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MPI Coronavirus Update
June 17, 2020
Dear John,
The "COVID slide" could cost U.S. school students up to 50 percent of their annual math gains and 30 percent of their reading gains, some experts predict. While the transition from classroom to home learning has been bumpy for many students and parents, the challenge is proving even greater for many of the nation's estimated 5 million English Learners (ELs). Among the reasons? The digital divide and loss of access to school staff who can communicate in languages other than English.
As states face budget shortfalls and consider cuts to education spending, school districts would do well to partner with community groups that have demonstrated experience in supporting EL students and their families, as we explain in a new commentary from MPI's National Center on Immigrant Integration Policy.
"As school districts emerge from the pandemic's fallout and consider reopening their doors, they face a tough budget environment and a long to-do list," writes Melissa LazarÃn, Senior Advisor for State Early Childhood and K-12 Policy. "Their work must begin by prioritizing ELs and other students who are at risk of permanently disconnecting from school. Nonprofits that are most familiar with these students are well positioned to support their efforts."
Read the commentary here: www.migrationpolicy.org/news/covid-19-inequities-english-learner-students.
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ANALYSIS: USCIS Budget Implosion Owes to Far More than the Pandemic
www.migrationpolicy.org/news/uscis-severe-budget-shortfall
How has U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) swung from having a $790 million cash carryover at the end of fiscal 2017 to facing a $1.5 billion deficit this year? The agency attributes its problems to the pandemic-related pause in services and reduced mobility. Yet a deeper dive into USCIS operations and budgets shows it was facing serious financial problems long before the pandemic, and ones that are the result of Trump administration policy and operational decisions that have resulted in plummeting immigration applications and rising processing costs.
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NEW MAY DATA: U.S. Unemployment Trends by Nativity, Gender, Industry, & More, Before and During Pandemic
www.migrationpolicy.org/programs/migration-data-hub/us-unemployment-trends-during-pandemic
After peaking in April, U.S. unemployment fell in May, more sharply for U.S.-born workers than for immigrants in the labor force. The jobless rate did not fall for all groups from April to May, however, rising for immigrant women and Black and Asian American and Pacific Islander workers.
Use our interactive data tools to examine changing employment rates before and during the pandemic by nativity, gender, race/ethnicity, educational attainment, and industry of employment. We've updated the data through May, and will update each month.
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Explore all our Coronavirus resources: www.migrationpolicy.org/topics/coronavirus
Sign up for COVID-19 updates: www.migrationpolicy.org/content/sign-covid19-resources
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The Migration Policy Institute is an independent, non-partisan think tank in Washington, D.C. dedicated to analysis of the movement of people worldwide. MPI provides analysis, development, and evaluation of migration and refugee policies at the local, national, and international levels. For more on MPI, please visit www.migrationpolicy.org.
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