TUSTIN : Summer Classes for Migrant Children

For the first time, the Tustin Unified School District is offering a summer school program for elementary school pupils whose parents are migrant workers.

The addition, which is part of an overall program for migrant families, was approved by the board last week at its regular meeting. The classes, for youngsters enrolled in kindergarten through fourth grade, will meet from June 26 to Aug. 3. In the past, the educational and health services for children of migrant workers were offered only during the regular school year.

Children will be better able to keep up their skills with the summer program, said Katie Anderson, coordinator of the migrant education program for the Tustin and Orange school districts.

“The kids tend to lose a lot by the time they come back in September,” Anderson said. “We will keep the kids engaged over the summer so they don’t have that lag when they return in the fall.”

In addition to offering the summer classes, the program will also provide each child with a tutor once a week during August, Anderson said.

The migrant education program for students in preschool through grade 12 is federally funded, but the summer program for grade-schoolers will be supplemented by a state grant and district funds. Children whose parents who have made a seasonal move seeking agricultural work in the last six years are eligible to be enrolled.

About 270 youngsters are now in the program, Anderson said. Most of them lack the language skills necessary to perform well in school, and the great majority are from homes in which Spanish is the primary language, she said.

Similar migrant education programs are offered in the Capistrano Unified, Irvine Unified, Newport-Mesa Unified, Santa Ana Unified and other school districts in the county.

“I think it’s a wonderful opportunity for students in our district to get a head start and learn some skills and reinforce some skills,” said Margie Cary, a district employee who works with Anderson.