

Academics Weigh In On The Ways Teachers, Professors And The Community Can Help Stressed Out Dreamers Stay On Track In The Classroom And Through Summer Programs And Activities

Jessica A. Quintana Hess, Director Of Admissions At Lycoming College (Pa.) 

With previous positions held at American University (District of Columbia), Johns Hopkins University (Md.) and Bucknell University (Pa.), Hess has acquired great insight into different academic environments and has worked with high school students, families and professional colleagues from many parts of the U.S. and abroad. 
“Right now, it is recommended that these students forge ahead! Teachers, counselors, community-based organizations and other advocates can absolutely still encourage students to move forward towards their educational goals. Those students who can work, should continue to do so and keep abreast of the changing policies and dates/deadlines for DACA reactivation or activation that they had thought might have not been an option any longer. Maintaining this outlook and commitment will help them maintain a hold of their financial backing for the upcoming collegiate year. If they have not yet found a campus advocate, they should try to connect with someone that will help them navigate policy, procedure and their academic program. This could be a professional and academic services, multicultural affairs/diversity and inclusion or a faculty member they have developed a rapport with. If they are not sure where to go, they could start with their admissions representative depending on the type of institution they are attending as their status would have already been disclosed through the admissions process. They should be able to make an appropriate referral so that the student can get the support that they need. Career services could assist students with DACA status and getting a summer internship opportunity that will also provide an opportunity to complement the classroom experience that they have been having. DREAMers, regardless of status, should also still have the opportunity to job shadow or volunteer in organizations that might be in their area of academic interest.  Although they might not get paid a salary for these opportunities, they will still give them enhanced academic experiences, which will serve them well in the long run.”

Dr. Maryanne Stevens, President Of The College Of Saint Mary (Neb.) 

A woman of profound values, Dr. Stevens has spoken locally and nationally to numerous groups on women’s issues, gender in the workplace, inclusivity and the value of meaningful work. She holds a Ph.D. in religion and education from Boston College. 
“College of Saint Mary’s board of directors and other donors are very supportive of our efforts to support the DREAMers as are our faculty and staff.  One of the things we say to these students is ‘stay in college; no one can take your education away from you.’  We believe that education, that is, the calling forth of these students’ potential and the fostering of their leadership, is what will ultimately relieve their stress over the long term even as we cannot always keep them from the fear and anxiety of the present.  The students themselves have become more emboldened because of the support we surround them with, however, they remain concerned about their parents and families.  Thus, we routinely invite families to information sessions to update them on the activity in Congress and their legal rights as undocumented persons in the United States.  This further provides support.”

Dr. Marta Caminero-Santangelo, Director For Latin American And Caribbean Studies, University Of Kansas (Kan.) 

Along with her role as director, Dr. Caminero-Santangelo is a professor in the English Department at UK. She earned a Ph.D. from the University of California, Irvine. She was born in Quebec, Canada, to Cuban immigrant parents who were American citizens. 
“Educators have a responsibility to promote the success of all their students, and that includes DREAMers.  Issues of building inclusive classrooms—classrooms that don’t make some students feel they don’t belong—apply to our undocumented students as well. What things do professors maybe say off the cuff in a class that just assume that there are no undocumented students present?  How do we intervene when hostile comments are made that suggest that certain of our students shouldn’t be there? When our students are facing an incredibly scary situation at the national level and also are made to feel they don’t belong at their schools and campuses, this takes a psychological toll. The best thing educators can do, in my opinion, is to educate ourselves on this issue, so that we can be strong and supportive teachers and mentors.  DREAMers have their own dreams—their ambitions, career goals and aspirations—and these feel really threatened right now.  We need to not say things to our students that are going to kill those dreams, even while we also need to be very careful not to give misleading and uninformed advice.  This means educating ourselves about the situation of DREAMers.” 

Dr. Shannon Varga, A Postdoctoral Research Fellow At America’s Promise Alliance’s Center For Promise At Boston University 

Dr. Varga’s research focuses on taking ecological approaches to promote healthy development for youth by optimizing relationships, settings and curricula to best meet youths’ needs. Dr. Varga earned her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology: Applied Developmental Science from the University of Virginia Curry School of Education.
“A recent report from the Center for Promise, I Came Here to Learn, highlights the myriad of stressors and challenges that non-native English speakers in Massachusetts face on a daily basis. Notably, youth who participated in the study described strong feelings of isolation from society and school. Supportive relationships are not a substitute for racially and linguistically inclusive schools, adequately resourced schools or economic stability. However, teachers, professors and community members should not underestimate the power of supportive relationships. Our advice is to be available, be open and be a resource. According to previous research and existing resources, adults should (1) educate themselves about the lived experiences of DACA-eligible young people in addition to the local, state and national policies that affect their education and lives, (2) actively seek to make connections with these young people and be a compassionate source of support, and (3) be prepared to be an advocate or promote a culture of advocacy in their schools/communities.”