Antonio the model student from Oaxaca

Antonio is that kind of student that reminds you of why you went into teaching. May his work ethic and enthusiasm for learning be passed on to all students--John Gay Camp  June 17, 2013. 

http://gypsysouljourneys.tumblr.com/

My daughter Rachel Taylor has just finished week two of her 8 week internship in the Dominican Republic Amy and I will be going to visit her in several weeks. 

The photo below is Rachel's current Facebook profile picture.

I absolutely love this photo of Rachel!

Eager to learn

For me there is nothing more touching and exciting than to experience young children who are eager to learn . . . eager to learn in spite of obstacles that make learning such a challenge. 

My friend Jose is back!

For the third summer in a row, my friend Jose has returned with his accordion. I admire the fact that he manages to find room for his musical instrument in spite of having such limited space. 

This might help to explain . . .

This photograph might help to explain why so many migrant workers risk so much to come to the United States to work in the fields. This is the "main street" of Tecomartes, San Luis Potosi, Mexico, the home of several of our migrant workers this year. One of these men, in fact, studied computer technology at a university in Mexico before making heading to the long journey to El Norte. He is one of a growing numbers of migrants who actually have a bachillerato, a high school diploma, from a high school in Mexico. 

Even with the dangerous journey, the sparse living conditions, and the difficult work at barely minimum wage, the economic alternatives can be for those who remain in Mexico and other surrounding countries. 

Bcahuasaz Hidalgo does not exist

Each time we register an OSY, we must fill out the COE (Certificate of Eligibility)--a legal document. One piece of information we need is the student's place of birth. I have just spent about 45 minutes on Google trying to find the location (or the correct spelling of "Bcahuasaz, Hidalgo, MX."

The Good news is that I came across the website below which contains detailed maps of each of the 31 states in Mexico and an alphabetical listing of the major cities, towns, and villages in that state. Based upon my research, there is nothing close to the name of this town in HG.

I spent another 20 minutes trying to locate a previous registration of Diego in a national database of migrant workers www.msix.ed.gov using his first name and birthday, but again no listing. Since this worker has an H-2A visa and just arrived several days go from Mexico (and says that it is his first time in the USA), it was unlikely to begin with of his being registered in msix. So that leaves one possibility, we will pull him aside during the next class, show him a map of Hidalgo, and try to solve the mystery of his birth town together. 

Good recruiters try to be as accurate as possible in the recording and reporting of their data. In the past, I might have randomly chosen one of the larger cities in a particular state and simply put it as the student's place of birth. While this would probably not be a major infraction, considering the efforts involved sometimes in being accurate, it just bothers me. If the recruiter goes the extra mile today to get the data correct in msix, the life of the next recruiter will be that much easier tomorrow. 

I also enjoy the search--it's like being a detective sometimes. 

Helpful website for migrant recruiter

Film of the Beaufort County MEP made for the May 25, 2013 Orientation Meeting

Below is a Windows Movie Maker film I made for our meeting on May 25, 2013. It contains about 100 photographs taken over the past 3 years in the Beaufort County South Carolina Migrant Education Program. 

Migrant Program Film 2013 

Excerpts from the film . . . 

Migrant Program Film May 2013