The City University of New York’s Initiative on Immigration and Education (CUNY-IIE) involves educators, researchers, families, and local leaders who develop a range of resources serving immigrant communities regardless of status. Its website is available in Spanish, English, and several other languages. Here are samples of their work.
Free, online, professional development opportunities (with CTLEs) and related materials: Refugees and Immigrants in Schools, Immigration in Elementary Schools, Key Immigration Issues Module (12-minute video, 86 pp booklet), Translanguaging for Multilingual Immigrant Students (30 pp booklet), and Trauma-Informed Practice (30-page booklet).
90-minute Immigration & Education Information Sessions are available to PK-12 schools, community- and university-based groups, and college instructors across New York State.
UndocuEdu provides information and support for undocumented individuals who want to teach or prepare to teach. Materials include five short videos, Aspiring UndocuEducators’ Guide to Self-Advocacy (26 pp), and The State of Undocumented Educators in New York (36 pp)
From the cover of Best Practices: Protecting Our Students. Illustration by Lincoln Agnew for Teaching Tolerance.
Guidance on Rights of Immigrant Students and Dignity for All Students Act (2017) is available in 20 languages. It provides information on students’ rights with ideas for creating and keeping classrooms as safe havens for all. More recent print materials, slides, and video are on the department’s website at Immigrant and Newcomer Students along with links to other NYSED materials and other organizations.
NYS Language RBERN (nyslanguagerbern@gmail.com) serves educators, parents, and families of English Language Learners (ELL) with a wide-range of information and resources in multiple languages including:
Resources for Educators of ELLs and World Language Students — professional development for educators.
Translations and Interpretation Guidance — translation groups and companies, guidance for translating documents for non-English speaking families, and funding sources for translations/interpretations services.
Resources for Families and Students — workshops and a wide range of written materials and videos in many languages.
Bilingual Glossaries and Cognates — instructional supports including information related to standards and expected test accommodation for ELLs/MLLs in 10 languages.
Parent English Language Learner Hotline (10 languages) — families can call 800-469-8224 or email nysparenthotline@nyu.edu with specific questions about their students’ rights or services. An online form is also available. The page also includes brochures prepared for families of ELLs.
There are extensive, regularly updated lists of live and virtual professional development sessions and workshops. Most are free. There is quite a bit of overlap, but there are separate lists for educators and families and students.
More resources
Unless otherwise noted websites and materials listed are in English only.
Embracing Asylum-Seeking Students and Their Families (Juan P. Córdova, Rethinking Schools, Fall 2023, 12 pp) in English or Spanish. Córdova is a Mestizo Latinx elementary schoolteacher in New York City. He taught previously in Seattle.
Best Practices for Serving English Language Learners and Their Families (Jarah Botello, Maya Lindberg, Lauryn Mascareñaz, Steffany Moyer, Hoyt J. Phillips III, Adrienne van der Valk, Teaching Tolerance, 2018, 17 pp) Topics include classroom culture, family and community engagement, instruction, anti-bias strategies, planning and program monitoring.
Best Practices for Serving English Language Learners and Their Families (Jarah Botello, Maya Lindberg, Lauryn Mascareñaz, Steffany Moyer, Hoyt J. Phillips III, Adrienne van der Valk, Teaching Tolerance, 2018, 17 pp) Topics include classroom culture, family and community engagement, instruction, anti-bias strategies, planning and program monitoring.
Help for Immigrant Families: Guidance for Schools (2017, 4 pp, English only, Immigrant Legal Resource Center) tips on for reassuring children and families, share resources and information, ensure that school policies don’t make students vulnerable, and encourage families to learn about options and rights, including preparing for unfavorable immigration actions. Also: Family Preparedness Plan (2017, 14 pp, Spanish, Chinese, and English)
The American Federation of Teachers’ Immigrant Learning Center offers “tested, contemporary tools and strategies to incorporate immigration across the curriculum, teach English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), create more welcoming classrooms, foster understanding and empathy, and center the immigrant voice in conversations.”
Safe Havens: Protecting and Supporting New York State’s Immigrant Students (Education Trust NY, Advocates for Children of NY, NY Immigration Coalition, Committee for Hispanic Children & Families, 2017, 22 pp) includes recommendations for how the state, school districts, and individual schools can improve support for students. Additional NYIC materials for educators on mental health, activities, higher education, bullying, and more.