Latinos in Lancaster County: Voices, Perspectives, Myths and Realities

Latinos in Lancaster County:
Voices, Perspectives, Myths and Realities
Lancaster County Workforce Investment Board

Latinos in Lancaster County: Voices, Perspectives, Myths and Realities

by
Lillian Escobar-Haskins, MHS
Researcher/Writer
George F. Haskins
Historical Research/Writer
Alegre Research and Demographics

Lancaster, PA
December 2007
Prepared for
The Lancaster County Workforce Investment Board
Sponsored by
Lancaster County Community Foundation
Alcoa Foundation
Fulton Bank
LIVE
Lancaster County Workforce Investment Board
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We wish to extend a special thank you to all of those who contributed to this study by sharing their
stories, knowledge and perspectives:
Ada Rivera, Adrian Rodriguez, Alberto Luis Ruiz, Angel Suliveras, Angel Vazquez, Anna Gonzalez,
Annette Braas, Becky Ortega, Carlos Carmona, Carlos Graupera, Carmen Rios, Cheryl Irwin, Curt
Baker, Dan Betancourt, David Fenstenmaker, Diana Hurlburt, Diana Serrano, Diane Madrigal, Diane
Tyson, Donald Morant, Dr. Maritza Robert, Eduardo Gomez, Enid Vazquez-Perreira, Father Allan
Wolfe, Frances Rodriguez, Gladys Rodriguez, Gregory Amos, Hector Valentin, Ilene Rodriguez
Rivera, Irene Suliveras, Dr. Iris MacRae, Joe Morales, Jose L. Suliveras, Jose Nunez, Jose Urdaneta,
Justina D. Rodriguez, Loida Esbri, Lori Rank, Lourdes Padilla, Lourdes Vazquez, Luis Rodriguez,
Manuel Luciano, Maria Irizarry, Maria Mercado, Maria Suliveras, Marisol Sanchez, Masala Tapia,
Mayra Rivera, Meagan Howell, Melissa Rodriguez, Michael Winters, Michelle Salinas, Modesto
Rodriguez, Monique Gomez, Naomi Torres, Natalie Rosario, Nathaniel Torres, Nelson Ramos,
Norman Bristol-Colon, Olga Rodriguez, Raphael DeJesus, Rebecca Anderson, Dr. Rita Bishop,
Dr. Rita Smith, Robert Brimmer, Rosa Rosario Amaro, Ruth Hernandez-Siegel, Sade Juarbe, Chief
Samuel Gatchell, Shanyse Nicole Juarbe, Teresa Zapata, Chief Timothy Gregg, Tom Baldrige,
Virginia Cortez, Vitin Rivera, William Morales, graduating seniors of La Academia 2007 and to a
wonderful group of teens at Teen Haven.
Special thanks also to Fran Rodriguez, whose perseverance was key to getting support behind the
idea of conducting this study and making it happen. She supported the project in numerous ways
and in the latter stages assisted with interviews and transcriptions.
Finally, we wish to express our appreciation to the Workforce Investment Board and Scott Sheely
whose role in this process was invaluable. His vision of adding the voices of the community to this
project helped guide the direction of the study.
Lillian Escobar-Haskins has conducted research and analyses in various targeted communities,
publishing comprehensive reports on cultural and community issues and making recommendations
for improved and/or new services based on findings. She served for six years as executive director
of the Pennsylvania Governor’s Advisory Commission on Latino Affairs before starting up her own
advertising, graphic design and demographic research company, Alegre, which she ran for 12 years
with her husband, George F. Haskins. She recently accepted the position of Director of Policy for the
PA Department of Health and leaves Alegre, which makes Latinos in Lancaster County: Voices,
Perspectives, Myths and Realities the final release in a series of Latino community studies she
conducted in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
Mr. Haskins is Alegre’s principal copy and script writer. He has edited all of the community studies
Alegre has released and has researched and written the histories of Latino communities in the
Lehigh Valley, Lancaster County and Mercer County, NJ. His involvement in municipal administration
and economic development goes back more than 20 years with service at the Lancaster Chamber of
Commerce, the PA Municipal Administration Training Division, as administrator of the Pennsylvania
Municipal Planning and Education Institute, and member of the Lancaster City Planning Commission.
Alegre will continue to produce culturally appropriate orientation films and PSAs for TV and radio.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
SECTION I
INTRODUCTION..................................................................................................................... 7
COMING TO LANCASTER, PA ................................................................................................... 9
A BRIEF HISTORY OF LATINOS IN LANCASTER COUNTY .............................................................15
The First Puerto Rican Farm Workers in Lancaster County....................................................16
Early Report..................................................................................................................19
Fastest Growing Population .............................................................................................20
Political Power...............................................................................................................25
LANCASTER COUNTY DEMOGRAPHICS .....................................................................................27
COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVES ...............................................................................................27
DEMOGRAPHICS ...............................................................................................................30
Latino Subgroups...........................................................................................................33
Latino Nativity...............................................................................................................35
Racial Self-Identification .................................................................................................36
Language Fluency ..........................................................................................................36
ECONOMIC, EMPLOYMENT, AND HOUSING STATUS ...................................................................38
COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVES ...............................................................................................38
Employment .................................................................................................................38
Community Revitalization ...............................................................................................40
Single Mothers and “Making It” ........................................................................................41
Latino Homelessness ......................................................................................................42
HOUSEHOLDS, INCOME AND ECONOMIC STATUS ..................................................................43
Families and The Status of Children Under 18 ....................................................................45
THE FEMINIZATION OF POVERTY.........................................................................................46
Teen Pregnancy.............................................................................................................47
EMPLOYMENT AND EARNINGS.............................................................................................49
BUSINESS OWNERS AND SELF-EMPLOYED............................................................................52
HOUSING AND HOMEOWNERSHIP .......................................................................................52
HISPANICS AND THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM .....................................................................55
OVERVIEW .......................................................................................................................55
Incarceration in Lancaster...............................................................................................56
Juvenile Detention .........................................................................................................57
Drugs and Incarceration .................................................................................................57
Gangs in Lancaster ........................................................................................................58
Drugs and Gangs ...........................................................................................................60
Women ........................................................................................................................61
ARRESTS IN LANCASTER COUNTY AND LANCASTER CITY........................................................61
Crime Index Offenses .....................................................................................................61
Drug Related Arrests ......................................................................................................63
TRANSITION FROM PRISON TO COMMUNITY .........................................................................64
Data for Latino Reentry Individuals ..................................................................................65
SECTION II
EDUCATION .........................................................................................................................69
LATINO/COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVES....................................................................................69
Parent and Student Experiences.......................................................................................69
Do Latino Parents Value Education?..................................................................................70
Academic Environment and Achievement ..........................................................................71
Staffing and Diversity Issues ...........................................................................................72
College Preparatory Issues..............................................................................................73
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College ........................................................................................................................74
THE ISSUES .....................................................................................................................75
THE DATA ........................................................................................................................79
Educational Status of the Over 25 Population.....................................................................79
Status of the Student Population......................................................................................80
No Child Left Behind (NCLB)............................................................................................82
Dropout Status..............................................................................................................84
Poverty and Academic Achievement .................................................................................85
School Demographic Change ...........................................................................................87
LANGUAGE MINORITY STUDENTS ........................................................................................88
Bilingual/Bicultural Educators Views on Second Language Learning .......................................88
The Issues – The Literature.............................................................................................89
GRADUATES – POST HIGH SCHOOL ACTIVITY .......................................................................94
Higher Education: Four-Year College ................................................................................95
Two-Year College and Other Post Secondary Education .......................................................95
High School Career Guidance...........................................................................................95
LATINOS GRADUATING FROM PA COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES .............................................97
A PERSON WHO MADE A DIFFERENCE – HOW I MADE IT ........................................................99
YOUTH IN LANCASTER......................................................................................................... 101
LATINO YOUTH VOICES AND PERSPECTIVES .......................................................................101
LATINO ADULTS ON LATINO YOUTH IN LANCASTER ............................................................. 108
SCHOOL DISTRICT OF LANCASTER STAFF SURVEY .................................................................. 109
Respondent Demographics ............................................................................................ 109
SDOL’S EFFECTIVENESS WITH LATINO STUDENTS............................................................... 111
TEACHER COMMENTS AND PERSPECTIVES..........................................................................111
Critical Issues Affecting Academic Achievement of Latino Students...................................... 112
Factors Contributing to the High Dropout Rate of Latino Students ....................................... 114
Changes Implemented Within the Past Three Years .......................................................... 116
Suggested Changes for SDOL to Implement .................................................................... 117
Suggestions to WIB and the Local Business Community .................................................... 119
Other Comments and Opinions ...................................................................................... 121
APPENDIX A – COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVES ............................................................................ 125
ECONOMIC, EMPLOYMENT, AND HOUSING STATUS .............................................................. 126
LATINO/COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVE ON EDUCATION............................................................. 135
A PERSON WHO MADE A DIFFERENCE – HOW I MADE IT ...................................................... 151
LATINO ADULTS ON LATINO YOUTH IN LANCASTER ............................................................. 157
APPENDIX B: EDUCATOR INTERVIEWS .................................................................................. 160
TWO PIONEER BILINGUAL EDUCATORS ..............................................................................161
Lourdes Vazquez .........................................................................................................161
Dr. Iris S. MacRae-Arzola..............................................................................................170
BILINGUAL EDUCATION: THE VOICES OF BILINGUAL, ESL AND OTHER EDUCATORS................. 173
RITA BISHOP, SDOL SUPERINTENDENT ..............................................................................178
LA ACADEMIA ................................................................................................................. 189
APPENDIX C – NCLB & SDOL SURVEY .................................................................................... 195
NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND...................................................................................................196
SDOL Survey Open-Ended Responses .............................................................................196
Two Reports by the Civil Rights Project at Harvard University on NCLB ................................ 203
SDOL STAFF SURVEY - OPEN-ENDED RESPONSES................................................................ 208
APPENDIX D – CRIME STATISTICS ........................................................................................ 222
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LIST OF TABLES
TABLE 1. POPULATION 1980-2006 ....................................................................................................................................................30

TABLE 2. POPULATION CHANGE 1980-2006....................................................................................................................................30
TABLE 3. LATINO POPULATION IN COUNTY SD SUBDIVISIONS (2000 CENSUS - 2005 ESTIMATES) .......................................32
TABLE 4. 2005 U.S CENSUS POPULATION ESTIMATE ...................................................................................................................32
TABLE 5. LATINOS: URBAN VS NON-URBAN ...................................................................................................................................33
TABLE 6. LATINO SUBGROUP GROWTH..........................................................................................................................................33
TABLE 7. MEDIAN HOUSEHOLD INCOME BY SD SUBDIVISIONS - (2000) ....................................................................................34
TABLE 8. PLACE OF BIRTH BY CITIZENSHIP STATUS....................................................................................................................35
TABLE 9. AGE BY CITIZENSHIP STATUS..........................................................................................................................................35
TABLE 10. LANGUAGE - NATIVE/FOREIGN BORN...........................................................................................................................37
TABLE 11. INCOME ESTIMATES 2005...............................................................................................................................................43
TABLE 12. HOUSEHOLD INCOME ESTIMATES 2005 .......................................................................................................................43
TABLE 13. HOUSEHOLD TYPES 2005 ...............................................................................................................................................43
TABLE 14. AGGREGATE HOUSEHOLD INCOME..............................................................................................................................44
TABLE 15. UNDER 18 AND MEDIAN AGE - 2005 ..............................................................................................................................45
TABLE 16. HOUSEHOLD STATUS FOR UNDER 18 YRS..................................................................................................................45
TABLE 17. NUMBER OF UNMARRIED RESIDENT LIVE BIRTHS AND PERCENT OF TOTAL BIRTHS- 2003-05 ..........................47
TABLE 18. PERCENT TEEN (<18) BIRTHS (2003-05) .......................................................................................................................47
TABLE 19. ANNUAL AVERAGE NUMBER OF BIRTH AND PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL BIRTHS WITHIN SUBGROUP .................48
TABLE 20. EMPLOYMENT STATUS -– LANCASTER MSA................................................................................................................49
TABLE 21. OCCUPATION FOR THE EMPLOYED LATINO POPULATION 16 YEARS AND OVER..................................................50
TABLE 22. TOP 20 JOBS (2000) AND MEDIAN ANNUAL WAGES (2006) OF LATINOS: .................................................................50
TABLE 23. MEANS OF TRANSPORTATION TO WORK - WORKERS 16 YRS AND OVER .............................................................50
TABLE 24. OCCUPATION FOR THE EMPLOYED LATINO CIVILIAN POPULATION 16 YEARS AND OVER..................................51
TABLE 25. LANCASTER COUNTY SELECT ETHNIC MINORITY BUSINESSES..............................................................................52
TABLE 26. OWNER VS, RENTER STATUS .......................................................................................................................................52
TABLE 27. FAIR MARKET RENT (FMR), ANNUAL INCOME NEEDED TO AFFORD FMR - 2007 ...................................................53
TABLE 28. HOMEOWNERSHIP BY AGE OF HOUSEHOLDER .........................................................................................................53
TABLE 29. FAMILY INCOME ESTIMATES - 2005...............................................................................................................................53
TABLE 30. DISPOSITION OF APPLICATIONS FOR HOME LOANS 5YR AGGREGATE, 2001-2005 ..............................................54
TABLE 31. LANCASTER COUNTY ALL ARRESTS 2006: PERCENT CRIME INDEX........................................................................62
TABLE 32. ARRESTS IN 2006 FOR VIOLENT CRIME IN LANCASTER COUNTY AND CITY ..........................................................62
TABLE 33. ARRESTS IN 2006 FOR PROPERTY CRIME IN LANCASTER COUNTY AND CITY......................................................63
TABLE 34. DRUG RELATED ARRESTS IN 2006 IN LANCASTER COUNTY AND CITY ..................................................................64
TABLE 35. LANCASTER COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOL ENROLLMENTS BY DISTRICT, 2006-07 .....................................................80
TABLE 36. STUDENT PROFICIENCY ON STATE TESTS – DISTRICTS’ OVERALL RESULTS IN READING AND MATH 2007 ...81
TABLE 37. SDOL 2007 PSSA PERCENT ADVANCED/PROFICIENT (AYP TARGETS: READING 54% MATH 45%) .....................81
TABLE 38. NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND (NCLB) PERSPECTIVES .......................................................................................................83
TABLE 39. LANCASTER COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICTS GRADUATION RATES - 2002 AND 2006...............................................84
TABLE 40. SDOL ANNUAL DROPOUT PERCENTAGE .....................................................................................................................85
TABLE 41. SDOL 2006-07 GRADUATION RATES..............................................................................................................................85
TABLE 42. ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT AND STUDENT-TEACHER RATIO OF DISTRICTS - 2005 ..............................................85
TABLE 43. ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT AND STUDENT-TEACHER RATIO OF SDOL SCHOOLS................................................86
TABLE 44. LATINO STUDENT GROWTH ..........................................................................................................................................87
TABLE 45. SDOL PERSONNEL PERCENT CHANGE 1999-00 TO 2005-06 .....................................................................................88
TABLE 46. HS GRADUATES ENTERING MILITARY 2001-02 TO 2005-06........................................................................................96
TABLE 47. PA INSTITUTIONS: FIRST PROFESSIONAL DEGREES AWARDED 1998-99 TO 2004-05 (6 YRS CUMULATIVE).....97
TABLE 48. DEGREES AND AWARDS CONFERRED BY PA INSTITUTIONS TO LATINO CANDIDATES .......................................98
TABLE 49. RESPONDENT DEMOGRAPHICS ...................................................................................................110
TABLE 50. RESPONDENT PRESENT OR PAST POSITION IN SDOL .....................................................................110
TABLE 51. 17 LATINO RESPONDENTS DEMOGRAPHICS ...................................................................................110
TABLE 52. RATE THE SDOL’S EFFECTIVENESS WITH LATINO STUDENTS IN THE FOLLOWING AREAS:.....................111
TABLE 53. IDENTIFY THE TOP THREE CRITICAL ISSUES THAT YOU BELIEVE AFFECT ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT ......112
TABLE 54. NAME UP TO THREE FACTORS THAT YOU BELIEVE CONTRIBUTE TO THE HIGH DROPOUT RATE .............114
TABLE 55. CAN YOU IDENTIFY ANY RECENT CHANGES (WITHIN THE PAST THREE YEARS) IMPLEMENTED? ............116
TABLE 56. WHAT CHANGES WOULD YOU SUGGEST THE ADMINISTRATION IMPLEMENT? ......................................117
5

SECTION I
6
Lancaster Latino Perspectives: Myths and Realities
INTRODUCTION
The intent of this document is to bring forward an understanding of the Latino population and the issues that
influence its progress. We present the views of members of the Lancaster community, Latino and non-Latino, on
what they feel has affected and is currently affecting the socioeconomic progress of the Latino population and
consequently the city and county of Lancaster. These views and impressions are supplemented by a historical
perspective, data, and information that place these concerns in a context that could lead to changes in systems and
the delivery of services.
Not only does the study provide objective data that describes
the community and the issues it confronts, it gives voice to
“Quantitative research excels at
individuals whose lives are affected by the issues raised and
summarizing large amounts of
reveals characteristics of Lancaster’s Latino population, which goes data and reaching generalizations
beyond the often-narrow depiction of Latinos presented in both based on statistical projections.
local and national media. While it contains a significant amount of Qualitative research excels at
quantitative data that provides the demographic context necessary ‘telling the story’ from the
for understanding this population, it also offers the perspectives of participant's viewpoint, providing
those who have experienced life as Latinos in Lancaster and of the rich descriptive detail that sets
those who have interacted with the Latino population and have quantitative results into their
knowledge relevant to the status and experience of Latinos here. human context.1”
Latinos comprise the majority of the student population in the
Dr. William Trochim, Cornell University
School District of Lancaster and all evidence points to educational
factors being central to the issues raised. Therefore, the viewpoints of educators who are frontline participants in
the educational experience of Latino students here are especially significant.
The mandate of this qualitative study was to identify the factors that affect the socioeconomic status of Latinos in
Lancaster. While the study does include the broader context of the experience of Latinos in the county as a whole,
its primary focus is on the city of Lancaster where approximately two-thirds of the county’s Latino population
resides and where it currently comprises an estimated forty percent of the city. It is important to note that the
quantitative data does not always capture this dynamic and growing population. By its own admission, the U.S.
Census undercounts the Latino population and, in its Community Population Surveys, often fails to capture the
ever-changing composition of its subgroups. The comments of the people in the community we surveyed and
interviewed confirm changes in the composition of the Latino population here and the inaccuracy of the subgroup
counts in the census. In addition, most of the mid-census government data on the population, housing and
economics has a very narrow breakdown of the data by race and ethnicity. Therefore, in offering the quantitative
perspectives, there were limitations to providing a detailed breakdown of data specific to the Latino population.
Consequently, where more recent detailed data was unavailable, Census 2000 data was utilized.
More than 80 persons contributed their perspectives to this study. Most were key informants selected because of
their status as community leaders or their standing as professionals possessing knowledge of issues related to the
Latino community extending beyond personal experience. Additionally, we interviewed groups of young Latinos
between the ages of fourteen to nineteen who shared their viewpoints and experiences. Finally, the voices of
educators were captured, not only among the interviewed, but also more extensively through participation in a
survey we distributed to School District of Lancaster faculty and staff. There were 104 survey respondents and
1
Trochim, William M. The Research Methods Knowledge Base, 2nd Edition. Internet WWW page, at URL:
<http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/kb/> (version current as of October 20, 2006).
7
more than 75% were, or had been, teachers in the district. The remaining respondents were administrators,
counselors, and support specialists and about 6% were paraprofessional support staff.
When all of the interviewed, adults and teens, were asked what they considered to be the most critical issues
affecting the socioeconomic status of Latinos in Lancaster, the response typically began with “Education”. The data,
the research and the voices of the community placed education at the core of the issues that must be addressed.
Clearly, the promise of a brighter socio-economic future and a better quality of life for the Latino population was
intricately tied to finding solutions to the soaring school dropout rates and the disproportionate lack of academic
achievement. Therefore, among the various issues discussed herein, education is covered more extensively but is
weighted according to the responses, comments and experiences expressed across the board.
The stories we heard told us that Latinos came here primarily seeking opportunity and a better quality of life for
themselves and for their children. The children today, however, are not necessarily doing better than their parents.
In fact, if trends continue, not doing better will equate to being worse off socioeconomically. The changing
workforce continues to widen the economic gap between the less educated and unskilled worker and with those
possessing a technical skill, a profession, or with some level of postsecondary education. According to the Indiana
Department of Education, in 1971, male dropouts earned $35,087 (in 2002 dollars), which fell to $23,903 in 2002,
a decline of 34.7%. In the same period, the earnings of female dropouts fell from $19,888 to $17,114.
In assessing the issues that affect the socioeconomic status of the Latino population, nearly all of the comments
of those interviewed keyed on educational status. Their views on the gravity of the situation were strongly
supported by the data. From the issue of the concentration of poverty in single-parent households to gang
membership and prison statistics, all correlate with levels of education. Crime, substandard housing and
neighborhoods, juvenile delinquency, selling drugs as an economic alternative and homelessness are all rooted in
poverty, lack of opportunity and membership in a disenfranchised segment of society. Yet, in the broadest sense,
this is a community problem that affects in some way every family and every neighborhood in the city of Lancaster
regardless of education or economic status and to some degree affects the perception of our city and county. There
can be little argument that the current and future economic health of the city of Lancaster is dependent on the
School District of Lancaster’s ability to educate its students. With Latino youth representing the majority of the
school district’s student population, the challenge to our community demands an immediate and effective response.
Lastly, while much attention is given to the concentration of poverty in the city of Lancaster and our need to
address the resulting issues and concerns, this document provides a broader multigenerational, view of Latinos.
Latinos in Lancaster County are a socioeconomically diverse population that has been here for six decades, is
primarily English speaking, have businesses that in 2002 had gross receipts of over $106 million dollars, employed
899 people and are no longer just concentrated in the city but live in all parts of the county. Lancaster County
reflects a nation where, for the first time, two Hispanic surnames, Garcia and Rodriguez, are among the top 10
most common names in the United States, with Martinez nearly edging out Wilson for 10th place.
8
COMING TO LANCASTER, PA
Latinos in Lancaster and how they came to settle here
º I was born in Puerto Rico in 1951. I came to Lancaster in 1953. I lived on South Ann Street. In 1948, my
father arrived in New Jersey as a farm worker. After the season was over, he returned to Puerto Rico. In
Puerto Rico, people were asked if they’d be interested in getting more work in the United States doing
fieldwork and he came back to Pennsylvania to Lititz. My father traveled back and forth. I believe all of his
traveling expenses were paid for by the company. There are three of us and we’re 11-1/2 months apart. My
mother was somewhat proactive in the community. My dad was very proactive in politics – not that he was
into politics but he never missed an opportunity to vote. I remember when President Kennedy was elected,
and 53 N. Duke Street was the campaign headquarters, everybody
paraded up and down Duke Street. Then, a few years later while I While I was sitting in the
was sitting in the classroom in the 6 th
grade at Higbee School, I classroom in the 6th grade
remember hearing over the loudspeakers that President Kennedy at Higbee School, I
had been shot. The kids in my class cried. Growing up in those days remember hearing over the
was very different because we didn’t have a lot of Hispanic friends. speakers that President
There weren’t many Hispanics here. We would visit my mother’s
Kennedy had been shot.
friends in New York. My dad used to always tell us as kids, “You
should learn how to drive because you want to become independent – get your education and get a nice job.”
Those are the things he always stressed to us – become independent and not rely on someone. Today,
Lancaster city has grown so much compared to when I was a child. In those days, the Hispanics here were all
concentrated in one area. Today you have Hispanics in the suburbs – in the county. I could live somewhere
else but I’m pretty lucky because I have a single home in the city, which isn’t common. That makes it very
nice. I enjoy the city and couldn’t imagine myself moving out. My kids are very americanized, but I’m still very
Puerto Rican in my own way. At home, I have my little corner with maracas and a cuatro and I love my rice
and beans. Yet on a personal level, I consider myself a Hispanic American because I also love macaroni and
cheese with stewed tomatoes.
º I was born in Brooklyn, New York. I am 33 years old. My parents are from Caguas, Puerto Rico. Neither had a
formal education. My mother never went to school. My father just held different jobs. I was the youngest of
seven children. I was brought up by a single parent -- my mother. Of my six siblings, two were in the house
while I was growing up--an older brother and sister. The others were already out of the house. I was raised in
Brooklyn until I was 12 and then I was sent to Puerto Rico. I spent three years there, and then I came to
Pennsylvania to stay with my sister. She served as a surrogate mother. She had come to Lancaster from
Brooklyn, because her husband got a job in RCA here through some contacts. I found Lancaster difficult to
adjust to. I went to McCaskey but dropped out of school in the 11th grade. I actually got my GED before my
class graduated, because right after dropping out I found I couldn't get a good job and had nowhere to go. So
I vowed that I would get my GED before my class graduated and that is what I did. Today I am a professional
with a Master’s degree and a single mother with a daughter in the School District of Lancaster.
º I am 40 years old and was born in New York City. Both of my parents were born and raised in Puerto Rico.
They came to the mainland in the fifties and I was born in the sixties. They moved to Lancaster in the 1970s
primarily for job opportunities and because of their connection to their church. They came down here because
a lot of their friends from the same church relocated here. I was in grade school when we made the move and
I graduated from McCaskey High School. I met my wife in college. She was raised in Puerto Rico and we went
to the same college. We ended up moving back to this area.
9
º I was born and raised in the Dominican Republic. I was educated there and went to the University and earned
my teaching degree. I worked for 25 years in the Dominican Republic as an educator. I worked at different
schools. During the day, I was a principal in one school and in the evening, I was a teacher at another school.
I taught in schools in very poor and rural areas as well at schools that were more comfortable. I taught in
schools where the children came to school hungry and I taught in schools where the children were very well
fed. I've taught at all grade levels from elementary to high
school. My wife came here first in 1982. Some of her family My wife came here first in 1982.
was already here. She would come over annually and work in She would come over annually and
hotels and factories. She would stay with family for a few work in hotels and factories. She
months and she would go back and forth between here and would stay with her family for a
the Dominican Republic. She had relatives both in New York few months and she would go back
and in Lancaster. We were married in the Dominican and forth between here and the
Republic and two of my four children were born there. The Dominican Republic.
other two children were born here in the United States. I
have one son who graduated from Millersville University. We came here because my wife’s mother petitioned
for her to come to the U.S. She came in 1985 and was able to get her legal residency. She, in turn, petitioned
for the rest of us to come over. You don't have to be a citizen to petition for someone to come over. If you're a
legal resident you can petition for other family members to come.
In the Dominican Republic, I was surviving economically. We never went hungry. We always had food to eat
but the reality was that one of my considerations for coming here was to provide more opportunities to my
children. They would have a lot more options here than they might have in my country. I didn't really care for
New York, which is where we first lived. I had one daughter who finished high school in New York and the
other one who finished high school here. My son went to second grade in New York. One day I came down
here to visit family and from the moment I arrived, I noticed the difference in the quality of life here. I liked
the lifestyle in Lancaster better than in New York so we moved.
º I have been in Lancaster for 40 years. I grew up here. I went through the School District of Lancaster and then
I went to Millersville where I got a Bachelor in Education
degree and a Masters in Counseling. I came here when I
In the early 1960s my mom did a
was seven years old. My family is originally from Puerto Rico
but I was born in Reading. My parents came from Puerto
lot of social service work, taking
Rico to New York and from New York to Reading and from
people up to the welfare, hospital,
Reading we moved here to Lancaster. My mother had her
and housing offices and translating
first three children in Puerto Rico. My father had family in when there were no, or very little,
New York and so they decided to join them. They followed services here for Hispanics. Word
family to Reading and later decided to relocate to Lancaster got around that my mom was
to get a fresh start. By that time, they had six kids. Mine bilingual and that she could help.
was one of the earliest Hispanic families to relocate to
Lancaster. This was around 1964. When we got here, there weren't that many Hispanic families. When my
mom came, she used to do a lot of social service work because she could speak English and there were many
here that couldn't. In the early 1960s my mom did a lot of social service work, taking people up to the welfare
office, hospital, housing office and translating for them when there were no, or very little, services here for
Hispanics. Word got around in the neighborhood that my mom was bilingual and that she could help.
º I moved here in 1975. My uncle was here. He came because his church, the First Assembly of God, came
down. They had a church in the Bronx. My uncle was a member and my father was a member. Since his
brother was here, my father would come down and visit every weekend. It was like a getaway back then in the
70's. My father purchased two homes here. My sister moved down here and lived in the other house and then
10
they moved out but kept them as investments. My father had two homes that were rentals on West King
Street. I have an older sister who also purchased a home for investment
and an older brother who did the same. I purchased a house and stayed
My uncle was here.
here. In 1975, I moved my family down but I continued to work in New
He came because his
York City. On weekends, or whenever I had a day off, I would come down
church, the First
to look for work and I almost landed a job as a bus driver. I had gone
through maybe four interviews and the last guy says that once I got to him
Assembly of God,
I pretty much had the job. I was all excited so I quit my job in New York
came down.
and then I found out that the job here required a six-month residency,
which I didn’t have. So now I'm without a job and I didn't have a car because in New York everything's
subway. Fortunately, I managed to get a job with Penn Dairies and later at Jay's Supermarket where I became
manager of their deli and seafood departments. Later, after some training, I became their butcher for about
ten years. I had a cousin who worked for the Lancaster Bureau of Police who kept insisting that I take the test
for police officer. He wouldn’t let up and hounded me about it every time I saw him. I eventually ended up
taking the test just to keep him quiet. A couple of months later he calls and tells me "You're number one on
the list." That’s how I became a police officer in Lancaster.
º I first came here in 1966. My father had come here from Puerto Rico to work on a farm because there was an
arrangement with Puerto Rico at that time to bring workers from Puerto Rico to work here. My father also
recruited other workers to work on the farms here in Pennsylvania. After a few years of doing this, he decided
to settle in the area and we joined him. Later he ended up going to Connecticut because he started working in
construction and found some construction work being done in Connecticut. I joined him there for a while but
returned to Lancaster in 1970 and applied to work at Armstrong.
I was fortunate and given the job. I remained there for 36 years My father had come here
before I retired. from Puerto Rico to work on a
farm because there was an
º I didn't come directly to Lancaster I settled in York. My
arrangement with Puerto Rico
grandfather had businesses in Puerto Rico and he had traveled in
at that time to bring workers
the United States. He would visit all the states for personal and
business reasons. He simply liked to travel. He finally settled in
from Puerto Rico to work here.
York, Pennsylvania. He urged my mother and father to bring all of us over and settle there for the
opportunities. My mother was never interested in coming. We felt that we were happy and doing well in Puerto
Rico until my father who was a contractor became ill. As a result of his illness he became disabled and could no
longer work. It was at that time that we took my grandfather up on his offer and decided to come and settle in
York. My grandfather actually was one of the Latino pioneers in York, one of the first to settle in the area.
When I first arrived, it was very difficult for me. I was in the 10th grade and wanted to graduate high school so
I got a tutor who helped me for a several months, translating and helping me learn the material. The
adjustment was difficult. I actually used to love to come to Lancaster just because I felt it was a better
atmosphere. There were more Latinos and Latino businesses here. My mother had a friend in Lancaster and we
would come to visit regularly on weekends. There was a significant difference between what there was in York
and what there was here in Lancaster. I moved here after I got married. My husband was from Puerto Rico
and had been living in Lancaster for 19 years. Today we have two daughters-- one is 11 and the other is 15.
One is in Lincoln Middle School and the other goes to McCaskey High School.
º I was born in New York, but my family went back to Venezuela when I was eight months old. I spent the next
27 years in Venezuela. I came back to the U.S. just after my 27th birthday. That was 15 years ago. My wife is
Venezuelan and we were married there. Although I was born in the U.S., I have the experience of knowing
what it’s like to be an immigrant coming to the United States. I have a dual citizenship because, according to
11
the Venezuelan constitution, if your parents are Venezuelan you are a Venezuelan citizen no matter where you
are born. For example, my daughters have dual citizenship, because their parents are Venezuelan.
My wife and I came to Lancaster directly from Venezuela. There have been highs and lows but, overall, things
have been positive. The decision to come was mine because I was seeking opportunity. I am a medical doctor
by training, but I decided to pursue a different career in
photography. I wanted a place where I could find more I have dual citizenship because
opportunities in my chosen profession, because in according to the Venezuelan
Venezuela they were limited. I only practiced medicine constitution you are a Venezuelan
for a year. I was required to practice medicine in a rural citizen if your parents are
area of Venezuela. In Venezuela, higher education is free Venezuelan...no matter where you are
but you have to dedicate at least a year of service in a born. For example, my daughters
rural area as a way to pay back your free education.
have dual citizenship, because their
Since 1958, education has been free there from
parents are Venezuelan.
kindergarten through postgraduate study. That is one of
the reasons so many professionals coming here are from
Venezuela. This is available not only for Venezuelans, but for anyone living there. Unfortunately, what has
happened in Venezuela is that, after you study medicine, become a doctor and do your year in a rural area,
getting a desired position that pays well has become a very politicized process. How you fare as a medical
professional is based on whom you know and how well connected you are. This is also true of engineers in
Venezuela who have a much easier time getting a good position in the United States. I have friends who
studied medicine who have been working in the rural areas for five years because they can't secure a desirable
position. A doctor in a rural area earns about one fourth of what a doctor in an urban area earns. The problem
is politics, patronage and corruption.
º I am originally from Youngstown, Ohio. My parents are both from Puerto Rico. My father's family all were in
Youngstown and he was working for Republic Steel. The steel industry at that time attracted workers. I was
born in Youngstown in 1960 and left there when I was five years old. My father was 13 years older than my
mother. He was very controlling and there was domestic violence between my father and my mother. One day
my mother waited for him to go to work, and when he did she took her four daughters, and we all got on a
Greyhound bus to New York City. We went to Spanish Harlem, where her brother lived. He had just come back
from the Vietnam War, and he and his wife decided to take us in to help my mother out. I was about six or
seven years old. My mom had a friend in New York City who had a sister who lived in Lancaster. She told my
mother that if she wanted to relocate, she could stay with her sister. So we came down. I was the oldest
daughter -- we were 11, 10, 9, and 8. I went to Washington Elementary in fifth and sixth grades, then to
Edward Hand, and then on to McCaskey. When we came to Lancaster, we experienced prejudice for the first
time. There were a lot fewer Latinos here at that time – in the early 1970s. Other kids were kind of horrible to
us and when we would walk down the street speaking Spanish, they would say, "Speak English you’re in
America!" or "Go back to where you came from!" or they would call us "Spics!" I can only imagine that these
kids must have been hearing that from their parents and other adults. These were mostly the White children,
although a few were African-American. My high school experience at McCaskey was pretty good. I enjoyed it. I
was in the AFS, the all foreign student exchange. At the end of the year, foreign students would prepare food
or do a dance or something that would pertain to their culture. As a Puerto Rican, I was considered a foreign
student. I remember at the time we had to fill out an application and “race” was White, Black or Other and I
always chose “Other”. After high school, I took a job at the Spanish American Civic Association as a
receptionist for one year, but I was hungry for more. I was very ambitious and I was a dreamer who wanted
more so I joined the Army. I was in the service from the age of 19 until the age of 28. I think the 10 years I
spent in the army were the best years of my life. In the army, I was a telecommunications operator. During
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that time, I had two children. When I came back to Lancaster, I started working as a corrections officer for the
Lancaster County Prison and did that for about a year. I had limited income and got access to Section 8
housing. The Boys and Girls Club had a daycare center and CCIS help me pay for that. Those services made it
a little easier for me to get back on my feet. I was a single parent raising two children. Finding a job was not
that difficult but finding a job that I really wanted to do was hard. Many of the jobs I had did not pay enough
to support my family. Eventually I got a job in a human service agency where I started out as a receptionist
and eventually worked my way up to a position where I was
working with the community and with the schools. I did find that I
I was in the AFS—the All
got opportunities but not having a college degree kept me from
Foreign Student Exchange.
getting the really good jobs so I decided to enroll in Millersville
At the end of the year foreign
University and get a degree in social services. My daughter is 22
years old and is about to graduate from college and my son is
students would prepare a
about to graduate from Manheim Township High School.
food or do a dance or
something that would pertain
º I was born in Philadelphia and we moved back to Lancaster when I to their culture. As a Puerto
was five. My parents had already lived here. They had come here Rican I was considered a
in 1955 from Puerto Rico. My dad was a migrant worker and he
foreign student.
would come and work in the fields. My father came in 1955 and in
1956 my mom came with three of my sisters. Including my
parents there are 13 of us in the family. My mother stayed in Puerto Rico while my father worked and got us
all a little apartment. At the time, they were four of us. I have three older sisters and that eventually became
11 children. My parents stayed in Lancaster until 1959 and then moved to Philadelphia before moving back
here in 1965.
My father came to Lancaster because he had a friend here. His friend became my uncle when he married my
aunt. He had come because he knew someone else that was here, and so on. When my father came here in
1955, there were very few other Latino families. There were maybe
10 or 15 at the most. The first 10 families are so interrelated
I was nine years old when I
because they were the only ones here and they were Catholic. It
came to the United States.
was St. Mary's that lent the biggest hand to the Hispanics that
There was a minister that
were here. I went to Eichholtz School. It doesn't exist anymore.
It's now an apartment building. Later on, it was Iris MacRae that
would go to Puerto Rico, I
was one of my mother's biggest helpers. She took care of my mom
think that's how it was done
and us kids and put us under her wing. She helped lots of people. I
at the beginning, and this
have a lot of respect for her. one person would gather all
the people that were going to
º I was born in Puerto Rico. I was nine years old when I came to the
come...This was in the 1940s.
United States. There was a minister who would go to Puerto Rico, I
think that's how it was done at the beginning, and this one minister would gather all the people that were
going to come to the U.S. He would visit the homes. I remember being in the airport and seeing how the
people were dressed. People would put on their best suits and dresses for these trips. This man was in charge
of it all. The plane—I don't know how we made it alive, because it was an Army transport plane with wooden
benches on each side. I say it was an Army transport plane because I see them now in the movies. There were
no self safety belts—nothing. Just wooden benches, one on either side. This was in the 1940s. The plane only
had two motors and one of them conked out. At some point, we had to make an emergency landing. We had
to make one in Florida and another in some other place. I think it might've been near Pennsylvania. It was in a
field. We had to just sit there and wait until they repaired the plane. This was 1946 or 1947.
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I grew up in Brooklyn, and then we lived in Manhattan for a while. When I started teaching, I lived on Long
Island. I got married and we lived on Long Island for a while and then we bought a house in Queens. I kept
working on Long Island until I had my son in 1969. We stayed in that house until 1983 and we ended up here
in 1984. I went to work for the School District of Lancaster as a substitute teacher and later took a permanent
position as a guidance counselor. I worked for the district over twenty years and am now retired.
º I moved to Lancaster in 1985. It will be 21 years. I was born and raised in Ponce, Puerto Rico. My parents
came to Lancaster in the early 60’s and then moved back to Puerto Rico in 1970. I actually went to elementary
school in Lancaster for three or four years before we went back. I went to St. Mary’s Elementary School. There
were very few Latinos at the school. I can think of only three in my class. My father came here to work at
Victor F. Weaver, which is now Tyson Foods. It was employment that brought him here looking for a better
living for his family. He came first, then secured housing and a job, and then sent for us. He had a niece that
was established in Lancaster, and a lot of her family was following and moving to Lancaster because that’s
where she was. I would guess that employment led her to come to Lancaster. She moved here in 1959-1960.
My parents went back because I guess they felt they had enough savings to survive back in Puerto Rico. They
wanted to go back to buy property, back to their country and stay there. Actually, that’s the intention that I
see, the reason a lot of Puerto Ricans moved to Lancaster, just to work, save money but then go back to the
homeland. But they get used to the American life and then they realize, when they do go back to visit, it’s not
the same. Another issue is when you go back and you’ve been here a long time, you are no longer considered
a Puerto Rican. I was referred to as the New York Rican, even though I never lived in New York. That
adjustment was difficult for me. I finished my schooling and went on to college in Puerto Rico. I got a degree
in business administration and worked for a good amount of time in banking. I came back to Lancaster
basically for two reasons. I was escaping a domestic violence situation and I have a son with mild mental
retardation. Even though I had the finances to send him to a private school, I just could not find the education
that he needed. In Puerto Rico, it’s really bad when it comes to education for a child with a disability. I just
couldn’t find it, even though I was willing to pay for his private education.
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A BRIEF HISTORY OF LATINOS IN LANCASTER COUNTY

In just over sixty years, the number of Latinos in Lancaster County has grown from approximately 33 to more
than 33,000. The official 2006 CLARITAS estimate for the number of Latinos living in the county is 33,143. If true
to form, the dynamic growth pattern of Lancaster’s Latino population will prove this to be an underestimated figure.
At more than seventy-two percent of the total, the largest subgroup of Latinos in Lancaster County is Puerto
Rican. There has been, however, an increasing diversity within the Latino community here over the past 15 or more
years as Dominicans, Mexicans, Peruvians, Salvadorans, Chileans and others move into the area. To better
understand why such explosive growth has taken place, and in particular why such a majority is Puerto Rican or of
Puerto Rican ancestry, a historical perspective is required.
In April 1898, the United States and Spain engaged in hostilities in what was called the Spanish-American War. It
was a brief conflict, we won the war less than four months, but politically it was an important boost to the status of
the United States. The country established itself as a world power and in the process it gained a valuable territory,
most notably, Puerto Rico.
Prior to the war, there was only a trickle of immigration to the United States from Puerto Rico. Those who came
were mostly businessmen and their families who were associated with the predominant sugar and molasses
industry. There were also a few students from well-to-do families who came to attend universities here, and finally,
there were some political activists and exiles, unhappy with Spanish rule. Almost all of them came to New York but
the total number barely impacted the general population and they were absorbed into the city’s masses with little
notice.
However, the war between Spain and the United States changed all that. It ushered in a new era for Puerto Rico
and the U.S. including an unanticipated major population shift.
Having reviewed the island’s demographic data that had been collected in a special census in 1899, the U.S. was
surprised by the density of the population. It was a much larger population than they imagined. As early as 1901
government officials and public policy analysts suggested that because of Puerto Rico’s overpopulation, something
needed to be done to ease the demand on the island’s food supply. Emigration was suggested as a temporary
solution.
Although some Puerto Ricans did leave the island for the United States, the overall numbers were modest. By
1910, it was estimated that only a little more than one thousand Puerto Ricans had left the island to live in the
United States. The numbers were low but they would grow significantly after the adoption of the Jones Act in 1917.
The Jones Act conferred U.S. citizenship on all Puerto Ricans. Some believe the true purpose of this legislation
was to position Puerto Rican men for military service in our inevitable entry into World War I. President Woodrow
Wilson signed the Jones Act into law on March 2, 1917. Then, almost immediately, he asked congress to declare
war on Germany, which it did on April 6, 1917, a period of only thirty-five days after the Jones Act had become
law.
Regardless of the reason, Puerto Ricans were now American citizens, free to travel unrestricted to, from, and
throughout the United States. Within three years, forty-five states reported the presence of Puerto Rican-born
residents, which was clearly a direct consequence of the Jones Act.
A trend was established. There was a continuous, rapidly accelerating migration over a period of about 20 years.
By 1930, in the brief 20-year span since 1910 when it had been reported that a little more than one thousand
15
Puerto Ricans were living in the United States, nearly 50,000 were living in New York City alone. The migration was
slowed only by the onset of the Great Depression.
The depression had a devastating effect on the island. Vast numbers of unemployed field workers were leaving
the countryside and gravitating to Puerto Rico’s cities in a desperate search for jobs. However, there were few
opportunities anywhere on the island for sustainable employment. At the height of the depression, a staggering
sixty-five percent of the island’s workforce was unemployed.
Ironically, it was World War II that brought some relief to the island. In 1947 the Department of
Puerto Rican men once again entered military service and were able to Labor of Puerto Rico
send money home to their families. Consequently, the island’s labor
established its Migration
pool reduced in size, which brought some relief to unemployment. Yet
Division to arrange contracts
this was only a temporary condition, which immediately reversed at
between U.S. mainland
war’s end. Not only did returning Puerto Rican servicemen face
skyrocketing unemployment, the baby boom that accompanied their
employers, farmers and
return created even more mouths to feed.
unemployed Puerto Ricans.
In 1947, the Department of Labor of Puerto Rico established its Migration Division to arrange contracts between
U.S. mainland employers, farmers and unemployed Puerto Ricans. Labor Department recruiters traversed the
island in cars with loudspeakers, handing out flyers, placing announcements on local bulletin boards and in local
newspapers announcing good jobs in the United States. Thus, in 1947-1948, 4,906 Puerto Ricans came to the
United States to work under contracts established through the Puerto Rican Department of Labor. Many others
came with “illegal” contracts set up outside the auspices of the Migration Division and still others came with no
contracts at all.
The First Puerto Rican Farm Workers in Lancaster County

By a wide margin, the destinations for laborers leaving Puerto Rico were the cities and farmlands in the northeast
and in the Mid-Atlantic States. In New York City, the garment industry, hospitality industry and light manufacturing
factories thrived on this new cheap labor force. In addition to Puerto Ricans taking the great leap of relocating their
families to the city, there was also an abundance of experienced, unemployed farm workers in Puerto Rico who
responded to the opportunity for migrant work. They signed on for
fieldwork on farms in New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania, As some of the first to
including Lancaster County. As some of the first to arrive here, there arrive here, there were no
were no accommodations for wives and children. Many of the men lived accommodations for wives
in the barns or bunkhouses of their employers, leaving families behind, and children. Many of the
returning home only after a season of planting and harvesting.
men lived in the barns or
Among the earliest to settle in Lancaster County was Benito Bonilla, bunkhouses of their
who arrived here in 1948 at age 34. Benito would teach Sunday School to employers, leaving families
other migrants as there were no services in the area in Spanish. He behind, returning home only
would later become one of the founding members of the First Spanish after a season of planting and
Assembly of God church in Lancaster. harvesting.
Antonio Vazquez was a young fieldworker who in 1948 was contracted
to work on a New Jersey farm. His second year brought him to the Graybill farm in Lititz. He returned to the
Graybill farm for quite a few seasons, enduring long periods of separation from his wife Antonia and children back
in Puerto Rico. Like many of the men who came for the opportunity to work, the priority soon became to secure a
job that would allow him to bring his family to Lancaster so they could be together.
16
Arcadio Rivera came in 1951 to work on the farm of Elmer P. Weaver, Sr. Eventually he secured a job at the
Buck Iron Company where he would remain for 33 years until his retirement. A resident of Lancaster for over 50
years, when he passed away in 2004 he left behind his wife Paula, 5 children, 13 grandchildren and 21 great-
grandchildren.
Eladio Flores came to Lancaster County in 1952. He had only been married for about a year. With steady work
scarce in Puerto Rico, Lancaster held out more promise. He stayed and worked at a series of jobs until he managed
to secure one with PennDOT from which he retired after 18 years. Consistent in his appreciation for steady
employment, after his retirement from PennDOT, he took a job at Consumer’s Packing Company and retired from
there also. Along the way, he was one of the founding members of San Juan Bautista Catholic Church. At the time
of his death, he and his wife Carmen had been married 51 years,
living nearly all those years together in Lancaster. By 1953 the increasing demand
by farmers in the region for
By 1953, the increasing demand by farmers in the region for
cheap labor resulted in the
cheap labor resulted in the Pennsylvania Farmer’s Association
Pennsylvania Farmer’s
establishing a camp outside of Reading that housed upwards of
Association establishing a camp
3,500 workers. Area farmers would hire directly from the camp
and transport the workers to and from their farms.
outside of Reading that housed
upwards of 3,500 workers. Area
By 1955, the Puerto Rican Migration Division had also farmers would hire directly from
established offices in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, the camp and transport the
Massachusetts, and Ohio and in Hartford, Connecticut. workers to and from their farms.
Farm bureaus in those states had been set up to transport
workers from Puerto Rico to wherever they were needed. Some farmers in the Susquehanna Valley established
relationships with some Puerto Rican workers they rehired year after year.
With unemployment still a problem in Puerto Rico, the men who were coming here began to look for jobs other
than the seasonal farm work that kept them separated from their families for periods lasting sometimes as long as
nine months. Lancaster’s diverse light manufacturing industries, abundant hotels and restaurants, canneries and
poultry processing plants had become aware of the stellar work ethic of these men and offered many an
opportunity for the kind of steady year-round employment that would enable them to set up permanent residence
and bring their families to Lancaster.
Some of the children of the earliest families to come to Lancaster recall a time when there were very few Puerto
Rican families in the city. Enid Vazquez-Pereira, station manager for WLCH-FM, the region’s first Spanish-language
radio station, recounts that her father came to Lancaster County as a farm worker in 1949, having worked the
previous season in New Jersey. He returned to Lancaster every season working and living on the Graybill farm for
months at a time, bunking with other Puerto Rican field workers who had also left their families behind. Enid was
born in Puerto Rico in 1951 but it was not until 1953 that her father was able to relocate the entire family to
Lancaster. They lived briefly in a barn in Lititz before renting a home on Water Street in Lancaster. Hers was one of
the first Hispanic families to live on Water Street.
Enid recalls that her father, like many of the other seasonal field workers, found steady employment in
Lancaster’s iron foundries. Poultry processing plants in New Holland and Bird-in-Hand, which they nicknamed “La
Chicken”, also provided the desired year-round work to former field workers. Getting a job at “La Chicken” was a
means of reuniting the family.
It wasn’t long before the Vazquez family purchased their first home, a row house on Green Street in the 7th
Ward. At the time, the 7th Ward was one of the most racially diverse neighborhoods in the city with Blacks and
Whites living in close proximity and in relative harmony. Now a few Puerto Rican families joined the mix and were
17
followed by other Puerto Ricans who sought the company of friends, family and coworkers with whom they shared
a language and culture.
In addition to the Bonilla, Vazquez, Rivera and Flores families, some of the others earliest to the area were the
Rosario, Crespo, Melendez, Hernandez, Colon and Lopez families.
Most of these early settlers came directly from Puerto Rico and therefore spoke little English so the community
looked to each other for support as Lancaster’s social service agencies were not equipped to communicate
effectively with a population that was almost exclusively Spanish-speaking. One such community advocate was
Roberto Martinez, who was an early exception to the typical field worker coming to Lancaster. A graduate of the
University of Puerto Rico, he came to Lancaster in 1953 to visit relatives and decided it was a good place to raise
his family. His wife held a master’s degree from Columbia University. He managed to secure a job as an internal
auditor with New Holland Machine Company and then with the PA State Revenue Department. The couple was held
in high regard in the community and were looked to for advice and
counsel and served as intermediaries and interpreters. Mr. Martinez was …the community was
also known for encouraging members of the community to register to growing fast and would
vote and often walked registrants though the process and sometimes continue to do so. Enterprising
down to the courthouse to file their registration forms.
individuals began to open
Grace Ortega was also an early advocate. A housewife and mother of modest businesses, a few
six, she was bilingual and made herself available to assist community grocery stores at first, a
members when language was a problem when interacting with local social restaurant specializing in
service agencies. Through word-of-mouth that she was willing to help traditional foods and a
anyone needing help, people would show up at her house on Juniata botanica which sold folk
Street and explain their situations. There were many such unofficial medicines, religious candles
community social workers who volunteered their time. and statuary.
Before long, Catholic Charities, in an office located in the area where
Olde Towne is today, began to provide more structured assistance to Spanish-speaking residents of the community.
It was clear even then, that the community was growing fast and would continue to do so. Enterprising
individuals began to open modest businesses, a few grocery stores at first, a restaurant specializing in traditional
foods and a botanica that sold folk medicines, religious candles and statuary. To stock these stores, the owners or
family members would often make supply runs to urban areas such as New York City or Philadelphia where these
items were readily available. Suppliers of these products had not yet targeted Lancaster as a distribution area.
One of the first restaurants to open was called “La Pachanga” after a popular dance at the time. It was located on
the corner of Duke and Church Streets near the office of Catholic Charities. In the 1950’s “El Sol de Borinquen”
grocery store owned by Ramon Roman was located at Rockland and Chester Streets.
Enid Vazquez-Pereira and Rosa Rosario Amaro were both here as children in 1955 and remember a close-knit
Puerto Rican community in Lancaster with only ten to fifteen families. There were other Puerto Ricans spread
throughout the county, but mostly they were migrants without their families here yet. Both recall relatives and
friends coming from Puerto Rico and staying in their homes until they found work and got established. Rosa’s father
arrived here under those circumstances, staying with a friend until he found a job and an apartment and sent for
his family.
Rosa attended Eichholtz Elementary School. Her brother, a year older, was placed in first grade and she in
kindergarten. She recalls only one other Puerto Rican child in the school at the time, Candido Crespo.
18
Enid remembers attending elementary school at Higbee in classes where she was the only Puerto Rican child.
She recalls being treated well by both her White and Black classmates who thought of her as unique because she
spoke Spanish but expressed no animosity towards her. By the time she got to middle school, only a few years
later, the Puerto Rican population had grown significantly and she could sense a shift in the attitude of her White
schoolmates about her.
The majority of Puerto Ricans were Roman Catholic and received some assistance and spiritual support from St.
Mary’s Catholic Church, which began offering a Spanish-language Sunday evening service. However, there were
also Mennonite, and Pentecostal worshipers and those from other denominations within the community who
organized their own services. One such congregation that founded their own brick and mortar church was the First
Spanish Assembly of God.
It was a dynamic community in those early days with change and growth
coming quickly.
The June 19, 1959 edition
of the Lancaster New Era
The June 19, 1959 edition of the Lancaster New Era ran a front-page ran a front page story with
story with the headline, “1,200 Puerto Ricans Now Live Here Year Around”.
the headline, “1,200 Puerto
The estimate at the time was that no more than a third or 300 to 400 were
Ricans Now Live Here Year
living in Lancaster City, but as is the case today, the estimates were more
Around”.
than likely on the low side of the actual number.
Richard W. Sheeler, general manager of the Bird-in-Hand Poultry Company estimated in 1959 that 150 of his
workers were Puerto Rican, several of whom he described as being “with the company for several years” and were
“very satisfactory” workers.
Also that year the School District of Lancaster estimated that thirty-five to fifty school children had been entering
the school system every year for the past few years with most attending Higbee and Washington elementary
schools and moving on to Edward Hand middle school. There was yet to be a significant presence in McCaskey High
School.
By far, the most significant entry point of migration from Puerto Rico to the United States mainland was New
York City; however, those with relatives in Lancaster who visited the area were struck by the slower pace, tranquil
atmosphere and the opportunities for employment. Home ownership, too, was a dream that did not seem as far out
of reach here as it did in New York or Philadelphia. Therefore, even early on, there was a number of Puerto Ricans
who relocated from New York to Lancaster with no history of having done any farm work here.
Sometimes the route to Lancaster was a circuitous one such as it was for Becky Ortega-Lyda’s parents, Angel
and Grace Ortega, who first followed family from Puerto Rico to New York, then joined other family members in
Reading before making the move to Lancaster on their own with no family connection here.
In the early to mid-1960s area farmers were still recruiting field workers from Puerto Rico. Farm work had
become less desirable for those who had established themselves here as other more lucrative employment
opportunities had opened up for them.
Early Report
In May, 1964, a committee of the Lancaster City Redevelopment Authority published a report, “Know Your
Neighbor: A Look at the Puerto Rican Community in Lancaster PA”. The report estimates the number of Puerto
Ricans living in the city to be approximately 700 persons consisting of 150 families. It suggested that
approximately the same number of individuals lived throughout the county with the largest number concentrated in
New Holland and Ephrata.
19
One of the report’s findings was that most of the city’s Puerto Rican residents were living in rental units in the 7th
Ward out of necessity because few landlords were willing to rent to them outside the southern quadrant. “White
flight” in the 7th Ward also made more vacant units available for “slum landlords” to convert into rental units. The
report also found there was a forced pattern of segregation and another factor for the clustering of the Puerto Rican
community was a result of a lack of sufficient knowledge of the English language, and the need to pool their
resources in order to meet prevailing economic conditions.
In May, 1964, a committee
The report also suggested that the dynamic trend of rapid growth in
the community was subsiding due to something of a “reverse migration”
of the Lancaster City
where the number of Puerto Ricans coming to Lancaster was offset by
Redevelopment Authority
the number going back to Puerto Rico. Hindsight tells us that those going published a report…One of
back were probably going back to get someone. the report’s findings was that
most of the city’s Puerto Rican
The majority of city-dwelling Puerto Ricans seemed to find
residents were living in rental
employment in the poultry processing industry, the city’s tobacco
units in the 7th Ward out of
warehouses or in foundry work. The poultry processors were paying
necessity because few
minimum wages that in 1964 was $1.25 per hour. Workers, however,
were required to be at the plant when the chickens were delivered but
landlords were willing to rent
were not paid for any waiting time, which could take hours. So, while
to them outside the southern
foundry workers were on the clock from the minute their shifts began the
quadrant.
poultry workers could lose upwards of 10 hours a week while they waited
for the chickens to be delivered. A survey of the kinds of jobs Puerto Ricans were engaged in revealed virtually
none were involved in white collar or sales jobs or in the building trades.
The report also revealed that “few if any” Puerto Rican students had graduated from high school, but few families
had children old enough to complete 12th grade. In terms of numbers, it estimated that there were probably no
more than five Puerto Rican students in McCaskey High School and maybe another three in Catholic High.
Within five years, the number of students in the school district’s ESL classes alone was estimated to be 150,
while 35 to 40 percent of the student population of St. Mary’s Parochial School was Hispanic.
Another change that would become evident in the next decade was that an element of highly educated Hispanics
had begun to emerge from within the community, assume positions of leadership and to organize to affect change.
Fastest Growing Population

By 1968, the city’s Spanish-speaking population, in an extraordinary growth spurt, had almost equaled the
number of Lancaster’s Black population. Nearly a decade after the Lancaster New Era proclaimed the Puerto Rican
population in the entire county had approximated 1,200, the new estimate of the Hispanic population in Lancaster
City alone was 4,200 and that figure would jump to 5,200 by the end of 1969. The estimates were calculated by
the School District of Lancaster and based on their enrollment data.
Local social service agencies were struggling to serve effectively the community but failing because few, if any,
had Spanish-speaking staff capable of communicating with clients who did not speak English. As fast as the
population was growing, there were always a significant number of adults who spoke only Spanish. Kenneth Shelly,
director of the Lancaster County Community Chest called for hospitals, clinics and the police station to “go
bilingual” to have someone on staff at all times who could speak and translate Spanish.
Overcrowding was a common problem as many of the families were typically large and extended. Parents and
children, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and family friends in various combinations might share a space
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meant for half as many people as newcomers temporarily settled in with family or friends until they secured their
own living quarters.
As it had since the earliest days, the churches stepped in to lend as much support as they could to the
community in navigating the system, helping to locate adequate housing and convincing landlords to make their
properties livable, and helping them to find jobs or emergency food or clothing. The Rev. William Nieto, pastor of
St. Paul’s Spanish Methodist Church; Rev. John Acri, director of Catholic Social Services; Sister Miriam of Catholic
Social Services; the Rev. Bienvenido Valentin, pastor of the Spanish Assembly of God; Aida Navarro of the Spanish
Action Council and Mrs. Aida Graupera among many others were vocal
advocates and community activists.
…in reaction to a Sunday
Mrs. Graupera, a respected educator and community activist, Cuban-born, News article which the
well known to adults and children in the 7th Ward, was one of the community thought was an
community’s grassroots leaders. unfair, biased and
stereotypical portrayal of the
The Spanish Action Council, run by Aida Navarro, was one of the first
Hispanic community. In July
organized and recognized advocacy groups to publicly raise issues and lobby
local agencies on behalf of Lancaster’s Hispanic population.
of 1971, an estimated 500
Puerto Ricans marched in
At the same time, the Catholic Social Services office on Duke and Church front of the building with
Streets was functioning more like an agency, offering direct assistance, signs and placards and
advice and job referrals.
demanded an apology.
Just how quickly and large the Puerto Rican population had grown in such
a short time was evidenced by a demonstration outside the West King Street offices of Lancaster Newspapers in
reaction to a Sunday News article which the community thought was an unfair, biased and stereotypical portrayal
of the Hispanic community. In July of 1971, an estimated 500 Puerto Ricans marched in front of the building with
signs and placards and demanded an apology. Community leaders met with Willis W. Shenk, LNP vice president,
and Sunday News editor Harold J. Eager who promised to meet with them again to hear their views and would
publish them. The leaders accepted his offer and the group marched back to the neighborhood. The demonstration
was described as peaceful and orderly but it certainly made an impression in downtown Lancaster.
In 1971, although unemployment was higher in the 7th Ward than other communities, Puerto Ricans were finding
jobs, albeit at the low end of the pay scale. Victor F. Weaver poultry processing plant in New Holland was
employing upwards of 250 Puerto Ricans; Bird-in-Hand Food Company, 80; Lancaster Leaf Tobacco, 50; General
Cigar Company, 50; Morgan Paper in Lititz, 40; and Lancaster Malleable & Castings and Pennsylvania Malleable
Iron Company counted about 100 Puerto Ricans on their payrolls. Although these numbers meant that a significant
portion of these company’s workforces were Hispanic, very few, even after years on the job, were promoted to the
middle management level. At the same time, ever so slowly, white collar jobs for Puerto Ricans in Lancaster City
were opening up for those who were bilingual. They were being hired as social service workers, teachers, teacher’s
aides, bank tellers, hospital workers, clerks and secretaries.
However, as the population continued to grow the demand for jobs, housing, assistance of all kinds grew along
with it and a large portion of the community was still experiencing difficulties getting the assistance they needed
because of the language barrier, transportation issues or the inability to complete the required forms for certain
kinds of assistance.
Although local entities such as Catholic Social Services and the churches did what they could to help, their
resources were often stretched to the limit. Hispanic community leaders met to discuss ways to more proactively
serve those in need, to do it in such a way that it would be in close proximity to the people and to be as accessible
as possible. They formed the Spanish American Civic Association for Equality, which incorporated in the summer of
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1972. They quickly developed plans to open a recreation and social facility that would be funded through a federal
grant and local donations. The group was ambitious and effective, negotiating in 1973 the purchase of the former
Boys Club building at 545 Pershing Avenue and set about conducting some
modest renovations. By the end of 1974 it was offering a free clinic with a
caseload of over 1000; the largest Head Start Day Care program in the
Hispanic community
county in a fully renovated area that used to house the Boys Club
leaders met to discuss ways
gymnasium; office space for Central Pennsylvania Legal Services and
to more proactively serve
Catholic Social Services, and adult education classes sponsored by Franklin those in need, to do it in such
and Marshall College. Within its first two years, the organization ceased a way that it would be in
using the term “for Equality” in its name “for the obvious reason that we are close proximity to the people
already equal.” They were more informally known in the community as and to be as accessible as
SACA. possible. They formed the
Spanish American Civic
The day-to-day operation of the facility was managed by Carlos Graupera.
Graupera, the son of Aida Graupera, was an employee of Catholic Social
Association for Equality…
Services who had been attached to SACA since 1973.
Although there have been periods over the past 30 some years when SACA has experienced financial difficulty it
has rebounded and continued without interruption to serve the community. Today, SACA is a multi-faceted entity.
In addition to the health services it provides, it houses a senior center where it serves meals and provides space for
recreation and social interaction for community elders. It also provides daily breakfast and lunch to the homeless.
Their employment desk provides job development services. It offers services to at-risk youth and their parents.
They also offer bilingual behavioral health services and a 22-bed drug and alcohol residential treatment facility.
Since 1984, SACA Development has purchased and rehabilitated blighted and vacant homes to provide affordable
rental and owner-occupied housing including a four-story mixed-use apartment and office building.
SACA Broadcasting’s public radio station, WLCH-FM has been on the air since 1987 and has become the Hispanic
voice of the region with music, news and public affairs programming.
In December, 1970, the School District of Lancaster hired Mrs. Iris MacRae, a native of Puerto Rico and a teacher
with the Conestoga Valley School District with 15 years experience, to head up its ESL Program. It was an
acknowledgement of the unprecedented growth of the Hispanic student population in the school district. In the
three years between 1968 and 1971, Hispanic student enrollment in the district went from 246 to 844; many of
them with limited to no English-language skills and they were not being taught. Mrs. MacRae was aggressive in
recruiting the best-qualified bilingual, bicultural teachers and developed a model transitional bilingual education
program in 1973. A no-nonsense educator she lead the school district’s ESL and later the bilingual education
program for 14 years from 1970 to 1984 and was recognized for her dedication to education by having the district’s
most recent elementary school building named for her and Elizabeth Carter, another local educator.
The 1970’s was a decade in which the Latino population here, with its unprecedented growth, established itself
as a significant presence in the southeast quadrant of Lancaster City. There was a clear transformation that had
taken little more than twenty years to occur as the southeast end of Lancaster adapted to the demographics and
more and more Puerto Rican specialty shops, notary publics, restaurants and grocery stores opened to
accommodate the demand for services, familiar foods, music, clothing and other cultural items. Where there had
been one Puerto Rican restaurant, now there were three; and now numerous mom and pop grocery stores sprang
up and dotted the neighborhood and they were all doing well.
A group calling itself Puerto Ricans United established a Puerto Rican parade in 1970. A year later, at the end of
the Puerto Ricans United parade that culminated at Higbee School on Duke Street, Henry Rutherford, the
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Republican candidate for district attorney made what might have been the first public political speech directed at
the Puerto Rican community here. Rutherford addressed the crowd in Spanish. He said he was learning the
language to allow for better communication and understanding between himself and the Spanish-Americans of
Lancaster. It was one of the first indicators that Lancaster’s Latino community was recognized as a coming political
force in city politics and a potential voting bloc.
In 1973, the parade activities expanded to a weeklong celebration of Puerto Rican culture and included a pageant
and the crowning of a Puerto Rican Week Queen. The parade proceeded through the city and this time culminated
at the Pershing Avenue site of the future SACA facility with food, music and dancing. For several years thereafter
there was no parade or pageant until a new organization was formed in 1978, the Puerto Rican Committee. Its
primary purpose was to revive the parade as one way of displaying community and cultural pride. One of the
founding members and president for five years, Raphael DeJesus,
expressed the desire of the committee to create a regular venue Driven from their homelands in
that would promote Puerto Rican culture and would provide an Mexico, for economic reasons, or
annual cultural festival that the community could look forward to from Central and South America
and share with anyone willing to participate. The parades were because of political unrest or
well planned and once again expanded to a pageant where a brutal poverty, the county began
Queen was selected and she became the face of the community to experience an influx of
during the festivities. Other than SACA, the Puerto Rican Hispanics besides Puerto Ricans
Committee is one of the oldest continuous organizations in the such as Ecuadorians, Columbians,
Latino community. DeJesus and Hector Valentin pooled their own
Mexicans and Cubans.
money to purchase a building at 150-152 S. Prince Street which,
now renovated, serves as headquarters, a learning center, a
location for special events and meetings, and a Hispanic Cultural Center where members of the community can
access services, participate in educational programs and promote their culture. The building is a showpiece and the
culmination of years of work by dedicated committee members.
Beginning in the 1970s there was a shift in the kinds of Latinos coming to Lancaster. Puerto Ricans were still
coming from the island but relatives and friends from cities like New York and Philadelphia also began to move into
the area, prompted by a desire to escape from the crime and drugs that permeated the low-income neighborhoods
there. Without many choices available to them and often having very few funds to stake a total relocation, having
family or friends in Lancaster gave them an opportunity to relocate to an area that seemed to offer the promise of
a less stressful existence and a safer environment in which to raise their children. It was the same story of people
opening up their homes to friends and family while they sought employment and a place of their own.
In addition, a trickle of Hispanics from other countries began to come into the area that did not come specifically
to work on farms. Driven from their homelands in Mexico, for economic reasons, or from Central and South
America because of political unrest or brutal poverty, the county began to experience an influx of Hispanics besides
Puerto Ricans such as Ecuadorians, Columbians, Mexicans and Cubans. Their numbers would never challenge those
of the Puerto Rican majority because they lacked the advantage of U.S. citizenry. They needed passports, visas or,
as undocumented persons, risked deportation. Their reasons for coming vary as much as the countries they came
from.
At home, Ecuadorians were subjected to severe poverty with no hope for relief. A few very wealthy families and
individuals controlled the country’s wealth and resources. More than half of the country’s populace was living just
at or below the poverty line. So, driven by the hopelessness of ever extricating themselves and their families from
excruciating poverty, they either left the country or sent their children north for opportunities they knew they
would never realize at home.
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In Columbia a 40-year attempt by insurgents to overthrow the government, funded in part by the drug cartel,
has caused widespread violence in the countryside and more recently in the larger cities. The instability in the
countryside and neighboring regions caused a steady stream of immigrants to make their way north.
Mexicans seeking work used to settle primarily in the western and southwestern regions of the United States.
Those areas, however, are already saturated with others looking for work. So, in what has become a more recent
trend, Mexicans have moved into other parts of the country looking for work. In the northeast and Mid-Atlantic
states, Mexicans have moved into what had been long-established Puerto Rican areas. They have moved into
Lancaster as well, although mostly in the county.
Cubans seem to arrive in waves. The first, of course, was in the early 1960s right after Castro assumed power.
In the early 1980s, the so-called Mariel Boatlift brought a good-sized number of refugees to the area. Some
accused Fidel Castro of dumping his undesirables here by emptying his jails and “encouraging” them to leave on
anything that would float. Those who made it were processed and disbursed around the country to military camps
and released if they could find someone to sponsor them. A number ended up at Fort Indiantown Gap and were
sponsored by Lancastrians sympathetic to their situation. Unlike the first wave of Cubans who were educated
professionals, businessmen and landowners, most of the “Marielistas” were
poor and unskilled. Eventually many of them gravitated to Miami to more
familiar cultural surroundings. Today there is a new, although smaller,
In the late 1980s
group of Cuban refugees that has found its way to Lancaster. This group is
Dominicans started to
more educated, consisting of professional people, doctors and others in the
arrive in Lancaster, at
medical profession, many of who can speak some English and are therefore first in modest numbers,
easier to place. However, since they are not certified in this country the coming through New York
jobs available to them are the same low paying jobs that seem to await and New Jersey.
most immigrants. According to job placement specialists at SACA, the
Cubans seem to take the jobs with no animosity but with the understanding that this is a new start for them and
the opportunities will be there for them at some point.
In the late 1980s, Dominicans started to arrive in Lancaster, at first in modest numbers, coming through New
York and New Jersey. The economy of the Dominican Republic had been changing. It had been an exporter of
coffee, sugar and tobacco but the service industry had replaced the old economy with the rise in tourism and free
trade zones. Dominicans at home began to experience severe income inequity with the poorest half of the
population receiving less than one-fifth of the gross national product. The richest 10 percent of the country reaped
40 percent of the national income. With the United States only a few hundred miles away many working class
Dominicans made their way to New York, staying with relatives for a while before venturing out to other
destinations where more relatives or friends could help give them a start. Although some Dominicans were
undocumented, some were better prepared than those fleeing Latin America. Many had family members here for
support, were equipped with an entrepreneurial spirit, some even had savings, and were prepared to open small
businesses, restaurants, retail and grocery stores. The U.S. Census estimates that there are more than 1,200,000
Dominicans in the United States, half of which have arrived since the 1990’s. As is the case with most Latino
subgroups, the growth is so dynamic it is difficult to accurately measure. In Lancaster, Latino community leaders
agree that the Dominican population growth here has been vigorous over the past decade.
It’s important to remember that the reason those first Puerto Rican farm workers came to Lancaster in the first
place was for the economic opportunities. They paved the way for all those who followed and still serve as an
example of sacrifice and perseverance. Many were willing to leave their families behind for long periods to lay the
groundwork for a better situation for their children.
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One such person was Carlos Luciano who came to Lancaster as a 17-year-old farm worker in 1966. His main
objective was to make enough money to be able to marry the girl he left behind in Puerto Rico. One of his first jobs
was working in the field at Funk’s in Millersville. However, it was a job at Victor F. Weaver’s poultry processing
plant in New Holland that provided the steady income he was looking for in order to get married. After they
married, Carlos and his new wife Blanche moved to Ephrata where they raised their children. He and his extended
family made the most of their opportunities with hard work and long hours.
Carlos’s father and his wife’s father were second or third cousins and both sides of the family had a history of
business acumen and enterprise. Blanche’s father in particular had always been involved in one business or another
as were her uncles and brothers. Several of the Luciano’s had come to Lancaster to find work with the hope of
eventually starting their own businesses here. They succeeded. Tony’s Fashions in downtown Lancaster is owned by
Tony Luciano a cousin of Carlos. Luciano Auto Sales and Luciano Auto Rentals are owned and operated by his
brother-in-law Johnny Luciano who did not start those businesses until after retiring from Armstrong. The Luciano
and Nieves Garage on Prince Street is still another family owned business, and Carlos, after working at Tyson Foods
for 26 years bought a grocery store in Lancaster that was owned by his wife’s uncles, Herman and Benny Luciano.
After selling the grocery store to Carlos, they went into the appliance business on West King Street.
As if proliferating in business were not enough, the Luciano family is also involved in law enforcement. Both of
Carlos’ sons, Manny and Carlos are Lancaster City police officers and his daughter-in-law Janice Luciano is a
probation officer.
Political Power
The 1980’s saw a continued surge in the growth of the Latino population and the arrival of new sub-groups from
Central and South America, the Dominican Republic and Cuban
refugees.
Lancaster’s new mayor,
By a large margin, Puerto Ricans would continue to dominate in Arthur Morris, made a
numbers but it was the beginning of a new trend, where individuals conscientious effort to
from new groups would come in and make significant social, connect with the Latino
economic and political contributions. community by establishing a
Lancaster’s new mayor, Arthur Morris, made a conscientious effort
close working relationship
to connect with the Latino community by establishing a close working with SACA’s executive
relationship with SACA’s executive director, Carlos Graupera. The director, Carlos Graupera.
two met often to discuss the issues and concerns of the Latino
community. Morris was an immigrant, born in England, who came to Lancaster with his family when he was 13
years old. He had become a citizen in 1974 just 6 years before becoming mayor so, quite possibly, he had a keener
sense of what it meant to have to adjust to fit into a community. When SACA went through a period of financial
difficulty midway through his tenure as mayor, Morris, Richard E. Blouse, who was president of the Lancaster
Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Carlos Graupera, formed an alliance that resulted in a fiscally stable
SACA that would have the opportunity to thrive and expand its services over the next two decades.
While that level of collaboration was heartening, some of the city’s institutions were resistant to change.
Although the Latino community had swelled to a significant percentage of the city’s population, the police
department, fire department and school district faculty had disproportionately low Hispanic representation. Along
with that population growth was an increase in Democratic sentiment in the city in what was an overwhelmingly
Republican county. City Democratic leaders saw an opportunity to loosen the hold of the Republican Party in the
city, which had a Republican mayor and state representative in Marvin E. Miller, Jr. who had been routinely re-
elected for more than a decade. In 1987, the Democrats approached Lillian Escobar-Haskins, a local Puerto Rican
25
community activist to run against Mr. Miller for the 96th District in the 1988 election. A political novice, Mrs.
Escobar-Haskins agreed to the request and mounted an aggressive door-to-door campaign and voter registration
drive. Her campaign workers registered a record number of new
Democrats but Labor, expressing reservations about supporting a
There isn’t a better
political novice with no track record, uncharacteristically endorsed example of the cultural
Miller. Others believed that supporting a Latino candidate was a little diversity that exists within
out of Labor’s comfort zone at the time so it drew a line and broke Lancaster’s Latino
ranks with the Democratic Party to endorse Miller. Mrs. Escobar- community than those who
Haskins lost the election by about 900 votes, closer than anyone have served and are seeking
anticipated. She went on to head the Governor’s Advisory Commission public office.
on Latino Affairs. Although she did not run again, the momentum of
change, the record number of new Democrats she registered, and a motivated and politically charged Latino
community helped to elect a primarily Democratic city council in 1989 and usher in a new Democratic mayor in
Janice Stork and Democratic state representative in Michael Sturla in 1990.
Stork, who had been serving on city council appointed Maggie Roman, to complete her term. Roman who was
born here but whose parents were Puerto Rican was the first Hispanic to serve on Lancaster’s city council. There
have been few elections since without a Hispanic name on the ballot for some political office. Luis Mendoza, a
Columbian, was the first Hispanic elected to public office in 1997 when he ran for Lancaster’s city council as a
Republican. He was followed into City Council by two Democrats, John Graupera, a Cuban and Jose Urdaneta, a
Venezuelan. Dr. Veronica Urdaneta was elected to the board of the School District of Lancaster. In 2007, Luis
Rodriguez, Janice Jimenez and Joe Morales, all Puerto Ricans, ran for sheriff, district justice and city council,
respectively. There isn’t a better example of the cultural diversity that exists within Lancaster’s Latino community
than those who have served and are seeking public office. Janice Jimenez and Joe Morales won their seats and
while Luis Rodriguez lost his bid in a countywide election for sheriff, he won every precinct in the city.
Looking back there is little doubt that there has been significant progress since the first Puerto Rican migrant
workers arrived here. These were individuals willing to leave everything familiar behind, motivated by a desire to
improve their condition and that of their families. While they must have felt very much out of place here in 1947,
they would feel very much at home here today. It would have been difficult for those few individuals to envision
Lancaster’s Latino community in 2007, not only in regards to its size, but in terms of its diversity and
accomplishments. There are, however, significant challenges to overcome in terms of education, housing,
underemployment and quality of life issues. All indications are that the community is poised to affect change and
motivated by the same desire to improve their condition and that of their families.
26
LANCASTER COUNTY DEMOGRAPHICS

COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVES
Latinos in Lancaster generally agree that the Latino population has been undercounted in the U.S. Census. They
also emphasize that the growing diversity of the Latino population, which was at one time overwhelmingly Puerto
Rican, is not reflected in the official data. For example, there has been significant growth in the Dominican
population, many of whom have settled in the city. At a local level, the Dominican population is believed to be at
least six times larger than the official census count reflects. It is also common knowledge that the Mexican
population has noticeably increased, yet they are less visible since many settle in areas of the county that are
outside the city. Also, judging by their attendance in local activities, there has been a marked increase of a very
diverse group of Central and South American populations that are new to the area. The following are some of the
comments from community members on the growth and evolution of the Latino population in the city and county of
Lancaster:
º The people coming here are, for the most part, improving upon their conditions in terms of infrastructure,
socio-economics and housing. In many cases it’s a step up from where they have been in New Jersey, New
York, Philly... it's a step up from a lot of places. We've had people move to Florida and come back.
º I think New Holland, Ephrata, Leola, Elizabethtown, Columbia, Quarryville all have significant Latino
populations. I have no idea what the documented/undocumented issue is. Migrant labor has not been a factor
here for a couple of generations now; not like in Reading or Chester. That has dried up. We don’t see as many
undocumented here as they do in Kennett Square, Chester County or in Reading… but some.
º I think the large farms, the nature of agriculture has changed in Lancaster County and has been buried by food
processing. I mean, I used to pick tomatoes, and all that farm
work has become scarce. The Amish are hungry for land and I think the large farms, the
they buy up as much as they can to sustain their community. nature of agriculture has
Urban sprawl has taken a lot of our farmland so you don't have changed in Lancaster County
a large community of migrants coming through Lancaster like and has been buried by food
they did in the 1960's and 70's. Lancaster County is an processing. I mean, I used to
agricultural community but people are not picking tomatoes or pick tomatoes, and all that
mushrooms here. We don't have people calling us asking for 50 farm work has become scarce.
workers to harvest crops, or people coming in asking us to find
them work picking something. That just doesn't happen here anymore. If there were such a need in this
county, we'd see it. So anecdotally, I'm telling you it's not here and hasn't been here for twenty/thirty years.
º Many successful Puerto Ricans move out to the county and, for some, it's because they don't believe their
children can get a good education in the city. I live in the city because I'm stubborn. If it were up to my wife,
we wouldn’t live in the city. As a result, I have to pay for private school for one of my children because the
public school can’t provide that child with what he needs. There are other people like me tucked away out
there in the county. They live their lives and are not really interested in living in the city or getting involved in
things like running for public office.
º Our estimation is that there are some 6,000 Dominicans in the county and about 4,000 of them live in the city.
The 2000 Census reported only a little over 700 Dominicans in the area. But the reality is that when we do our
annual Christmas dinner we get 700 paid Dominican attendees and that is without children attending. We also
know that only a small percentage of the Dominican population attends the event. I believe there are two
major reasons that Dominicans come to Lancaster. First, Lancaster has one of the lowest percentages of
27
unemployment according to the Department of Labor and second, is the environment. I think there is a level of
security in this community. For example, everyone knows that here at 2 a.m. all the businesses have closed
down, whereas in other cities such as New York, people hang out till all hours of the morning drinking and
partying. One of the things I like about Lancaster, which I think is a good thing, is the curfew. In addition, you
have so many nonprofit organizations that are here serving the community. You also have a very active
religious community. Many churches participate in helping the community. Also, there is the ability for
students to get their education and to study.
º Here in Lancaster the largest Latino supermarket, the C-Town supermarket located on King and South Ann
Streets is owned by a Dominican. He is a businessman from New York who lived in Reading. He also owns the
Brothers Market on South Duke Street and a chain of smaller grocery stores—one on East End Ave, another on
Susquehanna and Rockland and another one on Marshall. He believes in investing in the community.
Sixty percent of the hair salons in the area are owned by Dominican women. These are young women who
have graduated from the school of cosmetology and have established their own businesses. Some have come
from other states already qualified and certified and have established themselves here. We have Dominican
educators working in the School District of Lancaster and Millersville University.
º The Latino diversity in this community can be seen in a program we established called Citizenship Solidarity,
where we provide classes to help individuals who want to get their citizenship. In our citizenship classes, we
have a very diverse group… Salvadoran, Dominican, Peruvian,
Mexican… many Latinos who are residents and truly have a great
In our citizenship classes, we
desire to become citizens, especially now, since things are so have a very diverse
difficult after 9-11. For the slightest offense—even a minor traffic group…To date we have
violation—they can deport you. To date we have helped eight helped eight people pass
people pass their citizenship test: a Cuban, two Mexicans, four their citizenship test: a
Dominicans, a Venezuelan and a Peruvian. The project is barely a Cuban, two Mexicans, four
year old. It is a completely volunteer effort. We receive no funds. Dominicans, a Venezuelan
We use the temporary office that we have for the Dominican and a Peruvian. The project
Association. We have some chairs and some tables for the is barely a year old.
students. Two students donated a blackboard. The class is held
once a week. We have graduated eight and currently have a class of twenty-five. The reality is that we can be
helping probably fifty to a hundred students if we were to offer a class on Saturday. Many have requested a
Saturday class. The nationalities of those currently attending the citizenship class are six Dominicans, seven
Colombians, four Salvadorans, three Cubans, and five Peruvians. Two individuals organized this effort and
teach the classes. One is Puerto Rican and the other is Dominican.
º There is no doubt that there are more Dominicans in Lancaster County than there are Mexicans. Now if you
were to look at Reading… Reading has many more Mexicans than Dominicans but here in Lancaster the reverse
is true.
º People outside the community often think that Latinos come here to get involved in illegal activities, get
involved in drugs, to do this or that. They are a tiny minority. But as it is with so many different Latin
American nationalities, with our work ethic and our families, we come to make a contribution to the society,
the same as the Peruvians, Cubans, Puerto Ricans, Panamanians and Colombians.
º I have seen Latino economic growth here and I feel that Latinos have progressed quite a bit here. At one time
the population was primarily Puerto Rican. Later on you began to see more Dominicans, Colombians, Mexicans
and other nationalities. I have seen a lot of growth in the Dominican population. There was a time when you
28
would go to a dance and it would be rare to see someone there who was Dominican. Now you have a lot of
Dominicans attending. I would say that the Dominican population started growing significantly in the 90s.
º You look at the face of the community in Lancaster, the whole south
central area, but Lancaster specifically, we have such a melting pot. It This has become the
has become the Latino melting pot as well. I would say Puerto Ricans Latino melting pot as
are still the majority—though sometimes I wonder. I walk around and well. I would say Puerto
I’m not 100% sure. We have a large and growing Dominican Ricans are still the
community that would be the second largest community. You still have majority—though
the Colombian community that has grown and we have a lot of Central sometimes I wonder.
and South American groups such as from Peru and Mexico. The
Mexican group is a fairly large community. I don’t know if it’s due to
word of mouth but lot of Mexicans come here from Philadelphia and Kennett Square and we have a lot of
Cubans in the area now. The Cuban community grew and then stopped and now all of a sudden it started
growing again a couple of years ago. There are some undocumented Latinos here. The Mexican community has
really worked hard on trying to get their documentation. However, there are some who came with working
visas and just haven’t been able to get their monies together to do what they need to do. I think that group
has really strived and has worked on getting their documents. A lot of Cubans are working on getting their
documentation, but how soon is that going to happen? Based on what I’ve seen with other groups, it can take
years sometimes.
º The Venezuelan population here is very small. I could probably count them on the fingers of one hand. The
closest Venezuelan organization is in Philadelphia. The numbers of Venezuelans is beginning to grow but not to
any significant degree. Being a Venezuelan in a primarily Puerto Rican community, some people have asked
where I came from. I’d say that has mattered to very few in the Puerto Rican community. In Lancaster, your
genuineness seems to matter more and why you were doing something rather than where you were from. I
feel very accepted in the Latino community here. I have been invited to play key roles in the Puerto Rican
Festival and the awards programs. I have been referred to by others in the Puerto Rican community as an
honorary Puerto Rican. First and foremost, I am accepted as a Latino.
º I see a different group now coming to the U.S. than was the case back in the 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s and that
group is educated. They see that there’s a world of employment opportunities here. I think we’re attracting
more educated people now than ever before. I wouldn’t say that the poor, disadvantaged people are the ones
moving to Lancaster or the U.S. I see the other side now. We are attracting more educated people and they’re
coming more for employment opportunities than leaving for financial reasons.
29
DEMOGRAPHICS
The significant growth of the Latino2 population in the city and Table 1. POPULATION 1980-2006
county of Lancaster is an undeniable trend that will continue into NH: Non Hispanic 1980 1990 2000 2006
the coming decades. The arrival of significant numbers of first Lancaster County
generation families combined with the growing numbers of second, Hispanic/Latino 3% 4% 6% 7%
third and fourth generations of Latinos in the area predicts that, in White NH 95% 93% 89% 88%
Black NH 2% 2% 3% 3%
the not too distant future, Latinos will become the majority ethnic Other Races NH 1% 1% 3% 3%
population in the city of Lancaster City
It is very likely that Lancaster. Between 1980 and Hispanic/Latino 12% 20% 31% 37%
within the next two 2006, the most conservative White NH 77% 67% 52% 43%
Black NH 9% 11% 13% 14%
decades Latinos will estimates confirm that the
Other Races NH 2% 2% 5% 6%
surpass the White non- Latino population in the city Suburbs/Rural*
grew from 12% to 37% of the
Latino population in the Hispanic/Latino 1% 1% 2% 3%
city’s total population. The
city of Lancaster. White NH 98% 97% 94% 93%
anecdotal data indicates that Black NH 1% 1% 1% 1%
Other Races NH 1% 1% 2% 3%
currently it is likely more than 40% of the city. It is very probable *Suburbs/Rural is the County population minus Lancaster City
that within fifteen years, in the city, Latinos will surpass the White Sources: Census 2000, CLARITAS 2006
non-Latino population, which, historically, has been the predominant population.
The migration patterns suggest a pattern of “White flight3” from the city of Lancaster. An analysis of the
migratory patterns since 1980 shows a steady decline with each census of the White population in the city and a
corresponding growth in the Table 2. POPULATION CHANGE 1980-2006
PERCENT CHANGE
other towns and boroughs of
1980 1990 2000 2006 1990-2006 1980-2006
the county. Between 1980 and Hispanic/Latino
2006, the White Non-Hispanic Lancaster County 9,104 14,842 26,742 33,143 123% 264%
population in the city of Lancaster City 6,540 10,981 17,331 20,420 86% 212%
Suburbs/Rural 2,564 3,861 9,411 12,723 230%
Lancaster declined by an 396%
White, Non-Hispanic
estimated -44% and grew in
Lancaster County 343,408 393,751 420,366 432,030 10% 26%
the rest of the county by Lancaster City 42,319 37,170 29,196 23,799 -36% -44%
approximately 36%. Suburbs/Rural 301,089 356,581 391,170 408,231 14% 36%
Black, Non-Hispanic
In that same period, the Black Lancaster County 6,741 8,821 11,837 13,581 54% 101%
population grew steadily in Lancaster City 4,857 6,105 7,067 7,610 25% 57%
Suburbs/Rural 1,884 2,716 4,770 5,971 120% 217%
both the city and the rest of
Other Races, Non-Hispanic*
the county but showed a Lancaster County 3,093 5,408 11,713 14725 172% 376%
significantly higher increase in Lancaster City 1,009 1,295 2,754 3193 147% 216%
Suburbs/Rural 2,084 4,113 8,959 11532 180% 453%
the non-urban areas. From
*In 2000 the other races were primarily comprised of Asian (6723) and those of two or more races (4000)
1980 to 2006, the Black Sources: Census 2000 SF1, HUD State of the Cities Data Systems, CLARITAS 2006
population increased by an estimated 57% in the city compared to 217% growth in the rest of the county. In 1980,
72% of the Black population resided in Lancaster City vs. 28% Suburb/Rural. In 2006, 44% resided in the non-
2
For the purpose of this document the terms Latino and Hispanic are used interchangeably to refer to this diverse population with a common origin and
common language whether native to the U.S. or foreign born from Latin America or Spain. This is consistent with the use of the terms in the 2000 Census
where the terms ‘Spanish,’ ‘Hispanic origin,’ and ‘Latino’ are used interchangeably. Some individuals identify with all three terms while others may
identify with only one of these three terms. The use of the terms Hispanic and Latino is subject to a debate currently taking place throughout the United
States without a clear resolution. Some individuals are adamant about the use of one term over the other, while others strongly prefer to be identified
with their specific national origin. There is common agreement that the term Hispanic was brought into use by the U.S. government in the 1970’s for the
purpose of counting a diverse population with a common heritage and language. The term Latino is promoted as one that more reflects the diverse racial
and ethnic backgrounds of this population.
3
White flight refers to the demographic trend where upper and middle class White Americans move away from non-White inner-city neighborhoods to
predominantly White suburbs and rural communities.
30
urban towns and boroughs. Using conservative estimates, in the twenty-six year period from 1980 to 2006, it is
estimated the Latino population grew 212% in the city increasing from 6,540 to 20,420 and today represents close
to 40% of the city of Lancaster. At the same time, the Latino population in the rest of the county grew almost five-
fold, from 2,564 to 12,723. The highest percentage of the Latino population is concentrated in the city with 62% of
the population residing there.
It is important to note there is overwhelming anecdotal data

indicating a significant undercount of Lancaster’s Latino populations. The Latino population
The Census Bureau admits to undercounts of Latino populations due to growth has been two-fold—
a number of factors, including non-citizen populations wanting to showing dramatic growth in
remain under the radar, the hidden homelessness issue where two or both the city and non-urban
three families share a dwelling until they are able to afford their own county areas.
place. Often, tenants of rental housing live in fear of their landlords
discovering there are additional people living in the household so they do not acknowledge any other individuals in
the home. There is also a historical distrust of governmental entities and officials and there is little to no data on
the undocumented population in Lancaster County. Therefore, the official data does not reflect a full count of the
population. While the U.S. Census 2005 American Community Survey (ACS) estimates the Latino population to be
32,303, an analysis of the population based on the growth of the Latino student population in the school districts
leads to an estimate of over 44,000 Latinos in the county of Lancaster in 2005. This suggests an undercount of
nearly 12,000 Latinos.
Lancaster County has 60 subdivisions in the U.S. Census—Lancaster City and 59 boroughs and townships. To
provide a more meaningful analysis using a more manageable number of geographic subdivisions, this study will
present the data utilizing the geographic boundaries of Lancaster County’s school districts. The following shows the
suburban and rural school districts and the subdivisions within their boundaries. The only exception was Mount Joy
Township, which is served by the Donegal and Elizabethtown Area school districts. The whole of Mount Joy
Township is included in the Elizabethtown area. Also, in some tables where school district data is being utilized for
analysis, the Octorara subdivision is not included because it is part of the Octorara Area School District of Chester
County. In addition, except where the school district data is being used for analysis, the data for Lancaster City and
Lancaster Township will be presented separately, although they are both served by one school district.
1. Cocalico: Adamstown Borough, Denver Borough, East Cocalico Township, West Cocalico Township
2. Columbia Borough: Columbia Borough
3. Conestoga Valley: East Lampeter Township, Upper Leacock Township, West Earl Township
4. Donegal: East Donegal Township, Marietta Borough, Mount Joy Borough
5. Eastern Lancaster County: East Earl Township , Brecknock Township , Caernarvon Township , Earl Township , New
Holland Borough , Terre Hill Borough
6. Elizabethtown Area: Conoy Township , Elizabethtown Borough , Mount Joy Township , West Donegal Township
7. Ephrata: Akron Borough , Clay Township , Ephrata Borough , Ephrata Township
8. Hempfield: East Hempfield Township , East Petersburg Borough , Mountville Borough , West Hempfield
Township
9. Lampeter-Strasburg: Strasburg Borough , Strasburg Township , West Lampeter Township
10. Manheim Central: Manheim Borough , Penn Township , Rapho Township
11. Manheim Township: Manheim Township
12. Octorara: Christiana Borough , Sadsbury Township (Part of the Octorara SD of Chester County)
13. Penn Manor: Conestoga Township , Manor Township , Martic Township , Millersville Borough , Pequea
Township
14. Pequea Valley: Leacock Township , Paradise Township , Salisbury Township
15. Solanco: art Township , Colerain Township , Drumore Township , East Drumore Township , Eden
Township , Fulton Township , Little Britain Township , Providence Township , Quarryville
Borough
16. Warwick: Elizabeth Township , Lititz Borough , Warwick Township
31
Table 3. LATINO POPULATION IN COUNTY SD SUBDIVISIONS (2000 CENSUS - 2005 ESTIMATES)

2005-06
CENSUS 2000 2005 ESTIMATES SD Census
Estimated LATINO
LANCASTER COUNTY Total Latino Population Total Latino Population4 Latino Pop STUDENTS
SCHOOL DISTRICT Population Population Growth
SUBDIVISION N % N % 2000-05 N %
Lancaster County5 470,658 26742 6% 490,562 44,151 9% 65% 8,709 13%
Lancaster City/Twp 70,292 18677 27% 68,985 24,835 36% 33% 5,871 52%
Hempfield 43,421 1479 3% 45,518 2,549 6% 72% 595 8%
Manheim township 33,697 932 3% 35,577 1,743 5% 87% 393 7%
Conestoga Valley 28,551 893 3% 30,295 1,909 6% 114% 342 9%
Penn Manor 37,369 724 2% 38,749 1,356 4% 87% 245 5%
Columbia borough 10,311 463 4% 10,092 918 9% 98% 187 13%
Ephrata 30,458 625 2% 31,873 892 3% 43% 148 4%
Donegal 14,859 356 2% 15,836 554 4% 56% 140 5%
Warwick 28,337 426 2% 29,883 628 2% 47% 135 3%
Eastern Lancaster County 29,212 546 2% 30,825 863 3% 58% 131 4%
Elizabethtown Area 29,437 354 1% 32,517 683 2% 93% 122 3%
Solanco 28,883 279 1% 30,059 631 2% 126% 113 3%
Cocalico 21,454 299 1% 22,293 468 2% 57% 93 3%
Lampeter-Strasburg 19966 248 1% 21749 457 2% 84% 83 3%
Manheim Central 20,674 213 1% 21,957 307 1% 44% 70 2%
Pequea Valley 19,588 171 1% 19,979 280 1% 64% 41 2%

Sources: US 2000 Census, US Census 2005 Population Estimates, PA Department of Education
Latinos have settled throughout Lancaster County and Latino students are found in all the county’s school
districts. The school district census is the most accurate indicator we have of the growth of the Latino population in
the various parts of the county. Utilizing school district figures, we were able to estimate the growth of the Latino
population in the geographic regions represented by the county school districts. Latinos primarily live in the city
and surrounding townships. The next largest number of Latinos has settled in Hempfield, followed by Manheim
Township, Conestoga Valley, and Penn Manor.
The Latino population began settling in Lancaster County in

significant numbers in the second half of the twentieth century. Table 4. 2005 U.S CENSUS POPULATION ESTIMATE
Margin of
This population was predominately Puerto Rican who first arrived Lancaster County Estimate Error
to work the farms in the area. In the last two decades, other Mexican 6% 2,068 +/- 790
Latinos populations have come to Lancaster and have settled Puerto Rican 71% 23,011 +/- 1,977
Cuban 4% 1,154 +/- 725
here in increasing numbers. As a result, the Lancaster Latino
Dominican 3% 865 +/- 670
community is becoming increasingly diverse. Unfortunately,
Central American 6% 2,041 +/- 1,353
there has been no accurate census accounting of the new Latino
South American 7% 2,318 +/- 1,665
populations settling in the area and so their presence can only
Other Latino 3% 846 +/- 465
be documented anecdotally. For example, there is little Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2005 American Community Survey
quantitative documentation of the increasing Dominican

population in the area.
4
*The percent of the combined Census2000 Latino population in Lancaster City and Township was 58% of percent of the 2000 Latino student population in the School District
of Lancaster—adjusting for acknowledged undercount, it can be conservatively estimated that the percent of Latinos in a subdivision will be approximately 70% of the School
District percentage. This formula was used in estimating the 2005 Latino population in the school district subdivisions.
5
Totals include the area of Lancaster County (Christiana Borough, Sadsbury Township) that is part of the Chester Octorara School District. Analysis of that subdivision was not
included since the data from that School District goes beyond Lancaster County.
32
The U.S. Census typically cannot accurately account for non-standard shifts in their mid-census population
estimates and projections. The local anecdotal data strongly indicates that the Dominican population in Lancaster
County was grossly undercounted in the 2000 Census and,
Local anecdotal data strongly
subsequently, the 2005 census estimates reflect the original
indicates that the Dominican
undercount. The census projections estimated a significant
growth in the non-Puerto Rican Latino population but estimated
population… was grossly
that growth to be largely among the Central and South undercounted in the 2000
American populations. Their low level of confidence in those Census and…2005 estimates
estimates is reflected by the high numbers in their
accompanying margins of error.
Latino Subgroups
There is no way to quantify accurately the size of the Latino With the acknowledged
subgroups that anecdotal information indicates have grown dramatically undercount, an all-out
in the past decade. The Dominican Association of Lancaster—based on
campaign to document the
the numbers participating in their events, their knowledge of families in
Latino population in the 2010
the area and the significant growth of the Dominican businesses in the
Census will be needed for a
area—estimates a Dominican population of approximately 5000 to
true picture of the changing
6000. While we cannot validate that estimate, all indications are that at
the very minimum we have over 3500 Dominicans in the county. In
and growing Latino
addition, there are increasing numbers of Central and South Americans
population.
becoming part of our community.
Table 6. LATINO SUBGROUP GROWTH Table 5. LATINOS: URBAN VS NON-URBAN

LANCASTER COUNTY % LANCASTER SUBURBS/
U.S. Census 2000 1990 Change Census 2000 CITY RURAL
TOTAL LATINO 26,742 14842 80% Hispanic or Latino: 65% 35%
Puerto Rican 19,341 12278 58%
Puerto Rican 71% 29%
Mexican 1,528 797 92%
Mexican 31% 69%
Cuban 560 234 139%
Cuban 53% 47%
Dominican 719 247 191%
Dominican 74% 26%
Spaniard 53 - - Spaniard 13% 87%
Central American 412 148 178% Central American: 42% 58%
Guatemalan 95 85 12% Guatemalan 23% 77%
Honduran 73 17 329% Honduran 52% 48%
Salvadoran 142 31 358% Salvadoran 54% 46%
Other CA 102 15 580% Other Central American 37% 63%
South American 918 585 57% South American: 30% 70%
Colombian 546 383 43% Colombian 21% 79%
Peruvian 106 96 10% Ecuadorian 60% 40%
Ecuadorian 85 21 305% Peruvian 47% 53%
Other SA 181 85 113% Other South American 33% 67%
Subgroup not identified 3211 553 481% Other Hispanic/Latino 58% 42%
In addition to the uncounted population, over 3200 Latinos did not identify their Latino subgroup. It is likely that
many of these are Latinos from the undercounted populations. The best that we can hope for in getting a true
picture of the changing and growing Latino population is an all-out campaign to document the Latino population in
Census 2010. We will need to address the fears and concerns of many Latinos regarding the confidentiality of the
census information. Many rumors circulate about landlords discovering additional individuals are living in
33
households, or of undocumented persons being turned in to Immigration, or of non-citizen residents being

targeted. Local organizations must become active participants in seeking to minimize the Latino undercount in
Census 2010.
There appears to be distinct patterns of where in Lancaster County Latino

subgroups settle. Over 70% of Puerto Ricans and Dominicans settle in The data supports
Lancaster City while Latinos of Mexican and Colombian descent primarily anecdotal information of
settle in other parts of the county. In addition to a preference for an urban not only “White flight”
vs. non-urban environment, there seems to be economic determinants in taking place but also the
where Latino populations have settled. Indications are that many Latinos
flight of the more
move into the suburbs as their economic conditions improve.
affluent Latinos and
By the year 2000, while Latinos and Blacks have the highest levels of Blacks from Lancaster
poverty in the county, in some areas of the county, where more affluent City—contributing to the
Latinos and Blacks have settled, their median incomes were comparable to
eroding economic base
or exceeded that of the White population. The data supports anecdotal
information of not only “White flight” taking place but also the flight of the
of the City.
more affluent Latinos and Blacks from Lancaster City—contributing to the
eroding economic base of the city.
Many Latino and Black professionals point to quality of life issues and the quality of education in the School
District of Lancaster as primary factors influencing their move from the city to other parts of the county.
Table 7. MEDIAN HOUSEHOLD INCOME BY SD SUBDIVISIONS - (2000)

# Latino
Hshlds - 2000 LATINO WHITE BLACK ASIAN
Lancaster County 7,535 $ 27,544 $ 46,725 $ 31,100 $ 52,190
Lancaster City* 4,964 $ 22,453 $ 32,337 $ 25,891 $ 46,750
Hempfield 421 $ 27,212 $ 53,297 $ 47,219 $ 36,118
Lancaster Township 403 $ 33,616 $ 46,209 $ 33,523 $ 61,563
Conestoga Valley 260 $ 38,899 $ 47,625 $ 35,737 $ 42,874
Manheim Township 244 $ 40,000 $ 56,275 $ 51,875 $ 62,917
Ephrata 177 $ 44,152 $ 45,077 $ 33,250 $ 57,810
Penn Manor 171 $ 49,118 $ 47,759 $ 50,523 $ 34,932
Eastern Lancaster County 151 $ 43,734 $ 46,281 $ 64,799 $ 59,326
Columbia Borough 130 $ 22,625 $ 34,007 $ 22,115 $ 37,625
Warwick 108 $ 56,173 $ 49,487 $ 56,489 $ 47,780
Donegal 102 $ 45,534 $ 47,769 $ 46,276 $ 75,102
Elizabethtown Area 93 $ 31,645 $ 48,675 $ 35,363 $ 43,217
Lampeter-Strasburg 69 $ 24,650 $ 51,805 $ 40,624 $ 37,886
Solanco 67 $ 50,352 $ 45,175 $ 26,030 $ 88,926
Cocalico 64 $ 54,219 $ 50,462 $ 42,661 $ 55,457
Manheim Central 58 $ 33,462 $ 47,156 $ 48,193 $ 64,441
Pequea Valley 45 $ 31,934 $ 42,776 $ 55,605 $ 45,142
Octorara 8 $ 46,250 $ 51,616 $ 64,650 $ 75,487
34
Latino Nativity
The 2005 the U.S. Census American Community Survey (ACS)
estimated that 87% of Latinos in Lancaster County are native- Latinos in Lancaster County:
born American citizens. This includes Puerto Ricans. Whether v 87% are native-born American
born on the island or on the mainland, Puerto Ricans are
citizens.
American citizens by birth. For Puerto Ricans, travel between
Puerto Rico and any of the 50 states is no different than is v 62% were born in PA or
travel between states for any American. another state.
U.S. Census Bureau, 2005 American Community Survey (ACS)
The 2005 ACS also estimates that 62% of the Latinos in
Lancaster County were born on the U.S. mainland. Forty-four
percent were born in Pennsylvania and 18% were born in Table 8. PLACE OF BIRTH BY CITIZENSHIP STATUS
SUBURB/
some other state. The more detailed data of Census 2000 LANCASTER COUNTY Census 2000 CITY RURAL
shows that 80% of those Latinos in Pennsylvania coming from Native: 90% 83%
Born in Pennsylvania 36% 39%
another state come from some other part of the Northeast.
Born in other U.S. state 17% 21%
The anecdotal data indicates the majority of these have Northeast 15% 15%
come from New York. This data also supports the anecdotal Midwest 1% 1%
information about the increasing numbers of Dominicans South 1% 2%
settling in Lancaster. In recent decades, Dominicans have West 0% 3%
grown in rapid numbers in New York City. For many, however, Born outside the United States: 38% 23%
New York City is a preliminary stop before moving on to other Puerto Rico 37% 22%
areas. Local interviews revealed that during the 1990s many Born abroad of American parent(s) 0% 1%
Dominicans came to Lancaster via New York. Today many are Foreign born: 10% 17%
coming here directly from the Dominican Republic with the Naturalized citizen 2% 6%
support of those first and second generation Dominicans who Not a citizen 7% 11%
have settled here.
It is likely that the foreign-born are a larger group than indicated by the U.S. Census 2005 estimates. In
addition, we have no estimates on the count of undocumented individuals. There is little evidence of a statistically
significant number of undocumented in Lancaster County. Anecdotal data in other parts of Pennsylvania has
acknowledged a prevalent undocumented population that has critical
Table 9. AGE BY CITIZENSHIP STATUS
service needs. While such data is not evident in Lancaster County, we
UNDER 18 YEARS
must consider, especially after 9-11 and with the current political Native 93.9%
targeting of Latino “illegals”, many undocumented individuals may have Foreign born: 6.1%
Naturalized U.S. citizen 1.0%
taken measures to remain under the radar while family and friends
Not a U.S. citizen 5.1%
provide shelter and support. Therefore, while we may not have an obvious
18 YEARS AND OVER
population of undocumented individuals, we probably do have some Native 81.7%
undocumented persons in the county. Currently, there is no way to Foreign born: 18.3%
estimate accurately the size of this population. The fear the Naturalized U.S. citizen 8.6%
Not a U.S. citizen 9.6%
undocumented have of being discovered and possibly deported back to
U.S. Census Bureau, 2005 ACS
economically deprived or politically unstable homelands makes it unlikely
they will surface to be counted to any significant degree in the 2010 Census.
35
Racial Self-Identification
Latinos in Lancaster County, when required to respond to the
Figure 1. LATINO RACIAL SELF
question of race, view themselves as racially diverse. As in other
IDENTIFICATION: LANCASTER COUNTY
parts of the nation, they are mostly comprised by those who Census 2000 SF1_P8
select “some other race” because Latinos generally defy being Two or more races
7.1%
easily classified racially. Many Latinos have a racially mixed
White
history. Racial self-identification often varies based on Latino Some 37.7%
other race
national origin. Historical realities in numerous Latino countries 49.7%
have influenced the degree of intermarriage occurring among the
European, indigenous and African populations. In addition, Black
political realities and institutional racism have also led to the 4.3%
selection of specific racial categories regardless of actual racial

composition. American Indian
Native Hawaiian and and Alaska Native
According to a study by the Public Policy Institute of California, the Other Pacific Islander Asian
0.7%
0.2% 0.3%
responses to the 2000 Census suggest that many Latinos feel the
list of standard racial categories does not reflect their racial identity. “To a greater extent than non-Latinos, Latinos
To a greater extent than non- opt out of the standard racial categories, either by categorizing
Latinos, Latinos opt out of the themselves as ‘some other race’ or, to a lesser extent, by failing to
standard racial categories, either answer the race questions at all.”6
by categorizing themselves as While Latinos often confront many of the same hardships
“some other race” or, to a lesser European immigrants faced when settling in this country, the racial
extent, by failing to answer the diversity among Latinos and their continued rapid growth in
race questions at all. significant numbers affect the mainstream community’s perception
of them. Regardless of racial identification, the important factor in
developing services and responding to community need is an understanding of the cultural commonalities of
Latinos, as well as the differences among the various Latino groups.
Language Fluency
The multigenerational families of Latinos and significant numbers
of Latinos in Lancaster who were born in Pennsylvania or some other Figure 2. ABILITY TO SPEAK ENGLISH - 2005
LANCASTER COUNTY LATINO POPULATION 5 YEARS AND OVER
state make this a U.S. Census Bureau, 2005 ACS
While more than three- linguistically diverse Latino

Speak English
fourths of the population population with most of the "not well or not at all" Speak only English
33%
speaks English, an estimate population fluent in English. 18%
of 20% that are not English It also reflects the loss of the
Spanish language among the
fluent can represent up to Speak English
second, the third and all "well or very well"
8,000 adults and children. 49%
subsequent generations. In
2005, the census estimated that 33% of the Latino population was English-only speakers, while 49% were bilingual
and 18% had little to no fluency in English. Even taking into consideration uncounted first generation individuals
6
Sonya M. Tafoya, “Latinos and Racial Identification in California”, California Counts: Population Trends And Profiles, Volume 4 Number 4 • May 2003, Public Policy Institute of
California, http://www.ppic.org/content/pubs/CC_503STCC.pdf
36
not included in the census estimate, the language minority population would likely represent no more than twenty
to twenty-two percent.
Latinos are becoming English-fluent at the same rate as other language minority groups. The language barrier is
primarily a first-generation issue. The acquisition of the language is also a generational issue with children
acquiring the language at a rate faster than adults and with older adults having the least fluency. In addition,
literacy and levels of education among adults affect the ability to become fluent in a second language.
The need for bilingual services in the community exists because of the significant numbers of first generation
individuals. With Latinos concentrated in the city and with the trend of first generation families settling in Lancaster
City, the matter of the language barrier is a predominant issue for local services and institutions in the city. This is
especially true for the School District of Lancaster, which serves over 5,800 of the estimated 8,700 Latino students
attending public schools in the county.
The 2000 Census shows a higher concentration of Table 10. LANGUAGE - NATIVE/FOREIGN BORN
POPULATION 5 YRS AND OVER - LANCASTER SUBURB/
language minority individuals in the city of Lancaster. A Census2000 CITY RURAL
U.S./Puerto Rico Native: 13,622 6,553
significantly higher percentage of Latinos who are
Speak only English 17% 36%
English-only speakers have settled in the suburbs. This Speak English "well or very well" 67% 55%
indicates a higher percentage of individuals of the second Speak English "not well or not at all" 15% 8%
Foreign born: 1,613 1,509
and more likely third generations and beyond, whose
Speak only English 4% 10%
parents originally settled in the city are moving to other Speak English "well or very well" 56% 57%
parts of the county. Speak English "not well or not at all" 40% 31%
Figure 3. LATINO LANGUAGE FLUENCY BY AGE AND LATINO SUBGROUP - 5 YRS AND OVER Census 2000
2%
12% 14%
15% 20% 17% 22% Speak only
33% 34% English
Speak English
40% 67% "well" or
50% "very well"
65%
65% 59%
65% 42% Speak English
13%
61% "not well"
Speak English
18%
35%
23% "not at all"
17% 9%
14% 18%
11%
13% 10% 11%
6% 6% 8% 4%
5%
5 to 17 yrs 18 to 64 yrs 65 yrs & over Puerto South
Mexican Dominican Cuban Central
Rican American American
The 2000 Census documents the differences in the English language fluency of Latinos based on generational
differences and Latino subgroups. The largest percentage of Latinos was bilingual, with the Mexican population
indicating a higher percentage of English-only speakers. This may indicate families of third generations and beyond.
It could also indicate that Mexican-Americans are coming from other parts of the United States to a higher degree
than other groups or it may not reflect the Mexican population that stays “under the radar” because they may be
undocumented. The Dominican population had the lowest percentage of English-only speakers.
The data from the 2000 Census provides a basic backdrop for the population but overwhelming anecdotal data
indicates that the composition of the Latino population in this decade is showing dramatic shifts. As the institutions
within the city and county of Lancaster plan for the needs of the local population, it is critical that they begin with a
strong campaign to accurately document the diverse Latino population in the 2010 Census.
37
ECONOMIC, EMPLOYMENT, AND HOUSING STATUS

COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVES
The most significant employment issues for community members and professionals are the underemployment
and segregation of Latino laborers to industries and companies paying the lowest wages. Also of concern is the lack
of access to jobs at all levels, the under-representation of Latino professionals in local public and private sectors
especially at the management level, and job discrimination. In addition, the lack of benefits in full-time jobs and
the growing use of temp agencies is a concern. There is also evidence of educated Latinos coming from Latin
American countries where they were professionals but who only have access to low-skill, low wage jobs here due to
language or certification issues. In addition, views on the issues of affordable housing and single parents were
shared. Below are highlights of their interviews. You can find more detailed comments in Appendix A.
Employment
º It is easy to document unemployment records. What has never been accurately defined is underemployment in
the Latino community, those underemployed because of their number in temporary agencies, and
documenting health benefits or the lack of health benefits in that labor force. I'm not talking about the entire
labor force but very little has been done to document the state of
underemployment. An underemployed person is one who gets up and An underemployed person
goes to work every day and remains poor as a result of employment is one who gets up and goes
practices that are very negative. When your income doesn't allow you to work every day and
to get above the poverty line, you're underemployed. When your
remains poor as a result of
income still leaves you within the range of government benefits,
employment practices that
you're underemployed and I suspect a huge percentage of the Latino
are very negative.
workforce is there, but no one's ever bothered to document it.
Unemployment in Lancaster is only at one or the low end of two digits. Big deal. Underemployment may be
30% to 50% of the Latino workforce! It could be that 40% of our workforce is structurally underemployed,
lacking benefits, job security, working in nebulous fields in these temp agencies, which is the equivalent to
being ripped off.
º My grudge is, you get a corporate human resources person, and he comes up with this great idea of using a
temp agency. By its very nature, it is social injustice, and he takes it to his boss and he says, "I saved us some
money on our health coverage." and the guy gets a raise or a promotion and that's seen as a virtue. It is really
hurtful to the community and a social injustice to the worker.
º We work in meat processing, the hospitality industry, food processing, light manufacturing, foundries and
some of these companies are almost exclusively Latino. Our employment desk sees 858 clients a year. We
may place 150 of them in jobs. The rest—I hope they get a job without our help. They're not the type of
people who can walk into CareerLink and say hook me up with all kinds of stuff. I think the solution to our
underemployment problem is investment in Adult Basic Ed and ESL and match it with certain occupations that
make sense for us.
º Lancaster County has a large number of small non-Latino family-owned businesses that collectively are huge,
and I think you often see these small companies with 10, 20 or 30 employees hiring very few minorities. They
tend to hire people who look like them, from their communities, maybe a buddy of the truck driver or a friend
or relative of someone on the assembly line. You look at company photos of these family-owned businesses
and you see a huge lack of diversity. People say that's their right but it's tougher for people of color or who
speak Spanish or other languages to penetrate those businesses.
38
º We have families that have just moved here and from the time they arrive to the time they find a decent job,
it’s taken a toll on the entire family. Immigrant Latinos arrive here with great expectations that they’ll find a
job and become stable in a month. The reality takes most by surprise. I think most Hispanics are finding the
fastest way to get a job is through a temp agency but it’s not always the best way.
º We must try to accommodate more people so they can take ESL classes and learn to speak English. I met with
a single mother who worked two jobs to make ends meet and who wanted to take an ESL class but could not.
º The other thing we need to discover is where are the jobs? Are they in
the city or in the county? I think you'll find that most of the jobs are in
You just can't say, "we
the county and if our population has a transportation problem, that's
want more minority
an issue. applicants but they just
won't come..."
º I have a few employers who tell me that if they can communicate well
enough to get through an employment interview that's good enough for them to hire them. Transportation is
another issue. Most of the people I work with tell me to just get them a job and they'll find a way to get there.
Most of them do. They get rides with other employees with cars; they hitchhike or take public transportation
when possible.
º Many Latino professionals come here and they're not licensed in this country and they may not be fluent in
English. In some Latin American countries where there is extreme poverty, the reality is that the salaries paid
to professionals are at poverty level and they prefer to immigrate. We have quite a few professionals that
come here who end up working in factories.
º Discrimination intended or unintended is an issue to consider. I can take you all around downtown Lancaster in
any store or company and you can clearly see the lack of Latino representation. Any Latino professional can
tell you that you can have the same educational background
as your White counterpart and you’re not going to achieve at If you look at the financial
the same rate. You get very frustrated by that but it's a cold services industry and you look at
hard fact. the mortgage companies which are
º They discriminate with salary and also typecast you as only
the lower paying companies, they
being fit for an urban market where you are expected to
probably have a much higher
exclusively serve the Latino population. If you allow yourself proportion of Latinos than you
to be typecast as a Latino, you're going to have less would find in the commercial
opportunity and make less money. If you look at the financial bank.
services industry and you look at mortgage companies where
you find the lower paying jobs, they probably have a much higher proportion of Latino employees than you will
find in commercial banks. That's only anecdotal but I believe it to be the case. I know tons of mortgage
originators who are Latino. How many Latino commercial lenders do you know of, which is a coveted position
within commercial banks? I don't know of any in Lancaster County.
º Many companies know they can get away with paying Latinos the minimum. I think this relates to those that
are less educated. I think the more educated Latinos are more ambitious and not as easily satisfied with being
offered the minimum. They are typically seeking better salaries and higher positions.
39
º There are lots of people working full-time and not getting benefits. My daughter-in-law works at a local nursing
care facility and receives very little income. They tell her that she does a good job and has received awards
because of her attendance, but she works full-time and doesn’t have health insurance because she can’t afford
to have the $50 taken out of her paycheck weekly.
º Because of the economy in Puerto Rico, there are a lot of professionals

there without jobs. There are unemployed doctors and lawyers out They tell her that she does
there and we're seeing a lot more professionals coming here. We've a good job and has received
talked with some of the mayors from Puerto Rico who have come here
awards because of her
about possibly setting up a system where, if they gave us a list of
attendance, but she works
professionals who were willing to relocate and move here, our part
fulltime and doesn’t have
would be to marry them up with the needs of the community.
insurance.
º I have to say that one of the issues is employers who say, “I'm willing
to help these folks to learn English but just enough to crank out these widgets.” I wish these employers would
take the view that these people need to function in a larger society and they can play a part in helping that to
happen by bringing in an entity like I.U. 13 to do basic skills, or setting up structures in the workplace that
require folks to learn more than the basic knowledge to make widgets.
º When you fill out an employment application today, they look at your credit. What does credit have to do with
being able to do your job? When you're poor and you can't make it economically, and you often have to
borrow from Peter to pay Paul, of course you're going to have bad credit. Credit is something that they take
into consideration for both employment and housing nowadays and most poor people don't have good credit.
As a result, Latinos are more victimized for the lack of good credit.
º We really need to do more education in what one really needs to become a business owner and be able to
compete for the bigger contracts.
Community Revitalization
º Fifty-percent of any success we might have in the economic or any kind of revitalization of Lancaster depends
upon the revitalization of the school district. We are beginning to realize that 50% of the revitalization of
Lancaster depends on the perception and quality of our schools.
º The business community should have a vested interest in the school district because the quality of their future
work force will rely on the quality of the school district. It would be great to see some ways in which the school
district and the business community can collaborate. Certainly one of the ways they can help us is with
funding. Although this is only one of the ways, others are volunteering, tutoring, and serving internships and
here we have some of our best minds. The business community should realize that they can't just look at the
Latino community as their source for entry-level positions.
º One of our biggest issues is getting the county to accept that the problems of the city are the problems of the
county. There is no true initiative by elected officials around the county of solving the problem we have of the
concentration of poverty within the city and of the concentration of services in the city. City leadership has to
say, "Enough is enough." How long can we support that every homeless shelter is located in the city. This
continues to feed the concentration of poverty. Just because you're homeless doesn't mean you shouldn't have
options. If you are from the county and you become homeless, it should not mean that you have to move to
the city.
º Affordable housing is an issue because $800 a month plus utilities is not affordable.
40
º SACA is looking at revitalizing whole communities. They have taken ownership of what’s happening in the
seventh ward. They’re buying these [rundown] houses and selling them at an affordable price after they are
redone. They’re not just doing one they’re doing entire blocks at a time. When you do that in blocks, then it’s
going to change a whole community and I’m seeing that.
º One of the stereotypes is that we don't make it, but all around us are Latinos who have made it.
Unfortunately, part of what has occurred is that making it has been equated with moving out of the city and
buying a house in the suburbs. That creates a stereotype that only poor Latinos stay in the city and those of us
who live in the city live here because we don't have a choice.
Single Mothers and “Making It”

º I was on Section 8, and I did try to get a better job so I could afford a better place. Then you get to a certain
level where your income is too high for any of the services that are out there for you. Now, you’re past that
certain income where you're not earning enough where you can really live comfortably like everybody else, but
too much to qualify for services. So now, you're caught in the middle. "Where do I go? What do I do?" That's
when you have to take two jobs to be able to afford the place
and it makes a big difference. So I ask myself is it worth it,
making more money and facing more obstacles or should I
As a single parent, I've always
have stayed making less and still able to qualify for Section 8
had to take two jobs just to
and childcare help? make it. If I didn't want to live in
the city, I needed to have two
º As a single parent, I've always had to take two jobs just to
jobs to pay the higher price rent
make it. If I didn't want to live in the city, I needed to have
for a decent place, to have a car
two jobs to pay the higher price rent for a decent place, to
and to provide for my children.
have a car and to provide for my children. Right now, I have a
full-time job and a part-time job. Because I was always
working, I wasn't able to take my kids to a lot of after school activities. But my son always participated in
baseball every summer and my daughter did take track after school but she couldn't get involved in too many
different things because she had the responsibility of taking care of her younger brother so that I could do
what I needed to do to support the family. If I had my degree, I could earn more but I had to put off school
while my kids were younger so that I could provide for them. I have a wealth of experience that, combined
with a degree, would mean I could be earning a lot more.
º DPW is pushing Latinas who don't speak English to go out there and look for work and many of them don't
even have a high school diploma. Most of the women have to go through CareerLink and take English as a
Second Language and they can get their GED there. There are other programs too, like if they want to be a
CNA or LPN. I think a lot suffer from the lack of self-esteem and feeling that they can't do it. Most of their lives
they have been caretakers and now, transitioning to focus on themselves and do something that they have
never attempted before is scary for many of them. Finding work for many of these women is not very easy.
Often they come back either not having found anything or finding something that is temporary. Sometimes
they take a job and get laid off and end up having to go back on DPW. Most of these women with low
educational backgrounds or low skills are primarily finding manual labor jobs in a warehouse packing stuff or in
a factory. Some get hired to work in housekeeping.
º Childcare and affordable housing are big issues. What do you do when your child is sick and the childcare
provider won't take them on days when they are sick? I try to encourage them to have a Plan B—a backup so
that they don't have to miss work. Missing work because of a sick child is something I see a lot. Without
Section 8 housing I don't know how many of them could even afford an apartment on their own. They can’t
41
get a job if their skill levels are low, or their educational levels are low they are not going to be making very
much, maybe six, seven dollars an hour and on that she can't afford a place for her and her children.
º I work primarily with women who have experienced domestic violence. Unfortunately, a lot of them end up
back with the abuser because they don't know how to survive on their own. They may not see themselves as
having alternatives. They will excuse the abuser by saying, "Well, he always took care of me and he always
paid the bills—look at me now I don't have enough education to support myself or my kids."
º These young women see so few role models in their lives. There’s definitely the gender-related stuff such as
women are supposed to stay home, taking care of kids. Every once in a while I meet a 19-year old and she
has this spark. If placed in a different family situation and environment, she could thrive in a place like Yale.
It’s so heartbreaking to see these really smart kids with so much pizzazz. I’ve encouraged a few to enroll at
HACC.
Latino Homelessness
º I served over 900 homeless kids last year. This is my 13th
year and the majority of the kids were Caucasian at first. …they would not come to the
Gradually the number of Latino kids has increased although
homeless shelter. They would move in
they are not the majority. One reason they are not is
with a sister or an aunt, which is why
because in the past they would not come to the homeless
you would have multi-families living
shelter. They would move in with a sister or an aunt, which
under one roof...We don't have a real
is why you would have multi-families living under one roof.
That still goes on. We don't have a real measure of
measure of homelessness among
homelessness among Latinos because of that factor. But
Latinos because of that factor.
that's changing because many of the Latino adults who
were raised here have a more Western value set than their parents. Also, many families live in public housing
and if it is discovered you are housing another family you could lose your Section 8.
º If I had the ability to create an environment I thought would help, I'd develop more transitional housing that
would have social workers and counselors on staff because these parents need the guidance, and need to be
given some positive direction to help them not make the same mistakes they've made in the past. There's
transitional housing out there but it's limited and not enough to meet the current need. Our families need
structure, especially our young parents. They didn't have the structure or guidance as they were growing up.
There aren't parenting classes prior to having children. For everything else, you needed training or a degree.
Our kids are becoming parents at 13 and 14 years old. By providing transitional housing with guidance and
counseling, you're providing some of the structure these parents lack.
42
HOUSEHOLDS, INCOME AND ECONOMIC STATUS

According to the 2005 Census Bureau American Community Survey
(ACS), Blacks in Lancaster County have the lowest median household Poverty among Latinos is
income and the lowest per capita income, placing them on the bottom concentrated among
rung of the socioeconomic ladder. They are closely followed by the children… 37% of Latinos
Latino population whose median income and per capita7 income are under age 18 live in poverty
only slightly higher. compared to 19% of Latinos
In sharp contrast, the per capita income for Whites is more than
over 18.
double the per capita income of Blacks and Latinos. White median
household income is 44% higher than Latinos and 46% higher than Blacks.
While Latinos and Blacks both experience high poverty, the distribution of poverty differs. Blacks have an
comparably high concentration of poverty among both
the under 18 and the over 18 population, while Latino Figure 4. POVERTY STATUS (2005)
children comprise a disproportionately high percentage LANCASTER COUNTY 2005 ACS
37%
of those living in poverty—as 37% of Latinos under 18 Under 18 years
18 yrs and older
years of age are living in poverty compared to 19% of 29%
26%
Latinos over 18.
19%
Table 11. INCOME ESTIMATES 2005 11%

6%
Lancaster County LATINO WHITE BLACK
Median household income $28,680 $51,311 $27,954
Per capita income $12,901 $25,728 $12,425
LATINO WHITE BLACK
U.S. Census Bureau, 2005 American Community Survey
This discrepancy is based on the high concentration of children in single parent households, which accounts for
the highest concentration of families with children living below the poverty level. Fifty-four percent of Latino single
female-headed households live below the poverty level compared to 13% of two-parent households. (See Table 17)
Table 13. HOUSEHOLD TYPES 2005

Table 12. HOUSEHOLD INCOME ESTIMATES 2005
LATINO WHITE BLACK
Lancaster County LATINO WHITE BLACK
Total: 9,920 165,774 6,270
Households 9,920 165,774 6,270
Family households: 76% 69% 66%
Less than $10,000 9% 5% 19%
Married-couple family 39% 60% 23%
Less than $25,000 44% 19% 44%
Female hshldr, no husb present 30% 6% 29%
Less than $40,000 67% 36% 67%
Less than $60,000 85% 58% 86% Male hshldr , no wife present 7% 3% 14%
Less than $75,000 91% 71% 93% Nonfamily households: 24% 31% 34%
$75,000 to $99,999 5% 13% 4% Householder living alone 19% 26% 27%
$100,000 or more 4% 16% 3% Householder not living alone 5% 5% 7%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2005 American Community Survey
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2005 American Community Survey
Black and White populations contain higher percentages of non-family households than Latinos. Non-family
households are comprised of one person living alone or of a group of unrelated people living together. Latinos have
the lowest percentage of single person households (19%) compared to Blacks (27%) and Whites (26%). Seventy-
7
Per capita income is the mean income computed for every man, woman, and child in a particular group. It is derived by dividing the aggregate income of a particular group by the total
population in that group. (U.S. Census)
43
six percent of Latino households are family households compared to 66% Black and 69% White. This indicates a
higher percentage of family households with children among Latinos.
An examination of the sources of income supporting households

Latino and Black poverty shows that poverty among Latinos and Blacks is not an issue of
reflects a significant number of unemployment but rather an issue of being among the working poor.
the working poor. Public Wages and self-employment income accounts for almost 89% of the
assistance represents only 1% of aggregate household income8 supporting Latino households and over
the aggregate income supporting 87% supporting Black households. Wages and earnings account for
Latino households. 80% of the aggregate income in White households. Whites have
more diverse sources of income to support their households—18%
was received from interest, dividends, net rental income, and social security and retirement income compared to
5% for Latinos and 9% for Blacks. Public assistance represents only 1% of the aggregate income supporting Latino
households and less than one percent for White and Black households.
Table 14. AGGREGATE HOUSEHOLD INCOME

Census2000 LATINO WHITE BLACK
Wage or salary income 86.3% 72.5% 84.0%
Self-employment income 2.4% 7.7% 3.4%
Interest, dividends, net rental inc 1.1% 6.8% 1.3%
Social Security income 2.6% 6.2% 3.6%
Supplemental Security Inc (SSI) 2.1% 0.3% 1.2%
Public assistance income 1.2% 0.1% 0.5%
Retirement income 1.7% 5.0% 4.0%
Other types of income9 2.5% 1.4% 2.1%
Although public assistance was 1% of the aggregate income supporting Latino households, 12% of Latino
households receive this assistance. An examination of the Latino median family income broken down by family
types indicates that the 12% of Latino households receiving public assistance. These are primarily single-parent
female-headed households. Single-parent female-headed households represent the most impoverished of all
families in our community.
Figure 5. PERCENT OF HOUSEHOLDS RECEIVING TYPE OF INCOME

Census 2000
84% 86% With wage or salary income
79% With self-employment income
With interest, dividends, or net rental income
With retirement income
With Social Security income
With Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
47%
With public assistance income
With other types of income
28%
16% 18% 16% 16%

12% 11% 12% 14% 11% 12%
10% 9%
5% 5% 7% 7%
5% 2% 1%
Latino White Black
8
Aggregate household income is the sum of all income for all the households representing a particular population or geographic area.
9
All other income includes unemployment compensation, Veterans’ Administration (VA) payments, alimony and child support, contributions received
periodically from people not living in the household, military family allotments, and other kinds of periodic income other than earnings.
44
Families and the Status of Children Under 18

Latino children have the highest poverty rate of any
Table 15. UNDER 18 AND MEDIAN AGE – 2005
group in Lancaster County. According to the U.S. Census
U.S. Census 2005 ACS LATINO WHITE BLACK
2005 American Community Survey (ACS), an estimated
Under 18 yrs 39% 24% 38%
37% of Latino children in the county live below the poverty
Median age 25.1 39.1 27.9
level. Further analysis based on the more detailed 2000
Census data shows that this poverty is concentrated among
Latino single-parent female-headed households. This same
Table 16. HOUSEHOLD STATUS FOR UNDER 18 YRS
issue is true for the 26% of Black children who live below Lancaster County
Census 2000 LATINO WHITE BLACK
the poverty level that are primarily concentrated in single-
In households: 10,973 105,485 4,531
parent female-headed households.
In married-couple family 43% 82% 33%
In 2000, 35% percent of Latino children and 43% of Black Female hshldr, no husb present 35% 9% 43%
children lived in single-parent female-headed households Male hshldr , no wife present 8% 4% 6%
compared to 9% of White children. These reflect Grandchild 8% 3% 10%
households with the highest levels of poverty. Fifty-four Other relatives 3% 1% 3%
percent of Latino single mothers and 39% of Black single Nonrelatives 3% 1% 4%
mothers live below the poverty level.
In the year 2000, Latino single-parent female-headed households had a median family income of $13,092 as
compared to $42,995 for Latino two-parent families. The
Attacking poverty in the Latino
median family income for Latino single-parent female-
headed households was significantly lower than for any other
community must begin with addressing the
group. The next lowest was Black single-parent female-
concentration of poverty among single-
headed households with an income of $18,685 which
parent female-headed households. In
represent the next highest concentration of poverty. While Lancaster, Latino children in these
single mothers represent a significant portion of those households are subjected to the highest
receiving public assistance, the majority of single-parent rate of poverty (54%) of any household
female-headed households are headed by working mothers. group in the county.
Figure 6. MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME BY FAMILY TYPE WITH OWN CHILDREN UNDER 18 YRS
Census2000
Married-couple family
Male householder, no wife present
Female householder, no husband present
60,155
52,813
42,995
34,370
25,054 24,944 23,897
18,685
13,092
LATINO WHITE BLACK
45
THE FEMINIZATION OF POVERTY

The feminization of poverty is a revolving door related to low income, lower levels of education and the difficulties
of supporting a family on one income in a society where increasingly it requires two incomes to support a family.
According to the Council on Contemporary Families (CCF)16, “Women who become single mothers are especially
likely to have inadequate wages, both because of preexisting disadvantages such as low educational attainment
and work experience and because the shortage of publicly subsidized child care makes it difficult for them to work
full time.” In addition, populations at the lower end of the socioeconomic scale are more likely to have fewer
marriages and more single-parent households. The CCF goes on to state “Nonmarriage is often a result of poverty
and economic insecurity rather than the other way
Figure 7. FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN-
around.” They found that:
BELOW POVERTY LEVEL
FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN UNDER 18 YRS—LANCASTER COUNTY
Unemployment, low wages and poverty discourage family
Married-couple family:
formation and erode family stability, making it less likely that
54% Male householder, no wife present:
individuals will marry in the first place and more likely that Female householder, no husband present
their marriages will deteriorate. These economic factors have 39%

long-term as well as short-term effects, contributing to
changes in social norms regarding marriage and family 21% 19% 18%
formation and exacerbating distrust between men and 13% 11%
8%
women. These long-term effects help explain why Blacks 3%
marry at much lower rates than other groups within the U.S.
LATINO WHITE BLACK
population. Poverty is a cause as well as a consequence of
10
non-marriage and of marital disruption.
The literature abounds with information on the national phenomena of the rapidly growing number of single-
parent households, which have risen steadily since the 1970s, and its community impact related to children at-risk.
There is agreement that children growing up in single-parent families are disadvantaged in a number of ways when
compared to two-parent families. Many of these problems are directly related to the poor economic condition of
single-parent families and the stressors a single parent faces. The Encyclopedia of Children's Health summarizes
the research on the risks for children from single parent households as11:
v lower levels of educational achievement v more likely to join a gang
v twice as likely to drop out of school v twice as likely to go to jail
v more likely to become teen parents v four times as likely to need help for
v more conflict with their parent(s) emotional and behavioral problems
v less supervised by adults v more likely to participate in violent crime
v more likely to become truants v more likely to commit suicide
v more frequently abuse drugs and alcohol v twice as likely to get divorced in adulthood
v more high-risk sexual behavior
The literature clearly links the rise in single parent households living in poverty with the local crisis surrounding
youth in the city of Lancaster. The rise in gangs, crime, teenage pregnancy and high dropout rates are clearly
evident in the high numbers of children under the age of 18 living in poverty in Lancaster.
10
Stephanie Coontz and Nancy Folbre, “Marriage, Poverty and Public Policy” A Discussion Paper from the Council on Contemporary Families, Prepared for
the Fifth Annual CCF Conference, April 26-28, 2002, http://www.contemporaryfamilies.org/briefing.html#_ednref19.
11
http://www.healthofchildren.com/S/Single-Parent-Families.html
46
BIRTHS TO SINGLE MOTHERS Table 17. Number of Unmarried Resident Live Births and
The need for support services and counseling for Percent of Total Births- 2003-05
WHITE BLACK LATINA
single mothers is crucial in Lancaster’s Latino and # of % Born to # of % Born to # of % Born to
Black communities. The significant numbers of Births Unmarried Births Unmarried Births Unmarried
All
single-parent households for this demographic are a Ages 3,211 18.6% 533 72.3% 1,372 64.3%
continuing reality based on the number of unmarried Unmarried Births by Age Groups (Ages 39 and Under)
<15 10 100% 6 100% 13 100%
births. Single mothers represented 72.3% of all
15-17 249 95.8% 68 100% 179 93.7%
births by Black females and 64.3% of births by 18-19 526 84.3% 84 97.7% 256 89.5%
Latinas from 2003 to 2005. At the same time while 20-24 1,364 33.3% 188 84.7% 521 71.8%
25-29 613 11.5% 115 62.5% 258 51.5%
single mothers represented 18.6% of all births by 30-34 275 6.3% 40 41.7% 110 40.6%
White females, in actual numbers White children 35-39 136 6.7% 23 40.4% 29 23.6%
Source: PA Dept of Health, http://app2.health.state.pa.us/epiqms
represented 63% of all children born to single
mothers.
While we can have an extensive discussion related to the causes for the numbers of single parent households in
urban areas and its link to socioeconomic status especially among minority populations, it is more important to
consider what needs to be done to provide the supports necessary to impact the negative outcomes for children in
single parent households. The primary and most immediate question should be “What are the supports that need to
be in place to provide single mothers with the education, skills and support necessary to break the cycle of
poverty? Also, how do we make a difference early enough with young men and young women to provide them with
a vision of a better future?”
Teen Pregnancy
In February 1996, The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unwanted Pregnancy was established. It is a
nonprofit, nonpartisan national initiative to reduce both teen pregnancy and unplanned pregnancy among young
adults. The board of directors is comprised of a prestigious list of national leaders including Chairman Thomas H.
Kean, former Governor of New Jersey and chairperson of The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation; and President
Isabel V. Sawhill, PhD Senior Fellow, Economic Studies, The Brookings Institution.
In 2006, The National Campaign provided national and state-by-state data on the impact and cost of teen
pregnancy. In Pennsylvania, it found that:
…teen childbearing (births by teens 19 and younger) cost taxpayers (federal, state, and local) at least $389
million in 2004.
…compared to those who delay childbearing, teen mothers are more likely to drop out of school, remain
unmarried, and live in poverty; their children are more likely to be born at low birth weight, grow up poor, live
in single-parent households, experience abuse and neglect and enter the child welfare system. Daughters of
teen mothers are more likely to become teen parents themselves and sons of teen mothers are more likely to
be incarcerated at some point.
…the state has made significant progress in reducing teen childbearing…the teen birth rate in the state actually
declined 35 percent between 1991 and 2004. Table 18. PERCENT TEEN (<18)
BIRTHS (2003-05)
In Lancaster County, between the years 2003 and 2005, there were 548
RACE TOTAL TEEN %
births to teen girls under 18 years of age. While 49% of these births were
White 17,212 270 1.6%
to White teens, 37% to Latino teens and 14% to Black teens, when viewed Black 738 74 10.0%
by percentage within subgroups the issue had the most critical impact on Hispanic 2,130 204 9.6%
Source: PA DOH, http://app2.health.state.pa.us/epiqms
Black and Latino teens for whom almost one in ten births was to a teen
mother under 18 years of age.
47
Teen Births Are Showing A Decline

The statewide reduction in the birth rate for Table 19. ANNUAL AVERAGE NUMBER OF BIRTH AND
PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL BIRTHS WITHIN SUBGROUP
teens is reflected in Lancaster County. Among
WHITE BLACK HISPANIC
White, Black and Latino teens, there has been a 2001-2005 108 1.8% 23 9.5% 67 9.9%
reduction in the rate of births to teens since 2001 1990-2000 188 2.9% 28 12.5% 70 14.2%
when compared to 1990 to 2000. From 1990 to 2000, Latino teen births represented an average of 14.2% of all
Latino births. From 2001 to 2005, teen births were an average of 9.9% of the total Latino births. While the teen
pregnancy rate is still unacceptably high, Latina teens have shown a steady decline in the percent of births
attributed to teens under age 18. In 1994, 18.2% of all Latino births were to girls under 18. In 2005, that number
dropped to 8.1%, the lowest rate since 1990.
Figure 8. TEEN (<18) LIVE BIRTHS BY PERCENT OF TOTAL SUBGROUP BIRTHS

LANCASTER COUNTY
20%
18.2%
18% White Black Hispanic
15.6% 15.0%
16% 14.8%
14% 12.9%
14.6% 11.8%
10.9% 14.2% 11.2%
12% 13.3% 10.2%
9.2%
10% 11.2%
10.3%
9.6%
8% 8.8%
8.6% 9.1%
8.1%
6%
2.8% 2.8% 3.1% 3.2%

4% 2.6% 2.9%
2.1% 1.8% 1.4% 1.5%
2%
0%
1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2003 2004 2005
48
EMPLOYMENT AND EARNINGS

Latinos and Blacks have significantly lower earnings than Whites
and Asians in Lancaster County. A comparison of all persons with Figure 9. MEDIAN EARNINGS - 2005
16 YRS AND OVER WITH EARNINGS
earnings, whether full-time, part-time or seasonal, places Blacks U.S. Census Bureau, 2005 American Community Survey
at the lowest end of the earning scale with median earnings of
$28,775 $28,873
$20,201 follow by Latinos with $21, 703.
$21,703 $20,201
The data supports the comments of

community key informants who identify
underemployment as a much more critical
problem than unemployment.
LATINO WHITE BLACK ASIAN
A comparison of persons in Lancaster County who worked full-
time year round in 2004 indicates that White
males outdistanced all other groups in earnings
Table 20. EMPLOYMENT STATUS -– LANCASTER MSA
ANNUAL AVG LABOR UNEMP
with median earnings of $42,483. They 2002 FORCE EMPLOYED UNEMPLOYED RATE
exceeded the next highest full-time year-round BOTH SEXES
earners, Latino males, by $11,062. Latina Hispanic 13,150 12,075 1,100 8.3
White 245,700 237,200 8,475 3.5
females ($22,293) and Blacks males ($22,349)
Black 4,975 4,375 600 12.0
and females ($21,953) have overall the lowest
Other Races 9,425 8,575 850 9.0
earnings of all full-time year-round workers.
FEMALE
Hispanic 5,975 5,475 500 8.5
Black males and females have the highest
White 111,675 108,150 3,500 3.1
unemployment rate in the county with an overall
Black 2,300 2,050 250 10.5
unemployment rate of 12%. Latinos have an
Other Races 4,250 3,900 350 8.4
overall unemployment rate of 8.3%. Meanwhile,
MALE
White workers have an unemployment rate of Hispanic 7,175 6,600 575 8.1
only 3.5%. White 134,025 129,050 4,975 3.7
Black 2,675 2,325 350 13.3
The data supports the comments of Other Races 5,175 4,675 500 9.5
community key informants who identify Source: PA Department of Labor and Industry
underemployment as a much more critical

Figure 10. MEDIAN EARNINGS FULL-TIME WORKERS
problem than unemployment. Low wages,
16 YRS AND OVER WORKED FULL-TIME, YEAR-ROUND IN PAST 12 MONTHS
temporary rather than permanent positions, U.S. Census Bureau, 2005 American Community Survey
lack of insurance benefits all contribute to a Female

$22,293
significant number of working poor among LATINO Male
$31,421
Latinos. All indicators point to this also being
the case with Blacks. The reality appears to be $30,909
WHITE
that many of these workers see few options in $42,483
terms of climbing out of poverty. One of the
$21,953
major concerns voiced regarding employment BLACK $22,349
practices is the increasing use of temporary
agencies by local companies. $31,207
ASIAN
$30,362
49
OCCUPATION FOR THE EMPLOYED LATINO

Table 21.
TOP 20 JOBS (2000) OF LATINOS
Table 22.
POPULATION 16 YEARS AND OVER AND MEDIAN ANNUAL WAGES (2006):
CITY RESIDENTS SUBURBAN LANCASTER COUNTY
Census 2000 (SF 4 ) MALE FEMALE MALE FEMALE 1 Laborers and Freight, Stock, and $ 25,720
3,027 2,661 2,199 1,610 Material Movers, Hand
Management, professional, 2 Cashiers $ 16,470
and related occupations: 8.3% 14.5% 16.7% 24.2%
3 Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, $ 27,100
Service occupations: 18.3% 23.4% 9.8% 24.7% and Weighers
Sales and office 4 Other Production Workers $ 25,700
occupations: 10.1% 24.1% 11.7% 29.8%
5 Janitors and Building Cleaners $ 21,560
Agricultural workers,
including supervisors 1.7% 0.3% 4.0% 0.4% 6 Packers and Packagers, Hand $ 18,280
Construction, extraction, and 7 Miscellaneous Assemblers and $ 29,290
maintenance occupations: 14.1% 0.6% 12.4% 0.3% Fabricators
Production, transportation,
8 Packaging and Filling Machine $ 28,660
and material moving
occupations: 47.5% 37.1% 45.4% 20.6% Operators and Tenders
9 Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health $ 23,320
Aides
A majority of the Latino workforce is clustered in lower 10 Cooks $ 20,268
paying occupations such as manual laborers, low wage office 11 Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners $ 18,180
positions, health aides, maids, housekeepers, cooks, retail, 12 Other Metalworkers and Plastic Workers $ 25,230
13 First-Line Supervisors/Managers of $ 36,040
etc. The elevation of the socioeconomic status of the Latino
Retail Sales Workers
population must include training and education that will 14 Customer Service Representatives $ 26,510
provide more earning potential and intervene in the cycle of 15 First-Line Supervisors/Managers of $ 48,230
Production and Operating Workers
underemployment.
16 Retail Salespersons $ 19,440
One of the issues confronting Latinos and Blacks who are 17 Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators $ 30,010
disproportionately poor is the affordability of a vehicle and 18 Miscellaneous Agricultural Workers, $ 21,460
Including Animal Breeders
vehicle insurance. One-fourth of Latino and Black households 19 Food Preparation Workers $ 18,580
do not have a vehicle available to them compared to only 9% 20 Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment $ 19,800
of White households. Often, access to employment is tied to Top 20 Median Annual Wage $ 24,992
transportation issues. In some cases, it affects the ability to Source: PA Department of Labor and Industry
retain a job. Some Latinos who have come from large urban
areas, such as New York, are used to a comprehensive public transportation system; therefore, not having a
vehicle is not an obstacle to employment. In Lancaster County, 7% of Latinos use public transportation compared
to 4% of Blacks and 1% of Whites.
Figure 11. MEANS OF TRANSPORTATION TO

Table 23.
HOUSEHOLDS WITH NO VEHICLE AVAILABLE WORK - WORKERS 16 YRS AND OVER
BASED ON RACE OF HOUSEHOLDER
LANCASTER COUNTY LATINO WHITE BLACK
U.S. Census Bureau, 2005 American Community Survey
Car, truck, or van - drove alone 70% 79% 75%
LANCASTER COUNTY
Car, truck, or van - carpooled 15% 10% 11%
25% 24% Public transportation
7% 1% 4%
(excluding taxicab)
Walked 4% 3% 9%
9% Taxicab, motorcycle, bicycle,
1% 2% 1%
or other means
Worked at home 3% 5% 1%
BLACK U.S. Census Bureau, 2005 American Community Survey
LATINO WHITE
50
Table 24. OCCUPATION FOR THE EMPLOYED LATINO CIVILIAN POPULATION 16 YEARS AND OVER
OCCUPATIONS AND SUBCATEGORIES OF LARGEST CITY RESIDENTS SUBURBAN RESIDENTS
CONCENTRATION - Census 2000 MALE FEMALE MALE FEMALE
3,027 2,661 2,199 1,610 1,610
1. Management, business, and financial operations occupations: 145 4.8% 93 3.5% 126 5.7% 110 6.5%
1.1. Management occupations: 106 3.5% 69 2.6% 82 3.7% 54 3.2%
1.2. Business and financial operations occupations: 39 1.3% 24 0.9% 44 2.0% 56 3.3%
2. Professional and related occupations: 106 3.5% 292 11.0% 241 11.0% 280 16.6%
2.1. Computer specialists 29 1.0% 0 0.0% 25 1.1% 6 0.4%
2.2. Engineers 23 0.8% 0 0.0% 24 1.1% 0 0.0%
2.3. Life, physical, and social science occupations: 6 0.2% 13 0.5% 16 0.7% 10 0.6%
2.4. Community and social services occupations: 20 0.7% 75 2.8% 86 3.9% 58 3.4%
2.5. Legal support workers 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 11 0.7%
2.6. Education, training, and library occupations: 20 0.7% 78 2.9% 53 2.4% 107 6.3%
2.6.1. Postsecondary teachers 0 0.0% 10 0.4% 7 0.3% 0 0.0%
2.6.2. Teachers, primary, secondary, and special education: 20 0.7% 9 0.3% 37 1.7% 69 4.1%
2.7. Arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media occupations: 8 0.3% 29 1.1% 12 0.5% 38 2.2%
2.8. Healthcare practitioners and technical occupations: 0 0.0% 93 3.5% 25 1.1% 44 2.6%
2.8.1. Physicians and surgeons 0 0.0% 0 0.0% 14 0.6% 12 0.7%
2.8.2. Registered nurses 0 0.0% 18 0.7% 0 0.0% 9 0.5%
2.8.3. Health technologists and technicians 0 0.0% 75 2.8% 5 0.2% 23 1.4%
3. Service occupations: 553 18.3% 624 23.4% 216 9.8% 397 23.5%
3.1. Healthcare support occupations: 19 0.6% 142 5.3% 13 0.6% 141 8.3%
3.1.1. Nursing, psychiatric, and home health aides 19 0.6% 105 3.9% 8 0.4% 123 7.3%
3.2. Protective service occupations: 30 1.0% 7 0.3% 22 1.0% 0 0.0%
3.2.1. Law enforcement workers, including supervisors 18 0.6% 7 0.3% 22 1.0% 0 0.0%
3.3. Food preparation and serving related occupations: 279 9.2% 184 6.9% 76 3.5% 137 8.1%
3.3.1. Cooks and food preparation workers 177 5.8% 87 3.3% 49 2.2% 15 0.9%
3.3.2. Waiters and waitresses 16 0.5% 23 0.9% 7 0.3% 26 1.5%
3.3.3. Food and beverage serving workers, except waiters and
waitresses 36 1.2% 31 1.2% 7 0.3% 60 3.6%
3.4. Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations 219 7.2% 227 8.5% 77 3.5% 65 3.8%
3.5. Personal care and service occupations: 6 0.2% 64 2.4% 28 1.3% 54 3.2%
3.5.1. Personal appearance workers 0 0.0% 21 0.8% 19 0.9% 13 0.8%
3.5.2. Child care workers 0 0.0% 36 1.4% 0 0.0% 22 1.3%
4. Sales and related occupations: 128 4.2% 310 11.6% 130 5.9% 181 10.7%
4.1. Cashiers 35 1.2% 186 7.0% 18 0.8% 70 4.1%
4.2. Retail sales workers, except cashiers 31 1.0% 36 1.4% 15 0.7% 48 2.8%
4.3. Sales representatives, services, wholesale and manufacturing 3 0.1% 35 1.3% 39 1.8% 6 0.4%
5. Office and administrative support occupations: 179 5.9% 332 12.5% 127 5.8% 299 17.7%
6. Agricultural workers, including supervisors 51 1.7% 8 0.3% 87 4.0% 6 0.4%
7. Construction and extraction occupations: 250 8.3% 9 0.3% 122 5.5% 5 0.3%
7.1. Carpenters 47 1.6% 0 0.0% 8 0.4% 0 0.0%
7.2. Construction laborers 76 2.5% 0 0.0% 24 1.1% 0 0.0%
7.3. Painters and paperhangers 62 2.0% 0 0.0% 11 0.5% 0 0.0%
7.4. Construction traders workers except carpenters, electricians,
painters, plumbers, and construction laborers 40 1.3% 0 0.0% 46 2.1% 5 0.3%
8. Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations: 178 5.9% 7 0.3% 151 6.9% 0 0.0%
8.1. Vehicle and mobile equipment mechanics, installers, and repairers 64 2.1% 0 0.0% 71 3.2% 0 0.0%
8.2. Electrical equipment mechanics and other installation, maintenance,
and repair workers, including supervisors 114 3.8% 7 0.3% 80 3.6% 0 0.0%
9. Production occupations: 845 27.9% 720 27.1% 712 32.4% 221 13.1%
9.1. Assemblers and fabricators 51 1.7% 113 4.2% 104 4.7% 24 1.4%
9.2. Food processing workers 82 2.7% 29 1.1% 81 3.7% 5 0.3%
9.3. Metal workers and plastic workers 214 7.1% 55 2.1% 166 7.5% 20 1.2%
9.4. Printing workers 29 1.0% 12 0.5% 39 1.8% 0 0.0%
9.5. Textile, apparel, and furnishings workers 33 1.1% 98 3.7% 63 2.9% 32 1.9%
9.6. Woodworkers 0 0.0% 4 0.2% 18 0.8% 0 0.0%
9.7. Plant and system operators 8 0.3% 4 0.2% 12 0.5% 0 0.0%
9.8. Other production occupations, including supervisors 428 14.1% 405 15.2% 229 10.4% 140 8.3%
10. Transportation occupations: 92 3.0% 19 0.7% 46 2.1% 3 0.2%
10.1. Aircraft and traffic control occupations 10 0.3% 0 0.0% 4 0.2% 0 0.0%
10.2. Bus drivers 0 0.0% 12 0.5% 0 0.0% 0 0.0%
10.3. Driver/sales workers and truck drivers 71 2.3% 7 0.3% 42 1.9% 3 0.2%
11. Material moving workers: 500 16.5% 247 9.3% 241 11.0% 108 6.4%
11.1. Laborers and material movers, hand 398 13.1% 232 8.7% 180 8.2% 98 5.8%
51
BUSINESS OWNERS AND SELF-EMPLOYED

In 2002, 517 Latino businesses in Lancaster County had gross receipts of $106.3 million dollars. This was double
the gross receipts of 455 Latino businesses in 1996. The number of Latino
firms with employees between 1996 and 2002 decreased by 66%. There were In 2002, 517 Latino
116 employer firms in 1996 and only 40 in 2002 but the gross receipts of the businesses in Lancaster
40 firms was more than twice what the 116 firms earned in 1996. In addition, County had receipts of
the 40 Latino firms employed 899 persons compared to 705 persons in 1996. 106.3 million dollars.
The number of non-employer small businesses increased by 40% from 339 to
476. These small businesses had receipts of over $8.5 million dollars.
The data indicates that there is a strong entrepreneurial spirit among Latinos. In addition to the identified local
Latino businesses, it is common knowledge that many Latinos make ends meet through an informal network of
sales and services among family members, neighbors and friends that form an underground economy in
neighborhoods. These services can include automobile repair, the sale of traditional foods, seamstress services,
home improvement, etc. Some are done for pay while others may barter, or a combination of both, making it
possible for many low-income individuals to get needed or desired services at affordable prices.
Table 25. LANCASTER COUNTY SELECT ETHNIC MINORITY BUSINESSES

12
US CENSUS ECONOMIC SURVEY NUMBER OF NUMBER OF RECEIPTS FOR
RECPTS ROUNDED TO NUMBER EMPLOYER RECEIPTS FOR NUMBER OF ANNUAL NONEMPLOYER NONEMPLOYER
NEAREST THOUSAND OF FIRMS RECEIPTS FIRMS EMPLOYERS EMPLOYEES PAYROLL FIRMS FIRMS
LATINO
2002 517 $106,326,000 40 $97,767,000 899 $34,994,000 476 $8,559,000
1996 455 $52,520,000 116 $45,154,000 705 $16,249,000 339 $7,366,000
Percent Change 14% 102% -66% 117% 28% 115% 40% 16%
BLACK
2002 203 $36,241,000 30 $34,403,000 237 $7,336,000 173 $1,838,000
1996 145 $31,257,000 21 $28,543,000 267 $7,444,000 124 $2,714,000
Percent Change 40% 16% 43% 21% -11% -1% 40% -32%
ASIAN
2002 624 $172,376,000 104 $151,041,000 820 $16,848,000 520 $21,335,000
1996 354 $104,683,000 84 $97,856,000 805 $15,607,000 270 $6,827,000
Percent Change 76% 65% 24% 54% 2% 8% 93% 213%
HOUSING AND HOMEOWNERSHIP

In Lancaster, Latinos and Blacks are primarily Table 26. OWNER VS, RENTER STATUS
renters while White residents are primarily BY RACE OF
HOUSEHOLDER LATINO WHITE BLACK ASIAN
homeowners. Seventy percent of Latinos and Blacks
Total occupied housing units 10,390 165,434 5,187 2,255
are renters while 75% of White households are owner
Owner occupied 30% 75% 29% 72%
occupied. The issue of homeownership influences the
Renter occupied 70% 25% 71% 28%
wealth and stability of a community and the families Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2006 American Community Survey (ACS)
within a neighborhood.
12
The lists of all firms (or universe) are compiled from a combination of business tax returns and data collected on other economic census reports. The
Census Bureau obtains electronic files from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for all companies filing IRS Form 1040, Schedule C (individual
proprietorship or self-employed person); 1065 (partnership); any one of the 1120 corporation tax forms; and 941 (Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax
Return). The IRS provides certain identification, classification, and measurement data for businesses filing those forms. In the economic census, large-
and medium-size firms, plus all firms known to operate more than one establishment, were sent questionnaires to be completed and returned to the
Census Bureau by mail. For most firms with paid employees, the Census Bureau also collected employment, payroll, receipts, and kind of business for
each plant, store, or physical location during the 2002 Economic Census. For most very small firms, data from existing administrative records of other
federal agencies were used. These records provide basic information on location, kind of business, sales, payroll, number of employees, and legal form
of organization. Sales or receipts information for all nonemployers, i.e., all firms subject to federal income tax with no paid employees, was obtained
from administrative records of other federal agencies.
52
Housing Affordability
Seventy percent of Latino rental households live in two-bedroom Fair Market Rent (FMR), Annual
Table 27.
or smaller housing units. Considering that Latino rental households Income Needed to Afford FMR and % of
Latino Hshlds by Size of Housing Units -
are likely family households with children, it is probable that many 2007
of these families live in these smaller houses and apartments due Zero-Bedroom $482 $19,280 8%
to affordability. In Lancaster County, an estimated 61% of Latino, One-Bedroom $572 $22,880 29%
Two-Bedroom $704 $28,160 33%
64% of Black and 30% of White households are below the annual
Three-Bedroom $893 $35,720 20%
income guidelines needed to afford the Fair Market Rent (FMR) of Four-Bedroom $938 $37,520 7%
a three-bedroom home. A unit is considered affordable if it costs National Low Income Housing Coalition,
http://www.nlihc.org/template/index.cfm
no more than 30% of the renter's income. Over 35% of Latino and
Black households are estimated to be below the Figure 12. HSHLDS PAYING OVER 50% OF INCOME
income guidelines needed to afford a one-bedroom IN RENT
home compared to an estimated 17% of White Lancaster City 23%
households. In 2000, 21% of Latino households 21% Non-Urban
renting in Lancaster City were using more than half

of their household incomes to pay rent. The situation 16% 16%
is in crisis for single-parent female-head households, 13%
13%
which represent 35% of the households with children
under 18 and with an estimated median family
income of $13,092 in 2005.
Table 29. FAMILY INCOME ESTIMATES - 2005 LATINO WHITE BLACK

US Census 2005 ACS BLACK WHITE LATINO
Total Households 6,270 165,774 9,920
Table 28. HOMEOWNERSHIP BY AGE OF HOUSEHOLDER
Less than $10,000 19% 5% 9%
Census 2000 LATINO WHITE BLACK ASIAN
$10,000 to $14,999 8% 4% 9%
$15,000 to $19,999 5% 5% 7% Total occupied housing units 7,535 158,132 4,199 1,788
$20,000 to $24,999 12% 5% 19% Owner occupied 34% 74% 37% 66%
$25,000 to $29,999 16% 5% 8% Under 35 Years 25% 13% 18% 18%
$30,000 to $34,999 5% 6% 9% 35 to 44 years 32% 24% 27% 31%
$35,000 to $39,999 3% 7% 6% 45 to 54 years 24% 23% 26% 31%
$40,000 to $44,999 4% 6% 5% 55 years and over 19% 40% 29% 20%
$45,000 or more 29% 58% 28%
Homeownership
In January, 2006, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) published a report on the Social Benefits of
Homeownership and Stable Housing. According to the report:
Homeownership and stable housing go hand-in-hand. Homeowners move far less frequently than
renters, and hence are embedded into the same neighborhood and community for a longer period.
Poverty status and marital status also have strong relationships with mobility. The mover rate among
those living below the poverty level was twice as high as those living above the poverty line…Consistent
findings are that homeownership does make a significant positive impact on educational achievement...a
recent study by the New York Federal Reserve Bank…found that, though homeownership raises
educational outcomes for children, neighborhood stability further enhanced the positive outcome. In
addition, a study by Hanushek, Kain, and Rivkin [University of Texas] showed that changing schools
negatively impacts children’s educational outcomes particularly for minorities and low income
53
families…Because it appears that educational outcomes were strongly influenced by homeownership and
residential stability, government policies that promote homeownership or residential stability should be
considered in any strategy to improve education. The future of education does not rely solely on more
expenditures for schools…Homeownership allows households to accumulate wealth and social status…One
of the surest paths to wealth accumulation, particularly among low- and moderate-income households,
has been through increased home values…there is compelling evidence of the benefits accruing to
families, communities, and society as a whole.
In 2000, only 34% of Latino and 37% of Black households in Lancaster County were owner-occupied and the
Census 2006 ACS estimates placed it at 30% Latino and 29% Black, showing a decline in the percentage of
homeownership. Meanwhile, the overwhelming majority, three-fourths, of White households are owner-occupied
and in 2006 an estimated 72% of Asian households are owner occupied, showing an increase in homeownership
among this population. There is little doubt, that the socioeconomic and educational status indicators would support
the description of the NAR report describing populations with a high percentage of homeownership vs. the
populations of primarily renters.
While some efforts are being made to increase homeownership among Latinos and as a result, improve
neighborhoods, as is the case with the work of SACA Development Corporation, the data indicates that much more
needs to be done. This is a key element in addressing poverty and its impact on children and families through a
holistic community approach.
The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA), enacted by Congress in 1975 and implemented by the Federal
Reserve Board's Regulation C, requires lending institutions to report public loan data. The following information is
based on 489 reporting institutions providing loans to Lancaster County residents.
In assessing the access to financing for homeownership for Latinos, an analysis of the disposition of applications
over a cumulative five-year period (2001-05) indicated a lower percentage of loan originations and a higher
percentage of application denials to Latinos and Blacks when compared to White applicants. In addition, when
comparing the number of Whites to Latinos and Blacks submitting loan applications, a much higher percentage of
Whites submitted applications over the five-year period. Whites accounted for 83% of the applications received,
Latinos 2%, Black 2%, Asians 2%, compared to their representation of the population White 88%, Latino 7%, Black
3% and Other 3%. This indicates that in addition to low origination rates and higher denials, Latinos have a lower
percentage of submitting applications to buy a home. In over five thousand (10%) of the applications race was not
identified. These applications had the highest percentage of denials and the lowest percent of origination.
Table 30. DISPOSITION OF APPLICATIONS FOR HOME LOANS 5YR AGGREGATE, 2001-2005
CONVENTIONAL LOAN FHA, FSA/RHS, AND VA LOANS
Applications Loans Applications Other- Applications Loans Applications Other- Total
Received Originated Denied No Loan* Received Originated Denied No Loan* Applications
White 37431 80% 9% 11% 5997 88% 5% 7% 43428
Latino 629 66% 19% 15% 514 77% 11% 12% 1143
Black 598 65% 21% 15% 219 78% 12% 9% 817
Asian 734 78% 8% 15% 78 82% 9% 9% 812
Other 146 75% 11% 14% 21 76% 14% 10% 167
White/Minority Joint 483 82% 8% 10% 122 83% 10% 7% 605
Race Not Available 5009 56% 22% 23% 389 73% 8% 16% 5398
*Other: Applications Approved But Not Accepted, Applications Withdrawn, Files Closed For Incompleteness
Sources: Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council, ffiec.gov/hmda/default.htm
54
HISPANICS AND THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM

OVERVIEW
Regarding Lancaster’s Latino population and the criminal justice system, we should look at national trends to
give us some perspective.
Using data gathered by the U.S. Census 2000, Human Rights Watch13 developed the first published snapshot of
the extent to which Whites, Blacks and Hispanics in each state were behind bars. Out of a total population of
1,976,019 inmates who were incarcerated in adult correctional facilities at the time of the snapshot, 1,239,946 or
63 percent were Black or Hispanic although these two groups constituted only 25 percent of the national
population.
Additionally, regarding the incarceration of Hispanics they discovered:
µ In nine states, between 4 and nearly 8 percent of adult Latino men were incarcerated.
µ In twelve states, between 2 and 4 percent of Hispanic adults (men and women) were incarcerated.
µ In ten states, Latino men were being incarcerated at rates between five and nine times greater than those
of White men.
µ In eight states, Latina women were being incarcerated at rates that were between four and seven times
greater than those of White women.
µ In four states, Hispanic youth under age eighteen were being incarcerated in adult facilities at rates
between seven and seventeen times greater than those of White youth.
Today the total number of people incarcerated in the United States is over 2.2 million, which is an unprecedented
500% increase since the early 1970s.
This growth has been accompanied by an increasingly disproportionate racial and ethnic composition, with
particularly high rates of incarceration for Blacks, who now constitute 900,000 of the total 2.2 million incarcerated
population.
According to Incarceration and Crime: A Complex Relationship, by Ryan S. King, Marc Mauer, and Malcolm C.
Young, the exponential increase in the use of incarceration has had only modest success at best in producing public
safety, while contributing to family disruption in many Black communities.
There is a similar trend developing in Hispanic communities nationwide. Over the past ten years, there has been
a significant rise across the country in the number of Hispanics in prisons and jails. In 2005, Hispanics comprised
20 percent of the state and federal prison population, a 43 percent increase since 1990.
Should this trend continue, one of every six Hispanic males and one of every forty-five Hispanic females born
today can expect to be incarcerated at some point in their lives.
13
“Race and Incarceration in the United States”, Human Rights Watch Press Backgrounder, February 27, 2002,
http://www.hrw.org/backgrounder/usa/race/
55
Incarceration in Lancaster
This national trend is reflected here in Lancaster.
There were 6,169 overall admissions to Lancaster County Prison in 2006, which was a 4.7 percent increase over
the 5,888 admitted in 2005. Approximately 11% to 12% of the population is female.
Lancaster County Prison capacity is currently designed to house 1100 inmates but it averages 1200. That figure
has been as high as 1266 and required the temporary use of the gymnasium for makeshift housing. The average
stay of an inmate is 70 days.
The racial/ethnic breakdown of inmates currently housed at the prison is; 56 percent White; 22 percent Black;
and 21 percent Hispanic. The most recent racial/ethnic breakdown of the population of Lancaster County is; 88
percent White; 3 percent Black; and 7 percent Hispanic.14
The disparity is clear. While Blacks and Hispanics combined make up 10 percent of Lancaster County’s general
population they account for 43 percent of the county’s incarcerated population.
Pennsylvania leads all states in prison and jail incarceration rates for Hispanics.15 The rate per 100,000 for
Hispanics is 1,714. By comparison, the rate for Whites per 100,000 is 305.
The rate for Hispanic incarceration in Pennsylvania exceeds, by more than double, the rates for incarcerated
Hispanics in states like California, New York and Texas, all of which have significant Hispanic populations.
When you combine incarcerated Blacks and Hispanics, they constitute 61.3% of Pennsylvania’s prison
population.16 If we consider that in less than 30 years Pennsylvania has grown from 8 state prisons to 26 state
prisons it is yet another indicator, in addition to crime rates, of how the discretion of policymakers and practitioners
in decisions related to arrest, conviction, sentencing, and severity of statutory punishment, all play key roles in
determining state rates of imprisonment.
Education, or the lack of education, also plays a key role in crime statistics. One national study found that,
among Black men born between 1965 and 1969, 30 percent of those without a college education and a startling 60
17
percent of high school dropouts had served time in prison by age 35. Given the high dropout rate among
Hispanic youth in the School District of Lancaster, there is a strong possibility that a similar trend is developing
here.
One local veteran corrections officer felt that a significant number of inmates at the Lancaster County Prison were
there for non-violent crimes such as failure to pay child support, non-payment of parking tickets, open container
violations and other sundry offenses. “They’re taking up space and contributing to the overcrowding situation here.
In the big city, these kinds of offenses would be handled some other way than incarceration.
“We also have those who violate parole. They can’t find or keep a job to pay their child support, or restitution or
fines and they’re right back in here.” It’s difficult for offenders, even those who were sentenced for non-violent
crimes, to extricate themselves successfully from the system once released because of parole violations or the lack
of employment. For many ex-offenders the first step in staying out of prison is getting and keeping a job.
14
U.S. Census2000, CLARITAS 2006
15
Bureau of Justice Statistics, Prison and Jail Inmates at Midyear 2005.
16
Race and Incarceration in the United States, Minority Proportion of the Incarcerated Population by State, Human Rights Watch Press Backgrounder,
February 22, 2002
17
Petit, Becky, and Bruce Western. 2004. “Mass Imprisonment and the Life Course: Race and Class Inequality in U.S. Incarceration.” American
Sociological Review 69 (April): 151-169.
56
The correction officer also expressed the fact that he had seen second and third generation members of some
families come through the prison. “I’ve seen the sons and grandsons of some of the inmates I dealt with early in
my career here get arrested and brought in. We’ve had grandmothers whose grandkids are here right now.”
The most significant change he has noticed in his three-decade career at Lancaster County Prison is the age of
the inmates. “What has changed dramatically... drastically... is the age group. It used to be when you went into the
prison you were dealing with men. Now you're dealing with kids. A lot of under-21 year olds. That's rampant. Back
when I started, that wasn't the case.”
Juvenile Detention
Depending on the severity of the crimes they commit, minors can be tried as adults and find themselves in
Lancaster County Prison. Generally, the exceptional situation or crime would result in such circumstances. There
have been a few who have been charged with extreme offenses and who have been tried as adults and held in the
county prison. Depending upon the severity of the offense and the sentence, they are either transferred to state
prison or held in custody to serve out their sentence in Lancaster. At the discretion of the court, other juveniles
from age 10 and above involved in a delinquent act or who are sheltered for their own protection pending legal
action are housed in Lancaster’s Youth Intervention Center (YIC). YIC is considered temporary custody with two
distinct residential areas: detention and shelter.
Juvenile detention at YIC is defined as the temporary and safe custody of juveniles who are accused of conduct
subject to the jurisdiction of the court who require a restricted environment for their own, or the community’s
protection, while pending legal action.
The shelter at YIC provides temporary and emergency care for alleged and adjudicated dependent and delinquent
juveniles referred by the Children and Youth Agency or the office of Juvenile Probation and Parole. The shelter
helps children and their families by providing professional therapeutic and supportive services.
The center currently houses 67 residents in detention and 7 residents in the shelter, which is well below their 96-
bed capacity. The racial/ethnic breakdown of residents of detention is; 28 White; 22 Black; 5 Hispanic. The
racial/ethnic breakdown in the shelter is four Black and three Hispanic residents.
Drugs and Incarceration

No issue has had more impact on the criminal justice system in the past three decades than our national drug
policy. The “war on drugs,” officially declared in the early 1980s, has been a primary contributor to the enormous
growth of the prison system in the United States during the last quarter-century and has affected all aspects of the
criminal justice system and, consequently, society. As a response to the problem of drug abuse, national drug
policies have emphasized punishment over treatment and in a manner that has had a disproportionate impact on
low-income minority communities. After millions of people arrested and incarcerated, it is clear that the “war on
drugs” has reshaped the way America responds to crime and ushered in an era of instability and mistrust in
countless communities.18
Some recent statistics highlight the impact the war on drugs has had on American society over a relatively short
period and points out a key reason for the growth rate of new prisons across the country and in Pennsylvania.
µ Drug arrests have more than tripled in the last 25 years, totaling a record 1.8 million arrests in 2005;
18
Mauer, Mark, and Ryan S. King. September 2007. The Sentencing Project, “A 25-Year Quagmire: The War on Drugs and its
Impact on American Society”
57
µ In 2005, 42.6% of all drug arrests were for marijuana offenses, and marijuana possession arrests
accounted for 79% of the growth in drug arrests in the 1990s;
µ Drug offenders in prisons and jails have increased 1100% since 1980. Nearly a half-million (493,800)
persons are in state or federal prison or local jail for a drug offense, compared to an estimated 41,100 in
1980.
µ Nearly 6 in 10 persons in state prison for a drug offense have no history of violence or high-level drug
selling activity;
µ Blacks comprise 14% of regular drug users, but are 37% of those arrested for drug offenses and 56% of
persons in state prison for drug offenses;
µ Blacks serve almost as much time in federal prison for a drug offense (58.7 months) as Whites do for a
violent offense (61.7 months) largely due to racially disparate sentencing laws such as the 100-to-1
crack-powder cocaine disparity;
µ Persons in prison with a history of regular drug use are less than half as likely to be receiving treatment
as in 1991. Only 14.1% of persons in state prison in 2004 who had used drugs in the month prior to their
arrest had participated in treatment compared to 36.5% in 1991. In federal prison, these proportions
declined from 33.7% in 1991 to 15.2% in 2004.19
Gangs in Lancaster
Community Perspectives
º We're having a problem with the Boys Club right now because the gangs are trying to recruit kids that are
there. All the problems that you hear now, of people getting robbed, it's all because of the Bloods. You have
the Bloods and the Latin Kings recruiting here. These kids are promised money. You arrest them and they're
wearing $200 sneakers and $100 jeans—things that parents can't afford to buy for them. It's a fact of life.
It's economics. Most of these kids are followers and wannabes. There are very few that lead. Here in the
city, if I'm not mistaken, there are over 20 gangs active right now. Well, who encourages kids to do this
thing? Videos, TV, the Internet... you have fingers signs,
rappers in their videos give gang signals and everyone
The issue of gangs is a parent,
knows what they mean.
school and community issue. We
º You should see in my neighborhood there is the white T- have to come together to provide
shirt gang—little kids, 10 years old. It's called the T-gang our youth alternatives.
and they are part of the Bloods. In attempting to involve
the kids, we had a teen dance recently, and there were 50 girls there and only three guys showed up, which
means that we are losing our boys to the street.
º You can't lay all the blame on the school system; parents and the school system have to work together. We
have to get parents more involved. The issue of gangs is a parent, school and community issue. We have to
come together to provide our youth alternatives. One day I was returning home about 3am and I turn down
Coral Street and I had to stop the car. There were about 30 T-shirts crossing the street and some of them
jumped on my hood. These are 10, 12, 13 years olds and I thought to myself, “Where the hell are the
parents?” How could your ten year old be out of bed at three in the morning?
º The law says that they believe juveniles should not be punished for what they do, rather that they should be
counseled and educated. That's the way it is. I had a personal experience as a cop, where I responded to a
call of a juvenile breaking into a car. When I brought him in, I asked him, aren't you worried, I just brought
you in for breaking into a car. He said "No, last time I was before the judge he said that if I got in trouble
19
Mauer and King,
58
again they would send me to Camp Snyder and, in Camp Snyder, they take you camping and to Hershey
Park and I can't afford to do those things."
An Overview
A ten-year veteran of the Lancaster Bureau of Police, Detective Michael Winters investigates violent crime in the
city of Lancaster and is a member of a gang task force made of city police officers and federal ATF (Alcohol,
Tobacco and Firearms) agents. He also serves on a gang prevention task force, which is made up of police,
probation and parole, and social service agencies. He feels that the proliferation of gang activity and gang violence
in Lancaster County revolves around the sale and use of drugs. “It was 1987-88 when the gangs started to come
down from New York City and move into Lancaster. It was a new drug market, an untapped area. They could
operate here much easier because the competition was not as fierce… and without the pressure of big law
enforcement agencies like there are in New York or Philadelphia.”
His experience and those of his predecessor has been that gang activity seems to peak and subside in five-year
cycles with high points in the early to mid-1990s before waning, peaking again in 1999-2000 and then the current
cycle we’re in. Although there are gangs in the area, including the suburban areas of the county, who call
themselves Bloods or Crips, they are more than likely not associated with the original west coast gangs but have
adopted those names for effect. The west coast gangs were almost exclusively Black while some gangs in suburban
areas of the county here carrying those names are known to be predominantly White. By far, however, the most
gang activity in Lancaster County is taking place in the city. Much of the gun violence that has taken place on the
streets of Lancaster, which has citizens concerned and outraged has been associated with gangs, drugs, and
outsiders coming into the community and attempting to encroach on local drug “territory”.
It’s important to note, according to Detective Winters, that there are two types of gangs operating in Lancaster
City. The first, and the ones you see most often, are what the police call the hybrid groups. These are local
neighborhood kids who are out on the street corners hanging out and maybe causing problems after school. They
get a lot of attention because they're the most visible. In many cases, they’re not involved in violent crime as much
as they’re involved in nuisance activities such as vandalism and petty theft. Local kids call them “wannabes”. The
unfortunate thing is what they want to be.
We spoke to several teens about local gang activity and gang members they knew. These were middle school,
high school and recent high school graduates all of whom were Hispanic and most of whom lived in the southeast
section of Lancaster City. Their impression of “wannabe” gang members were that they were teens they knew who
were basically looking for something to do or belong to because they were bored and maybe left on their own by
parents or a single parent who was working or overwhelmed with trying to make ends meet. They also saw a
transformation of sorts by kids they knew in school as being quiet and unassuming to more extroverted and
aggressive behaviors once they joined, and in one case started, a gang. While not condoning their behavior, the
teens expressed understanding of the attraction because there was very little for teens to do for recreation in
Lancaster other than to “hang out”. The Boys and Girls Club was available, and maybe the movies, but very little in
regards to a variety of activities or facilities geared towards teens or designed to be attractive to teens and to
occupy them in positive activities.
The second type of gang and gang activity is more hardcore, organized and less visible.
Detective Winters believes that the more organized gangs are less apparent with their activities because they
know better than to draw the attention of law enforcement. It's bad for business to be caught by the police so the
more organized are usually less visible. Their activities generally involve “robbery, home invasion robberies, theft,
car break-ins, lots of drugs and weapons violations and weapons trafficking. They are not unlike your everyday
street criminal it's just that they're more organized and [are often] working together as opposed to the individual
59
who's going in and doing robberies by themselves. However, I think there's a misconception that gangs are always
doing these things as a group and that's not always the case. It could be one individual member committing any
one of these crimes on their own but for the benefit of the gang such as using the proceeds to buy guns for the
gang.”
Detective Winters emphasizes that police find it best not to mention the name of a particular gang that might
find its way into print where any mention of a gang could result in an inadvertent boost to its “street cred” or
reputation. That sometimes leads to heightened rivalry with other gangs and possibly a desire for association or
membership by “wannabes”. What he would say is that the largest gangs are Black and Latino and while each were
predominantly one or the other, ethnically, they were not exclusive. In fact, in Lancaster County there was at least
one group of Bloods that were comprised of Black, White and Hispanic members.
Drugs and Gangs

Most gangs are supported by drug money and most gang members are drug dealers. Not all drug dealers are
gang members but most gang members are drug dealers who make their incomes from drug users. Where the
violence comes in is when they have to deal with competition or maybe others that are trying take over a lucrative
drug spot, or someone who owes them money or hasn't paid a debt and it is meant as a message to others to pay
up. There are other gangs that commit robberies as a way of making money. Sometimes it can be just a random
thing where for whatever reason they haven't made money selling drugs for a week or so and they need money so
they decide to rob someone. It's not a primary means of getting money but done out of necessity or opportunity.
Drug users drive the drug business and like most of the crime statistics, not sentencing statistics, there are some
surprising numbers.
According to the federal Household Survey,20 "most current illicit drug users are White. There were an estimated
9.9 million Whites (72 percent of all users), 2.0 million Blacks (15 percent), and 1.4 million Hispanics (10 percent)
who were current illicit drug users (1998)." Yet, Blacks constitute 36.8% of those arrested for drug violations, and
over 42% of those in federal prisons for drug violations. Blacks comprise almost 58% of those in state prisons for
drug felonies; Hispanics account for 20.7%.
Lancaster is just one of several communities in the so-called Route 222 Corridor that has been affected by
increased gang and drug activity and the violence that accompanies it. The other communities include Easton,
Bethlehem, Allentown, Reading, York, and Harrisburg. All lie within the boundary of Route 222 and within a short
drive from the big urban centers of New York, Philadelphia and Baltimore. Gang members set up drug dealing
operations in the smaller communities from one end of the corridor to the other bringing with them a host of illegal
activities and violence. In 2006, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania applied for and received
a $2.5 million grant to attack gang activity and violence in the corridor. The 222 Corridor Anti-Gang Initiative grant
is to be used to focus on anti-gang law enforcement efforts, gang prevention, and to provide positive alternatives
to former gang members to assist their return into society. The initiative has been underway for just over a year
but the cooperation of local, state and federal law enforcement agencies, public officials and community leaders in
this anti-gang effort has been unprecedented.
20
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, National Household Survey on Drug Abuse: Summary Report 1998 (Rockville, MD:
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 1999), p. 13; Bureau of Justice Statistics, Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics 1998
(Washington DC: US Department of Justice, August 1999), p. 343, Table 4.10, p. 435, Table 5.48, and p. 505, Table 6.52; Beck, Allen J., Ph.D. and
Mumola, Christopher J., Bureau of Justice Statistics, Prisoners in 1998 (Washington DC: US Department of Justice, August 1999), p. 10, Table 16;
Beck, Allen J., PhD, and Paige M. Harrison, US Dept. of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics (Washington, DC: US Dept. of Justice, August 2001), p.
11, Table 16.
60
As part of this initiative, mayors from five cities in the corridor, Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton, Reading and
Lancaster, have each created a Gang Prevention Task Force to develop and implement strategies for reducing gang
involvement and activity in their communities.
Women
The law enforcement emphasis on low-level drug offenses has had a profound impact on women and children in
particular. Women in prison are considerably more likely than men to have been convicted of a drug offense. As of
2005, 29% of women in prison had been convicted of a drug offense, compared to 19% of men, and two-thirds had
children under 18.
Women were also more likely to have used drugs at the time of their offense, been a victim of physical or sexual
abuse prior to incarceration, or suffered from a mental health problem. All of these issues raise unique concerns
and challenges for the criminal justice system as women comprise a growing proportion of the correctional
population. Of course even women who have not committed any crimes or served any time in prison, are still
victimized by the status of an ex-offender husband who, once released, will generally find the transition back into
the community a difficult task. The ex-offender husband’s difficulty securing and maintaining gainful employment,
affordable housing, and avoiding the pitfall of old behaviors which led to incarceration in the first place makes a
successful transition unlikely without assistance and guidance. Without it, those kinds of stresses can have a
detrimental impact on a marriage, expose children to the risk of emotional, mental and/or physical harm, and lead
to recidivism.
ARRESTS IN LANCASTER COUNTY AND LANCASTER CITY

In addition to a month-by-month online report, each year, the Pennsylvania State Police publish an Annual
Uniform Crime Report, Crime in Pennsylvania providing a detailed overview of crime in the Commonwealth. This
report is based on the data received by the Pennsylvania Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program, which is
mandated reporting for all state, county, and local law enforcement agencies within the Commonwealth based on
Act 180 signed into law by Governor Edward G. Rendell on November 29, 2004. The counterpart of the
Pennsylvania UCR Program is the National UCR Program under the direction of the Federal Bureau of Investigation
(FBI).
In looking at crime in Lancaster City and County, we are presenting the arrest data for the last full calendar year
2006 and provide a comparison with 2000 in the more detailed tables. According to the UCR report, adults arrested
and counted for UCR purposes in Pennsylvania are those who are formally charged with a crime. Crime suspects
who are questioned and released are not counted as arrested. Juveniles are counted as arrested when
circumstances are such that if they were adults an arrest would be tallied. 21
Crime Index Offenses

In Lancaster County in 2006, there were a total of 14,325 arrests of adult males and females and 4,528 arrests
of juvenile males and females. Latinos comprised 20% of the adult arrests and 23% of the Juvenile arrests.
Offenses that fell under the Crime Index represented 13% of the Latino Adult offenses and 18% of the Latino
Juvenile offenses.
Crime Index offenses are crimes that are considered by law enforcement to be the most serious crimes. These
are used nationally as a basis for comparison of criminal activity. Murder and nonnegligent manslaughter, forcible
21
http://ucr.psp.state.pa.us/UCR/Reporting/Annual/AnnualFrames.asp?year=2006
61
rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson comprise the Crime
Index.22 The Crime Index can be broken down into the categories of violent crime and property crime.
Table 31. LANCASTER COUNTY ALL ARRESTS 2006: PERCENT CRIME INDEX
Adult Juvenile
23
Source PA State Police UCR http://ucr.psp.state.pa.us/ Total White Black Latino Total White Black Hispanic
Total Arrests by Subgroup % 100% 64% 16% 20% 100% 57% 19% 23%
Total Arrests (Number) 14,325 9,140 2,289 2,815 4,528 2,560 866 1,060
Percent Crime Index Arrests 15.0% 16.0% 13.0% 13.0% 18.0% 19.0% 16.0% 18.0%
Violent Crime Arrests 2.4% 2.0% 3.4% 2.7% 3.2% 1.6% 6.1% 4.6%
Property Crime Arrest 12.7% 14.1% 10.3% 10.1% 14.8% 17.0% 10.0% 13.7%
Percent Drug Related Arrests 6.6% 4.9% 11.3% 8.5% 3.6% 3.1% 5.2% 3.3%
Drug Sale 1.7% 0.7% 3.8% 3.5% 0.5% 0.1% 0.8% 1.2%
Drug Possession 4.9% 4.2% 7.5% 5.0% 3.0% 3.0% 4.4% 2.1%
VIOLENT CRIME ARRESTS

Table 32. ARRESTS IN 2006 FOR VIOLENT CRIME IN LANCASTER COUNTY AND CITY
Adult Juvenile
Source PA State Police UCR http://ucr.psp.state.pa.us/ Total White Black Latino Total White Black Latino
LANCASTER CITY (URBAN)
01A-Murder and Nonnegligent Manslaughter 9 1 5 3 0 0 0 0
020-Forcible Rape 2 0 0 2 4 0 2 2
030-Robbery 27 7 10 10 18 2 6 10
040-Aggravated Assault 92 20 36 36 60 4 28 27
TOTAL VIOLENT CRIME - URBAN 130 28 51 51 82 6 36 39
22% 39% 39% 7% 44% 48%
LANCASTER COUNTY EXCLUDING LANCASTER CITY (NON-URBAN)
01A-Murder and Nonnegligent Manslaughter 5 4 1 0 0 0 0 0
020-Forcible Rape 6 3 2 1 0 0 0 0
030-Robbery 68 38 17 12 18 11 6 1
040-Aggravated Assault 130 111 7 11 45 23 11 9
TOTAL VIOLENT CRIME - NON-URBAN 209 156 27 24 63 34 17 10
75% 13% 11% 54% 27% 16%
Percent Lancaster City Arrests 38% 57%
Percent Arrests Excluding Lancaster City 62% 43%
The Crime Index offenses of murder and nonnegligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery, and aggravated
assault comprise the general category of Violent Crime. There were 339 adult violent crime arrests in Lancaster
County in 2006. Thirty-eight percent of the adult arrests were in Lancaster City—209 of the offenses occurred in
other parts of the county. Adult crime arrests in the city were 39% Latino, 39% Black and 22% White, while in the
rest of the county it was 75% White, 13% Black and 11% Latino.
While the majority of adult violent crime arrests were in the county, among juveniles more than half (57%) of
violent crime arrests were in the city. Juvenile violent crime arrests in the city were 48% Latino, 44% Black and
7% White. In the rest of the county White youth accounted for 54% of violent crime juvenile arrests, while Black
youth was 27% and Latino youth was 16%.
PROPERTY CRIME ARRESTS

The Crime Index categories of burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson comprise the general
category of Property Crime. As defined by the UCR:
22
http://ucr.psp.state.pa.us/UCR/Reporting/RptMain.asp
23
White represents White Non-Hispanic, UCR online data presents Race with Latinos included in White Race
62
Larceny-theft is the unlawful taking or stealing of property or articles of value without the use of
force, violence, or fraud. It includes crimes such as shoplifting, pocket picking, purse snatching, thefts
from autos, theft of auto parts and accessories, bicycle theft, etc. For the purpose of Uniform Crime
Reporting, this offense category does not include embezzlement, “con” games, forgery or worthless
checks. Motor vehicle theft is a separate index crime and, therefore, is also excluded.
Burglary is the unlawful entry of a structure to commit a felony or theft. It is not necessary for force
to be used to gain or attempt to gain entrance in order for the event to be classified as a burglary.
Moreover, a loss does not have to occur for a case of an illegal entry to be counted.
Table 33. ARRESTS IN 2006 FOR PROPERTY CRIME IN LANCASTER COUNTY AND CITY
Adult Juvenile
Source PA State Police UCR http://ucr.psp.state.pa.us/ Total White Black Latino Total White Black Latino
050-Burglary 23 6 6 11 16 2 5 8
060-Larceny-Theft 330 176 58 92 213 108 36 66
070-Motor Vehicle Theft 5 2 1 2 10 0 2 8
090-Arson 2 0 1 1 1 0 0 1
TOTAL PROPERTY CRIME - URBAN 360 184 66 106 240 110 43 83
51% 18% 29% 46% 18% 35%
050-Burglary 401 349 33 19 95 72 12 11
060-Larceny-Theft 1,003 716 131 154 302 225 31 46
070-Motor Vehicle Theft 46 34 6 5 23 17 1 5
090-Arson 10 10 0 0 10 10 0 0
TOTAL PROPERTY CRIME - NON-URBAN 1,460 1,109 170 178 430 324 44 62
76% 12% 12% 75% 10% 14%
Eighty percent of Crime Index Offense property crime offenses by adults occurred outside Lancaster City; of
1,820 adult arrests, 360 were in the city of Lancaster. Larceny-theft comprised the largest number of arrests in this
area. Among juveniles, 36% of the property arrests were in the city. In Lancaster City, White adults and juveniles
comprise a much higher percentage of the property crime arrests compared to White violent crime arrests. White
arrests comprised 51% of the adult arrests for property crime offenses compared to 18% Black and 29% Latino.
White juveniles, who comprise only 7% of the violent crime arrests in the city, represent 46% of the property crime
arrests; Latino juveniles represent 35% and Black youth 18%.
Outside of Lancaster City Whites represented 76% of adult and 75% of juvenile arrests for Crime Index property
crime. Latino adults were 12% of the non-urban arrests and Latino youth were 14% of the non-urban juvenile
arrests.
Drug Related Arrests

Drug related arrests represent 8.5% of all Latino arrests, 11.3% Black arrests and 4.9 White arrests (see Table
31.) Latinos represented 38% of those arrested in the city on a drug related charge and 10% of the arrests in the
rest of the county. Latino youth represented 36% of urban and 8% of non-urban arrests. In 2006, 67% of the
juvenile arrests for drug sale in the city of Lancaster were Latino and the rest Black; no White juvenile arrests for
drug sale were made in the city. Table 34 provides a detailed breakdown of urban, non-urban, adult and juvenile
arrests related to drug sale and drug possession arrests.
63
Table 34. DRUG RELATED ARRESTS IN 2006 IN LANCASTER COUNTY AND CITY
Source PA State Police UCR http://ucr.psp.state.pa.us/
Adult Juvenile
Total White Black Latino Total White Black Hispanic
18A-Drug Sale/Mfg - Opium - Cocaine 140 9 62 69 6 0 2 4
18B-Drug Sale/Mfg - Marijuana 33 9 9 15 12 0 4 8
18C-Drug Sale/Mfg - Synthetic 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
TOTAL URBAN DRUG SALE ARRESTS 174 18 71 85 18 0 6 12
10% 41% 49% 0% 33% 67%
18E-Drug Possession - Opium - Cocaine 150 71 32 46 7 1 5 1
18F-Drug Possession - Marijuana 170 42 72 56 48 9 24 15
18G-Drug Possession - Synthetic 5 0 3 2 1 0 1 0
TOTAL URBAN DRUG POSSESSION ARRESTS 325 113 107 104 56 10 30 16
35% 33% 32% 18% 54% 29%
TOTAL URBAN DRUG RELATED ARRESTS 499 131 178 189 74 10 36 28
26% 36% 38% 14% 49% 38%
18A-Drug Sale/Mfg - Opium - Cocaine 41 17 14 10 3 2 1 0
18B-Drug Sale/Mfg - Marijuana 29 24 2 3 2 1 0 1
18C-Drug Sale/Mfg - Synthetic 5 3 0 0 0 0 0 0
TOTAL NON-URBAN DRUG SALE ARRESTS 75 44 16 13 5 3 1 1
59% 21% 17% 60% 20% 20%
18E-Drug Possession - Opium - Cocaine 75 48 19 8 5 2 2 1
18F-Drug Possession - Marijuana 254 192 38 23 66 55 6 4
18G-Drug Possession - Synthetic 9 7 1 1 2 2 0 0
18H-Drug Possession - Other 40 27 7 6 9 8 0 1
TOTAL NON-URBAN DRUG POSSESSION ARRESTS 378 274 65 38 82 67 8 6
72% 17% 10% 82% 10% 7%
TOTAL NON-URBAN DRUG RELATED ARRESTS 453 318 81 51 87 70 9 7
70% 18% 11% 80% 10% 8%
For more detailed data on Lancaster County and City arrests see Appendix D, which contains data by adult male,
adult female, juvenile male, juvenile female and a comparison of 2006 to 2000.
TRANSITION FROM PRISON TO COMMUNITY

For those that have served time in prison the return to the community can pose numerous challenges. While
there were many groups in the county providing assistance to these individuals, their efforts were not always
coordinated. A former inmate might receive excellent assistance in one area from one entity but other needs might
go unmet and result in situations that could spiral into anti-social behavior, a return to criminal activity, parole
violation and recidivism.
Recognizing the need for a coordinated effort to achieve a better outcome for the formerly incarcerated which in
turn would result in a safer community, a group of community-based organizations, faith-based organizations and
local government entities formed the Lancaster County Re-Entry Management Organization to develop a more
effective system for integrating these men and women back into the community. The organization is led by a
Council of representatives that provides policy guidance in areas of employment and training, drug and alcohol
counseling, mental health and mental retardation, medical assistance, mentoring, housing, childcare,
transportation, spiritual support and other issues.
The organization, which began in the Fall of 2005, today numbers more than 80 partners. It envisioned a five-
year window to realize its goal of developing a network of these organizations working together. The organization
shows great promise. While the transition of the formerly incarcerated back into the community is a formidable
task, a look at other successful models could provide some guidance with serving the needs of Latino reentry
64
individuals and their families. One such agency providing services in Lancaster is the Transition to Community
Program.
Transition to Community is designed to assist formerly incarcerated men and women as they integrate back into
the community. Located in Lancaster City’s southeast sector the program offers support and guidance to individuals
in transition from incarceration, drug addiction, and homelessness. Like many such programs the staff consists of
ex-offenders or individuals directly affected by incarceration in their immediate families.
Most ex-offenders need counseling, employment preparation, and other support when it comes to jobs, housing,
health issues, education and training, parole assistance and other assistance or counseling unique to their
circumstances. Sometimes the person released from prison simply needs someone to talk to besides his or her
partners, spouses, friends and families. The staff at Transition to Community in Lancaster often finds itself in the
role of listeners as clients discuss situations they face which present challenges they know could lead to self-
destructive behavior and a return to prison.
While some situations the ex-offender faces upon release from incarceration are predictable, some of the
statistics are revealing when it comes to living conditions, the people they say they associate with after being
released, their marital status and parenthood, among others.
Data for Latino Reentry Individuals

Figure 13.
In compiling a profile of Latinos reentering the
TRANSITION TO COMMUNITY CONTACTS/CLIENTS
community after incarceration, we utilized the data
from 288 intake forms from the Transition to RACE/HISPANIC ORIGIN
N=288
Community Program in Lancaster. This included data
from 2004 to 2006. Sixty-one were identified as Latino. Race/Ethnicity not
Identified*
Latino
Not all intake questions were filled in. Therefore, the 16%
21%
analysis for the areas identified was based on the Other and 2 or
more Races
number of those responding to a particular question. 2%
The data on the Latino clients indicated that 68% were
single. Only 3% identified themselves as married and
for 26% the marital status was not identified. Eighty-
Black
three percent of the men had children and the largest 26% White
35%
percentage of these was single men with children. This
data corresponds with the high number of single *Race and Hispanic Origin not identified and did not have a Latino Surname
mothers.
65
Figure 14. Figure 15.

MARITAL STATUS AND CHILDREN CURRENT LIVING SITUATION
N=41
N=57
With Children Couple with child(ren) Renting Living With

Divorced Married Treatment
Couple with child(ren) 2% a Friend - 7%
No Children 3% 3% Center - 2%
Marital Status Unknown
Single 3%
17% Transitional Homeless
Male with child(ren)
Housing/ Shelter 7% /Shelter - 10%
Marital Status Unknown
23%
Living with Family

Jail/ Prison
45%
Male with child(ren) 29%
Single
51%
Most of the men who had been released were living

with family. Some upon release were homeless or going Figure 16. EDUCATION
N=46
to live in a shelter. Twenty-nine percent had been
interviewed prior to release. Bachelors degree or
No HS diploma/GED- Associates degree -
The majority (57%) of these men were high school Not enrolled in
4%
dropouts. Only 4% were taking GED. Only 4% had GED 53% Completed high school
or have a GED -38%
education beyond high school.
Sixty-six percent were reentering the community with

no job and another 4% had a part-time job. Only 9% had Taking GED classes.
a car and a valid driver’s license to be able to get to 4%
work. Another 42% indicated that they took the bus or
had a reliable friend or co-worker to get them to work.
For the most part transportation appeared to be a real issue that inhibited access to getting or maintaining
employment.
Figure 18. EMPLOYMENT WHEN RELEASED

Figure 17. TRANSPORTATION TO WORK
N=50
N=46
Full time job-above
minimum wage with Walking, hitchhiking Have car and valid
Full time job-above drivers license.
benefits - 15% or bumming rides
minimum wage-NO 15% 9%
benefits - 11%
Full time job- Walk or take bus

minimum wage-NO when I can afford it. Bus or ride-reliable
25% friends or co-
benefits - 4%
Unemployed workers.
66% Plan ahead for rides 42%
Working part time-
by bus or friends.
NO benefits - 4% 9%
66
Only 31% indicated that they had no substance abuse or mental health issue. Forty-six percent of those with
substance abuse issues indicated they were not using and had be clean 6 months or more. Forty percent admitted
to currently using drugs and/or alcohol.
Figure 20. DRUGS, ALCOHOL, MENTAL ILLNESS Figure 19. DRUG AND ALCOHOL STATUS
N=60 N=49
Other NO drugs/alcohol over
No Drug/Alcohol Alcohol Abuse Alcohol/Drug Don't use drugs
Abuse 6% 18 mos - 18%
Abuse or Mental 5% 8%
Illness Identified /Mental Illness
7% Been actively using NO drugs/alcohol -
31%
drugs and alcohol. 12 to 18 months
16% 10%
Mental Illness
2% Alcohol/
NO drugs/alcohol 6-12
Drug Abuse Using drugs/alcohol
Drug Abuse/ mos-have been in rehab
36% occasionally-no rehab
Mental Illness 18%
Drug Abuse 24%
2%
16%
Most (71%) had no health insurance. Thirty-four

percent indicated they had chronic health Figure 21. MEDICAL AND HEALTH
N=47
problems and no insurance—23% indicated they
had untreated chronic health issues. Good health--NO
Doctor-No insurance -
Very good-have
Only 25% indicated that they were returning to 13%
doctor/insurance
a safe stable supportive environment. The 29%
majority were returning to environments that Chronic untreated

problems, no insurance -
would increase the risk that they might re-offend. 23%
Good-have doctor-NO
The majority was connected to a church and insurance.
13%
Some chronic
another 24% wanted to connect with a church. Minor problems, get
problems-no
Twelve percent did not see themselves as worthy insurance/doctor affordable medical care -
11% 11%
of redemption.
Figure 23. PEOPLE I HANG OUT WITH Figure 22. GOD AND RELIGION
N=48 N=49
Loner/
Don't Hang Out Believe in God but do
Not good, we get into
8% not attend church
trouble together - 8%
Safe, stable supportive 4% Other
and positive - 25% 4% Strong belief in God,
Not so good-unable to active in church and
get away from them. - Unworthy to receive Bible study.
6% salvation or 22%
forgiveness.- 12%
Negative influences - Mixed, some are safe,

working on changes - others are negative -
28% Believe in God-want to Believe in God -
25%
connect to church. improving through Bible
24% study/church - 34%
67

SECTION II: EDUCATION
68
EDUCATION
LATINO/COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVE
The following excerpts reflect the views of Latinos including parents, SDOL Alumni and educators interviewed—
some interviewees fit two or all three categories. It also includes comments from some non-Latinos educators
working with Latino students and parents. See additional and more detailed comments in Appendix A
Parent and Student Experiences

º In my case with my youngest son, SDOL was pretty much on top of things, but I think it was mostly
because I worked at the SDOL and I knew what things were going on, and projects and what could and
could not be available for a student in need.
º I think the school experiments with our kids. For example, in SDOL they were teaching my daughter a new
way of learning math and now she has to take pre-calculus over. They screwed with her. They found that
the test scores went down, and now they are finding that
this new way doesn't work. I can fend for my kid, but I think the school experiments with
what about those kids that don't have parents that can our kids…they were teaching my
fend for them. daughter a new way of learning math
and now she has to take pre-calculus
º My youngest son just graduated this past year and it was
over... the test scores went down, and
a struggle to get him through school. We met several
now they are finding that this new
times with teachers and counselors…They had the
attitude that they just didn't care whether or not he
way doesn't work.
graduated. That was our perception. And we heard that
from several parents that they could care less whether they graduated or not. They are also too quick to
sign our kids out of school.
º I have a son that today is a computer engineer. He's very smart. He speaks five languages. When he was at
McCaskey… they were going to sign him out…If I hadn't gone to the school and dealt with this directly, they
would have signed him out and he would have just been another dropout. They were encouraging him to
leave school rather than encouraging him to stay. I'll never forget that.
º At McCaskey, if you don't have the inside scoop about the programs they provide…that you want to get in,
you lose out. It's about who you know and what you know. Many kids who want to learn are left aside.
º They have the mentality that the second language Spanish it is more of a problem than a plus.
º In New York the school system is very different. My mom raised four of us, and when we got out of school
there was an after-school program to go to and in the summer time there was a summer program that we
attended until it was time to start school again. Where I grew up, they always kept the kids involved in the
school system, whether it was after school or in the summer. They kept us busy, and the kids weren't
hanging out in the street. There were gangs were I lived, but the school system kept a lot of kids out of
them. There was always something to involve the kids in and it had to do with the school system, because
our parents didn't have the money to send us a special programs. Here they have nothing to do.
º I think the attention is given to those who are successful. You know, it's like, "We can help these students."
Unfortunately, some of the ones who struggle get overlooked because there are many more of those.
69
º At McCaskey, I think primarily because of sheer numbers, I was just one of many kids who were doing well
in school. I got encouragement from a few teachers but not nearly to the degree I would get later at private
school where it was all about preparing you for college…I liked the idea that this was a given, that you're
going to college, that you're capable and you can and we're going to prepare you. That is something I think
the public schools find harder to do with the numbers and the budgets they deal with.
º I would say that in junior high and high school I had some good teachers but I don't remember getting a
great deal of encouragement as far as college was concerned or having a lot of conversations about what
the future held for me.
º She understands now how the Lancaster city schools are so

If you leave high school
much different than [schools in] the suburbs. The other thing
without the academics that you
is that the learning is not comparable to Catholic school. need and later you change your
When she went to Lincoln she had already done a lot of the mind and decide to attend
work she was given. The one thing I can say about Lincoln college, you have a serious
Middle School is that the teachers are young and energetic. disadvantage.
They are open to speaking to teens and my daughter felt a
level of comfort with some of her teachers, especially in the music program where she really blossomed.
º Maybe it’s good that they're giving them an option so that they can learn a trade and get a job, but at the
same time it’s hurting them…If you leave high school without the academics that you need and later you
change your mind and decide to attend college, you have a serious disadvantage. Many kids who might be
able to go to college, but don't have any confidence in themselves, might take the easy way out by just
taking a vocational track and learning a trade.
Do Latino Parents Value Education?

º What I’ve experienced is that for many of our parents their focus is survival—being able to dress and feed
their child, making sure he or she is healthy. They believe their part is to make sure their children are well
fed and taken care of and that they have a safe home and that the education is the teacher's
responsibility…we are trying to teach these parents that they are the first teachers. Parental involvement is
one of our biggest challenges.
To say that these parents
º It's not that the parents don't care. Parents do care but they feel
just don't care, is to not
intimidated by the society, especially, when they don't have in a
command of English. They're intimidated, saying, "these
understand the real issue.
teachers are telling me to do these things but I can't do them
but I am too embarrassed to let them know that I can't do it.” …They won't go into schools because they are
intimidated especially if there Is no one there who is Latino, especially in the middle schools where there is
no one Latino there.
º To say that these parents just don't care, is to not understand the real issue…that is really an elitist point of
view. If you compare middle class families and lower class families their circumstances are different and the
educational levels may be different. I had two parents to carry the load so those coming from single-parent
families have even more obstacles to overcome.
º Many times the experience that they’ll have and the welcome that they’ll get -- it'll be a bad experience.
They think that they don't have anything to contribute.
70
º There is a high percentage of Latino parents who have not completed their education. Not only that, with the
new teaching methods…Sometimes a parent tries to help the child and teach them how to do a problem and
the child will tell them that they don't understand and that they don't know how to do it because that's not
the way that the teacher taught them to do it.
Academic Environment and Achievement

º I think the reasons why young people are leaving school are well documented and it's about educational
failure, not about economic necessity. That's one of the myths, that kids are leaving school because they
need to support their families. Maybe, in 10 percent of the cases that's true, but in the majority of cases, it's
because kids have lost interest. Education is no longer relevant to them.
º Regarding underachievement of Latinos in the school district, I think the bar is set low across the board and
the bar seems to keep getting lower because the parents are poor or because of a lot of other reasons. I will
expect so much from this child…It’s all about reading and math right now. Don’t worry about the science or
worry about social studies. It’s about the reading and the math and the scores.
º What I'll say about the Lancaster School District is that they have an excellent curriculum, they have
wonderful programs for students but one of the things I feel is missing is a real-life connection, the
relevance for these kids.
º In the research that I was doing I found that many of the students in the school district don't like the way
they are treated by the teachers and that is what motivates them to leave the school. Some children live in
families where there is economic hardship and sometimes the parents encourage them to leave school so
that they can find a job and help contribute to the family-- especially young men 16 and over. Another
reason for her teens leaving school is teenage pregnancy where young women get pregnant and decide to
leave school.
º One of the problems in middle school is that students are being passed from one grade to the other without
really mastering all the material. Lots of time even if they flunked a certain course they still get passed from
one grade to the other. You end up in the high school sometimes with twelfth grade students taking classes
with ninth grade students because they haven't mastered the
material and they were passed on. I do think at the middle One of the problems in
school level both parents and students disengage. The middle school is that students
students are trying to act as though they are older now while are being passed from one
the parents also disengage seeing the child as being older. grade to the other without
º We need to have a tighter connection between the school
really mastering all the
district and our community. The community must see
material.
education as their problem, their issue. They must see
education of the urban kids as their problem. They say it's not money but it's very interesting that the two
school districts with the highest test scores in this county are the two richest school districts, Hempfield and
Manheim Township.
º I believe that Latino kids somewhere along the line get the message, "you don't need to pursue this -- so
why even bother." We need to do so much more as a community to help these children.
º I was disillusioned by what I found in public school classrooms when I got there, started teaching and found
that discipline was such a major part of my work because of kids who were as angry and disillusioned as I
was as a young person coming to school, not having that love for learning.
71
º I think we see kids are excited about school until halfway through elementary school. Somewhere between
5th and 7th grades they tend to lose steam and interest in school…The "A" students many times will do well
regardless of the level of support; they're smart, they're motivated and they need less. Kids at the bottom
and the middle are the ones that need that encouragement from successful people, teachers and counselors.
º We should get rid of all the general courses and make sure the students take academic classes because they
need them to compete…put them in the kind of classes that they would take at a private school. Provide
them with support services…counselors that have time to counsel them about their classes and real
advisement about what they need to do to get to college.
º A lot of people would not believe the problems that some of our kids live with. The problems in the home.
We had mothers who never seem to have moved from a childhood developmental stage to the maturity
developmental stage. I don't know what the answers are. It's a miracle that the kids do as well as they do a
lot of the time.
º I think our minority students are not taking advantage of the opportunities in the schools. I think we have a
lot of young parents who don't complete school, so education to them isn't important, so their children learn
what they live and they're picking up that same vibe. Also, the outside influences, music, the media, no
goals towards education and bettering themselves. They are out to make a quick buck selling drugs or other
street activity more so than education. I think that's what happening to our kids, especially our males…The
girls are having children to different men and none of them are fulfilling the traditional dad role model so the
kids are just missing out…They need more positive role models.
º As an elementary school guidance counselor, one of the things that bothered me was that I wanted to work
more with the children but there was so much paperwork in the job of guidance counselor that I ended up
doing it instead. In a sense, I thought it was not respectful to the
parents or the children to tell me I have to forget about my
To address the needs that
schedule and cover the classroom. Guidance counselors are not
we have in the school
valued as much as they should be and if you're bilingual, you’re
doing double the work for the same pay.
system, the first thing
would be smaller class
º To address the needs that we have in the school system, the first sizes...
thing would be smaller class sizes and, with all the problems you
have in the school system, maybe somebody for every two to three classrooms that the teacher can call if
the child gets disruptive. Somebody trained to deal with these situations because the child has to be
respected and has to be given options…My experience was that the people that I worked with were mostly
very caring. A lot of those teachers at King School are saints, but they need help.
º Let's be honest. The School District of Lancaster is at the bottom for all the test scores, so, you have a
school district, like every other urban school district in this country, that is not educating their kids well. If
you add to that a population that might be more transient, I'm surprised they get any education at all. They
drop out sometimes for economic reasons but lots of times I think they drop out because they're not getting
anywhere. Nor do they see the benefit of staying in.
Staffing and Diversity Issues

º I think there has to be greater diversity within the teaching staff, especially at the elementary school level
where the majority of teachers are female and White.
72
º They talk about not finding enough Latino teachers for the school district, but I have a niece who is working
in Manheim Township, because they didn't hire her in the School District of Lancaster.
º The 28 year-old Hispanic or Black candidate with a Master's degree is being fought over by schools in New
Jersey, Delaware, Philadelphia, Maryland, and then you have Lancaster in there saying "Yeah come see us
and maybe we'll pay you less, you'll live in a community that doesn't particularly service your needs..." that
doesn't sound nice. I'd say "Hell no!" to that. I'd rather go to Delaware, Maryland or Philly where I'd make
more money and live in a community where there are more people who look like me and who are at my
educational and income level.
º You have to be able to offer bonuses and benefits. So far I think this community hasn't been willing to do
that. In other places they've done things like talk to the realtors and talk to the people that own apartment
buildings, and the issue is “if you come to teach
our school district you don't have to give a month
The 28 year-old Hispanic or Black
deposit and then you get three months free rent.
candidate with a Master's degree is
Other kinds of things like you get a deal on a car.
being fought over by schools in New
º SDOL has pretty much told Millersville “We will Jersey, Delaware, Philadelphia,
hire every Latino and Black that you graduate. We Maryland...
will give them a job.” …The problem is that the
state now has this rule that you can't teach in this state unless you have a 3.0. You can't even enter the
teaching courses now unless you have a 3.0. Black and Latino kids who come out of urban schools that are
not educating them come to college behind the eight ball. They graduate and they do fairly well, but getting
a 3.0 may be harder than it is for someone coming from Hempfield or Manheim Township.
º I believe a lot of the teachers and a lot of the staff who work in the school district are close minded. And if
you're from this [Latino] community they may make certain assumptions about you and they treat us all the
same. I live in this community because I want to, not because I have to.
º We haven't been very successful at grooming and growing students to come back and teach and our
system…I do believe that we can do more recruitment and that we can try to take students for example
starting in ninth grade and groom them to try and come back to be teachers in the district.
College Preparatory Issues

º I think one of the best things that the school district did was to introduce the partnership program with
Millersville University. You had a lot of kids graduating from high school with a lot of general classes and
what the partnership program did was to require them to take academic level Biology, Chemistry and
English classes so the kids could start qualifying for college.
º If you check, the majority of the kids in the baccalaureate program are White. When I asked Black kids how
many are in the baccalaureate program they typically say “one or two of us” or “a few of us.” What I want to
look at is not how many they have at ninth grade…I would be interested in knowing how many Latino and
Black kids are in the baccalaureate program by 12th grade...
º My daughter just graduated from McCaskey and it appears to me that there aren't enough counselors to
give our kids the attention they need. Even if the ratio of guidance counselors was comparable with other
districts it may be that our kids require more attention because of their backgrounds, so more counselors
are required.
73
º We saw very little support from the school in terms of preparing students for college. My daughter
graduated with honors and she was one of their top students and yet even she didn't get that type of
attention. So what's happening to the other students? …there doesn't seem to be much focus on the nuts
and bolts of preparing the students to get into the top schools or even college regarding what they should be
studying or how to get there.
º I think that the area to invest in the schools is in the area of counselors…The biggest thing that I saw in the
public schools was that they were not taking the right courses. Who’s going to make it in college if you don't
take the right courses in high school?
º The average SAT of a White student at Millersville is

about 1100. Black and Latino students become regular I think businessmen need to
admits between 900 and 950. We get people investigate away to devise a tax
graduating from McCaskey that we have tested on a base for the school district that will
reading level of fifth and sixth grades and they
allow us to spend per-pupil what it
graduated high school with good grades…This is
needs to...
college, so even if you're reading at an eighth grade
level your textbook isn't written at an eighth grade
level. It is written at a college level. They definitely don't know how to do critical reading…You can’t just
read these books, you have to think about it and the implications. That's why their SATs are low because the
SATs now are almost all critical reading.
º I think businessmen need to investigate away to devise a tax base for the school district that will allow us to
spend per-pupil what we need to. We know that if we continue to use the real estate tax, because people
the city are poor, we are never going to have the money we need for the school district.
College
º The retention issue is a major issue, just like it is nationwide. Millersville is basically at the level of other
universities in terms of their problem in retaining Black and Latino students…The Ethnic Studies Learning
Community is premised on the fact that one of the ways to help with the culture shock is to provide them at
least with a structured environment where we have study halls that are monitored by peer mentors and a
staff. That's five days a week at night from six to 9 pm. Many of our students come from poor schools and
they don't have study skills and writing skills. We also provide a College 101 type of class on a weekly basis.
How to study, how to communicate with professors, how to tap into resources on the college campus.
º They don't come in knowing the information that a college professor assumes they know; writing skills or
language skills, lab science skills, study skills, time management. They go from high schools, where they've
gotten A's and B's studying two hours a week, to us telling them they have to study two to three hours for
every hour they’re in class. Those Latino students that come in as regular admits from suburban schools,
from White schools, are retained at a significantly higher rate than those that come from urban schools. So
that's why I think it's preparation. It obviously isn't brains and no effort.
74
THE ISSUES
When it comes to the socioeconomic elevation of the Latino population all roads lead back to
education. School failure and low educational levels lead to dire consequences, not only for
the Latino population, but for the Lancaster community at large. According to the Indiana
Department of Education, “Over 25 years to 30 years, a dropout student can cost a
community as much as $500,000 in public assistance, health care, and incarceration costs.”
There is little doubt that in today’s economy the educational crisis within the Latino population is at the core of
the socioeconomic inequality with Latinos disproportionately clustered at the bottom end of the socioeconomic
scale. The key issues that contribute are overall lower educational levels among first generation Latinos, Latino
underemployment, and the past and present high school dropout rates. While students drop out for many reasons,
one of the reasons, acknowledged by local educators, is the cycle of poverty that sometimes leads to dropping out
for economic necessity and which begins the path of being trapped in low level jobs that barely provide for basic
necessities. Others claim that economics is not the only reason that students drop out. They view the School
District of Lancaster (SDOL), where Latino students are the majority and along with Black students comprise three-
fourths of the student population, as not having responded to the needs of the increasingly diverse population they
serve. Many believe that over the past three decades, rather than rise up to the challenge the SDOL has lowered
expectations and subsequently the quality of education.
The arguments regarding the educational crisis confronting the

SDOL and the Latino population has become one of the proverbial The arguments regarding the
“which came first the chicken or the egg?” There is little argument educational crisis confronting the
that poverty and it’s associated societal ills from the issue of the SDOL and the Latino population
concentration of poverty in single-parent households to gang has become one of the proverbial
membership and prison statistics, all correlate with low levels of
“which came first the chicken or
education. Yet, the literature shows a strong link with the economic
the egg?”
status of the community served by a school district and academic
achievement. Areas with a high concentration of poverty typically
experience poor school performance. There is little doubt that either by design or by accident, in Lancaster County
there is a disproportionate concentration of poverty in the city of Lancaster. For Latinos, this concentration has led
to a linguistic, social, and economically stereotyped view of the population. The SDOL’s ability to effectively serve
its “majority minority” student population has led to finger pointing and blame. Who’s to blame? Many voices point
to different culprits--the school district, government, funding, business, the community, the parents and the
blaming extends even to the children.
None of this has translated into effective action. As a result, Latinos who graduated from the school district 20,
15, 10 years ago describe a system where their educational experience and outcome for Latinos is not much
different than it is today. While we can readily say that we reflect the conditions of many other urban school
districts across the nation, we must also begin to look at modeling those that have beaten the odds. The solution
may lie not in who is to blame but in acknowledging that it is a problem that every sector of our community must
own and that the complexity of this problem requires a multifaceted approach involving government, schools,
business, health and human services, community, parents and the children themselves. We must also explore
whether we have truly listened to those in our very own backyards that have spoken out—teachers, parents,
community leaders, students, etc.—and whose voices and sometimes expertise have been ignored.
There is little argument that the economic status of the city of Lancaster will be dependent on the SDOL’s ability
to educate the Latino youth. In assessing the issues that affect the socioeconomic status of the Latino population,
all voices come back to educational status. Crime, substandard housing and neighborhoods, juvenile delinquency,
75
selling drugs as an economic alternative, homelessness are all are rooted in poverty, lack of opportunity and being
a disenfranchised segment of society. It is a community problem that affects in some way every family and
neighborhood in the city of Lancaster, and the perception of our city and county. This past year’s attacks on F&M
students, the rising gang activity, shootings and gun deaths should not be viewed as simply random acts but rather
symptoms of a larger problem. These circumstances have made
Lancaster City fertile ground for the rise of gang activity in the
The negative impact of the
area, with established criminal gangs viewing this community as educational crisis on the overall
a source for recruits and a place to which they can expand their community is undeniable. It is not
influence. only a Latino problem or a Black
problem. It is not only a school
In the 2005-2006 school year, Latinos in the SDOL had a 49%
district problem. It is a
graduation rate; Blacks 57%, White students 67% and language
community problem.
minority students had a 41% graduation rate. In addition, there
are many claims that students are not being provided with a
rigorous curriculum and that many who do graduate are graduating with poor skills. Research has shown that a
powerful predictor of whether high school students will graduate and earn a college degree is the rigor of the high
school curriculum they complete.24 Parents who have moved their children from SDOL to other school districts in
the county claim those students had to play academic “catch-up” because the curriculum was more advanced and
demanding. A Millersville University professor that works in a program that targets many of the Black and Latino
freshman and provides support to help them make it in college, finds many can barely read at an eighth grade level
and extensive remedial work has to be done for them to have any chance of succeeding at the university level.
They enter the university at a distinct academic disadvantage and find it difficult to compete with their peers who
were provided with the academic background to prepare them for college level work.
Of the 49% of the SDOL Latino students that graduate, a five-year

view of post-high school activity (2001-2006) showed that only 18% of
If current trends continue,
these students go on to a four-year college. This means that in an work
only 5 of every 100 Latino
force environment that is more demanding of higher education, if one
wishes to move beyond poverty and subsistence wages, only 9% of the
children in the SDOL will earn
Latino student population is moving on to a four-year college. In 2004,
a college degree.
Pennsylvania college graduation data showed that only 57% of Latino
students entering college graduate with a degree.25 If trends continue
this means that of every 100 Latino children in the SDOL only 5 will earn a college degree. This is well below the
overall 29% of young adults earning degrees.26 There is little doubt that the high school and college graduation
rates of Latino students will play a critical role in the future economic status of the city of Lancaster, where trends
indicate that Latinos will be the majority population within the next two decades.
According to the Indiana Department of Education:
In 2003, 1.1 million 16-19 year olds and 2.4 million 20-25 year olds did not have a high school diploma and
were not enrolled in school, for a total of 3.5million. Most of these youth, at best, are headed for a life of
sporadic employment and low wages. For them, establishing a stable family and raising children who can
make it in our society and economy can be problematic.
Consequences for those students who drop out of school may include:
24
Achieve PowerPoint, http://www.achieve.org/node/532 - Created by the nation's governors and business leaders in 1996, Achieve, Inc., is a
bipartisan, non-profit organization that helps states raise academic standards, improve assessments and strengthen accountability to prepare all
young people for postsecondary education, work and citizenship.
25
Achieve PowerPoint, http://www.achieve.org/node/532
26
Achieve PowerPoint, http://www.achieve.org/node/532
76
º Economic: In 1971, male dropouts earned $35,087 (in 2002 dollars), falling to $23,903 in
2002, a decline of 34.7%. In the same period, the earnings of female dropouts fell from $19,888
to $17,114. Recent dropouts will earn $200,000 less than high school graduates and $800,000
less than college graduates, in their lives. Dropouts make up nearly half the heads of households
on welfare.
º Unemployment: High percentages of young dropouts are either not employed or are not even
in the labor force.
º Engagement in high-risk behaviors: The rate of engagement in high-risk behaviors such as

premature sexual activity, early pregnancy, delinquency, crime, violence, alcohol and drug
abuse, and suicide has found to be significantly higher among dropouts.
º Incarceration: Dropouts make up nearly half the prison population
º Cost to Society: Over 25 years to 30 years, a dropout student can cost a community as much
as $500,000 in public assistance, health care, and incarceration costs.
This examination of the educational status of Latinos and other

students in the county of Lancaster should be viewed not as a critique
The discussion of how
of the School District of Lancaster or any other Lancaster County
we got here may not be
School District, but rather as an assessment of the areas of concern
anywhere near as helpful
and a basis for determining change. The objective in this report is to
have it serve as a catalyst for action rather than a passive discussion of
as responding to the
problems. Hopefully, in pointing out the inequities, it will help us focus
question, “Where do we
on where change needs to happen and what supports need to be put in go from here?”
place. The discussion of how we got here may not be anywhere near as
helpful as responding to the question, “Where do we go from here?”
FOOD FOR THOUGHT BY A FORMER SDOL ADMINISTRATOR

In addition to the vitally important function of teaching the four core course and hitting good test
scores, there is a higher purpose of your educational system, which is to bring together the
community to do the sorts of things that build a community. That means you have to engage your
families, your business community, and the governmental agencies effectively. You have to do the
sorts of things that can leverage that in a really good way. Are we in fact doing that?
Curt Baker, Former SDOL Chief Financial Officer
Curt Baker, former SDOL CFO, in an interview prior to leaving the school district in July 2007 to join our
departing Superintendent in Roanoke, VA, posed the following key questions he thought needed to be considered
as we looked at the educational system. Many of these concerns were echoed by other community members.
1. We try really hard to listen to the community, so you hope not to have too many blind spots. But you
continue to see the involvement of the Latino community is disproportionately small. So what can and
should we be doing to resolve this?
2. Are we effectively engaging our Latino community in the activities and services of the school district?
That has many different facets associated with it. Is it a function of the offerings the school district has?
Is it a cultural function? Given the high proportion of Spanish speakers, is it a linguistic function? Is
there a barrier that is not being bridged that is causing the School District of Lancaster to be less
effective in engaging that community? Those are important questions. If you could get perspective
around them you can begin to build solutions to fully engage that community.
77
3. There is a relatively high proportion of the community that is here for only a portion of the year. So in
terms of dealing with that situation, where you are effectively a resident of two places, the timing when
you are here in Lancaster may not correspond cleanly with the school year. How does the district
address that circumstance?
4. A preponderance of our English Language Learner population is Spanish speaking. I think there are 40
different languages spoken in the district but, proportionately, Spanish dwarfs everything else
combined. So the questions are, are we doing the things necessary to help those students whose first
language is Spanish to excel within our district; and, are there hidden impediments that we may have a
blind spot around? It could be that we are not blind to them but we may not taking the necessary steps
to address them fully.
5. Our teaching staff and administrative staff are not proportionally representative of the community.
We're not in a quota situation, but when there are mismatches you should stop and ask “Is it that there
is a limited supply of available folks? Is the district seen as a good place to work or not a good place to
work? Are there things that we could be doing, not only within the boundaries of Lancaster, but more
generally within Pennsylvania and broader horizons to be able to attract and retain teachers,
administrators, staff from the Latino community that would find this a great place to work?”
6. Are we in fact doing the types of things to position Latino students for success after they leave our
system either through going to work, going to college, going to a two-year trade school or something in
between. Are we meeting their unique needs?
7. An urban environment is somewhat complicated because you have very divergent perspectives
throughout the community. In this instance, where half of your community is Latino, are we in fact
addressing needs from all different perspectives and doing all that we can? The answer is that you are
never really doing that. What you can do is determine where you are strong and where you are weak. In
what key areas does a data-driven approach indicate that I can get my arms around the nuance of a
problem and determine if it is a symptom or a root cause and what needs to be done to address it?
78
THE DATA
Educational Status of the Over 25 Population
Figure 24
The adult Latino population over 25 years of age in
CITY VS COUNTY LATINO
Lancaster County has significantly lower educational
EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT
levels than the non-Latino populations. The 2005
LATINOS 25 YRS AND OLDER IN 2000
Census ACS indicated that Latinos had the highest
percentage of persons who did not complete high 2%
2%
school and the lowest percentage of college 2% 5% Graduate or
9% professional degree
graduates. 13%
5% Bachelors degree
2005 estimates indicate that 36% of Latinos did Associate degree
17%
not graduate high school compared to 17% White, 30%
Some college,
28% Black and 25% Asian. In addition, only 10% of no degree
Latinos are college graduates compared to 24% High school graduate

33% (includes GED)
White, 25% Black, and 14% Asian.
28% 9th to 12th grade,
no diploma
A city/county comparison of Latino educational
Less than 9th grade
attainment showed only 4% of Latino city residents 19%
had college degrees vs. 14% of Latino residents of 24% Census2000 SF4 PCT65
other parts of the county. Also, there is a much 12%
higher concentration of adults without H.S. diplomas

Lancaster City Suburb/Rural
in the city (52%) vs. 31% in other parts of the
county.
Figure 25
EDUCATIONAL STATUS—LANCASTER COUNTY–AGE 25 AND OVER
POPULATION BY RACE/LATINO ORIGIN (2005) AND LATINO SUBGROUPS (2000)
U.S. Census: 2005 American Community Survey and Census 2000 SF4
1%
2% 2% 3% 3% 4% 7%
8% 8% 8% Graduate or
12% 8% 3% 7%
10%
12% 3% 9% professional
3% 13% 24% 8% 14% degree
16% 13% 7% 3% 3%
8% 15% 23% 7% 3% Bachelors
6% 11% 8% 16% degree
12% Associate
13% 26% 32% 8% 21%
degree
8% 28%
22% Some college,
35% 23% no degree
34%
34% High school
27% graduate
41% 27% 18% 15% 39% (includes GED)
28% 17%
9th to 12th grade,
20% no diploma
º 15% 15% 22%
28% 30% Less than
10% 21% 25% 9% 9th grade
21%
13% 16% 12%
7% 7% 10%
4%
White Black Asian Latino Puerto Rican Mexican Dominican Cuban Central South Other Latino
8601 675 513 295 American American 1,246
249 451
79
STATUS OF THE STUDENT POPULATION

Latino students are the majority of the student population in the School District of Lancaster (SDOL) and
represent 67% of the entire Latino student population in the County. In 2006-07, there were almost 6,359 Latino
students in the SDOL and 3,102 Latino students attending one of the other 15 school districts. Hempfield SD had
the next largest concentration with 639 Latino students. Therefore, while a perspective of the changing Latino
student population is provided by a comparison of data from the 16 Lancaster County school districts, there will be
a focus on the SDOL and its ability to serve Latino students and families.
Table 35. LANCASTER COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOL ENROLLMENTS BY DISTRICT, 2006-07

Asian/ Am Ind/
Source: PA Dept of Education Latino White Black Pacific Is. Alask Nat TOTAL % Latino
Lancaster SD 6,359 2,364 2,736 252 39 11,750 54%
Hempfield SD 639 5,965 326 273 20 7,223 9%
Manheim Township SD 433 4,504 243 390 3 5,573 8%
Conestoga Valley SD 365 3,156 203 249 7 3,980 9%
Penn Manor SD 271 4,790 150 78 11 5,300 5%
Columbia Borough SD 178 1,086 157 9 1 1,431 12%
Ephrata Area SD 175 3,656 63 88 5 3,987 4%
Donegal SD 163 2,511 97 25 7 2,803 6%
Warwick SD 152 4,403 81 61 6 4,703 3%
Eastern Lancaster County SD 149 3,125 100 74 1 3,449 4%
Elizabethtown Area SD 140 3,813 54 37 2 4,046 3%
Solanco SD 118 3,733 74 22 9 3,956 3%
Lampeter-Strasburg SD 107 3,108 37 59 10 3,321 3%
Cocalico SD 103 3,270 59 122 6 3,560 3%
Manheim Central SD 75 2,888 57 37 3 3,060 2%
Pequea Valley SD 34 1,748 60 22 1,864 2%
TOTAL LANC CO 9,461 54,120 4,497 1,798 130 70,006 14%
Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) is a measurement defined by the federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) which
is imposed with the objective of making schools accountable to students, their parents, teachers and the
community. The purpose of AYP is to measure student’s levels in Reading and Math. This law states that all
students must reach the Proficient level or above in Reading and Mathematics by 2014. AYP targets measure
whether a school or district is making sufficient annual progress towards the goal of 100% proficiency. AYP has
been identified as one of the most controversial measures in the George W. Bush administration's Elementary and
Secondary Education Act.
The data shows a significant gap between Latino and Black student achievement as compared to White and Asian
students. White students in every district made AYP in both Reading and Math. Asian students made AYP in
Reading and Math in all the 10 of the 11 districts where they were represented—in Cocalico SD they did not make
AYP in Reading. Of the 14 districts where AYP scores included Black students, they did not make AYP in Reading in
seven and did not make AYP in Math in 6 of the districts. Out of 15 school districts Latino Students in did not make
AYP in Reading in 8, but made AYP in Math in all but one. Limited English Proficient students were represented in
10 districts and did not make AYP in Reading in any but made AYP in Math in seven of the ten.
80
Table 36. Student Proficiency on State Tests – Districts” Overall Results in Reading and Math 2007
N=Number of Students Tested
X =Target not met Latino White Black Asian ELL -English Lang Learner
State Proficiency Targets: M R M R M R M R M R
M=Math (45%) R=Reading (54%) N (45%) (54%) N (45%) (54%) N (45%) (54%) N (45%) (54%) N (45%) (54%)
Lancaster SD 2,857 47% X40% 1,078 68% 60% 1,197 49% X43% 109 78% 61% 848 X31% X21%
Hempfield SD 296 59% X53% 3,072 85% 84% 142 56% 58% 133 89% 87% 163 57% X47%
Manheim Township SD 227 68% 66% 2,421 87% 86% 114 64% 61% 208 88% 81% 77 52% X36%
Conestoga Valley SD 190 62% X51% 1,647 83% 80% 102 68% 57% 140 76% 68% 78 X35% X24%
Penn Manor SD 121 65% 65% 2,496 80% 76% 69 64% 64% 35 89% 89% 11 73% 55%
Ephrata Area SD 96 62% 57% 1,957 78% 75% 28 64% 61% 51 76% 75% 48 46% X27%
Donegal SD 80 58% X53% 1,234 67% 70% 49 X41% X43% 11 55% 73% 25 X40% X32%
Columbia Borough SD 78 55% X51% 550 65% 60% 87 46% X42% 5 ** ** 8 ** **
Warwick SD 76 67% 69% 2,333 80% 79% 46 61% 57% 23 78% 57% 24 46% X38%
Eastern Lancaster Co SD 64 66% 56% 1,584 81% 78% 46 52% X53% 36 83% 67% 31 45% X19%
Elizabethtown Area SD 63 56% X49% 1,952 79% 77% 31 81% 71% 18 94% 94% 20 X35% X25%
Solanco SD 59 71% 66% 1,937 76% 76% 28 64% 57% 10 80% 80% 8
Lampeter-Strasburg SD 58 55% X52% 1,664 85% 82% 22 X41% X50% 33 97% 82% 17 47% X24%
Cocalico SD 44 86% 75% 1,700 78% 74% 27 48% 67% 61 62% X49% 25 X32% X8%
Manheim Central SD 34 59% 56% 1,499 77% 76% 27 63% 67% 18 78% 71% 14 X36% X27%
Pequea Valley SD 14 79% 79% 909 74% 71% 25 64% X44% 8 ** ** 0 ** **
Source: AYP District Report Cards. This data table captures performance and participation of students took the PSSA in Grades 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 11.
**Indicates fewer than 10 students in a group. To provide meaningful data are printed only when the total number of students in a group is at least 10.
In 2007 in comparison to White Students, Latinos on the average scored 16 points less in Reading and 15 points
less in Math, while Blacks on the average scored 19 points less in Reading and 20 points less in Math. In the
Cocalico School District, Latino student had the highest math and reading scores. In that district, where Asian
students (61) outnumber Latino students (44), Latino Students scored 24 points higher in math proficiency and 26
points higher in Reading proficiency than the Asian students. Cocalico had the lowest reading proficiency rate for
English Language Learners (ELL). Only 8% of the 25 ELL students scored as proficient or above. Latinos made AYP
in math in all 16 districts but did not make AYP in Reading in seven districts. White and Asian students tested best
overall and Latinos tested better than Blacks in nine school districts while in five Blacks tested better. Penn Manor
was the only district where ELL students only made Reading AYP, while they made AYP in Math in seven districts.
SDOL Latino students did not make AYP in Reading at any grade level. In math, Latino and Black students did not
make AYP in two (7 and 11) of the seven grades tested. At the same time, ELL students in the lower grade tested
better than the older ELL students. Across the board 11th grade students had the lowest percentage of
achievement. Overall, Black student test scores were comparable to those of the Latino students.
Table 37. SDOL 2007 PSSA PERCENT ADVANCED/PROFICIENT (AYP Targets: Reading 54% Math 45%)
Latino White Black ELL – English Lang Learners
M R M R M R M R
Grade N (45%) (54%) N (45%) (54%) N (45%) (54%) N (45%) (54%)
3 472 53% 45% 146 71% 66% 183 61% 55% 180 46% 38%
4 440 58% 44% 155 78% 67% 177 60% 48% 140 34% 24%
5 422 49% 31% 172 72% 54% 175 51% 31% 164 31% 16%
6 415 49% 37% 153 63% 53% 167 48% 42% 123 31% 16%
7 417 43% 42% 159 66% 60% 181 44% 37% 104 18% 10%
8 412 45% 45% 151 68% 66% 178 48% 49% 91 21% 12%
11 279 28% 34% 142 53% 57% 136 26% 35% 46 17% 9%
Total 2,857 47% 40% 1,078 68% 60% 1,197 49% 43% 848 31% 21%
**Since only 109 Asian Students total were tested in SDOL their data was not used for comparison in this chart
Source: Annual School District Report Cards, www.paayp.com
81
According to interviews and strongly emphasized by

teachers and other staff in a survey of SDOL staff, the
Like numerous other urban schools
pressures of NCLB and making the AYP has had a negative
throughout the nation who serve a
impact on the academic health of the SDOL. One teacher
disproportionately poor population, the
states, “We teach to the test. We give most help to students
SDOL is struggling with high dropout
who are "almost there" and the ones who most need help are
left further and further behind.” Another SDOL teacher wrote:
rates and academic failure and its
“NCLB has encouraged teachers to lower the standard in order
inability to meet the AYP.
for students to pass an exam. Teachers aren't afforded the
opportunity to really teach and do an in depth instruction of areas where students are having a difficult time
understanding due to the fact that there is a time constraint in order to cover certain basic principles. Also,
students are constantly being moved up without learning their material because if too many students fail then the
school goes into corrective action because they have a low success rate, but at the same time, the students aren't
prepared adequately which lends to their poor performance on the PSSA's. It’s a never ending cycle of no one
actually teaching or learning anything of consequence.”
No Child Left Behind (NCLB)

Our children have been hijacked and shackled by bad policy and bad politics…This nation has squandered
away four years and billions of dollars in education funding. Our children have been tested to death,
forced to regurgitate and at the end of the day they haven’t learned to do basic reading and math or
much less learned to think. It’s a national shame.”
Marian Wright Edelman, President of the Children’s Defense Fund
The words of renowned child advocate, Marian Wright Edelman, reflect

the views of many SDOL teachers regarding the impact of the NCLB on the NCLB has made us teach
teaching and learning environment in the SDOL. According to one SDOL to tests and making students
teacher, “I think that NCLB is only helpful in providing some standards and "test crazy," causing student
consistency to the curriculum delivered in all schools; however it is a law and teacher burnout.
that punishes the educational system rather then helps us to become better
SDOL Teacher
educators. To base a child's academic success on one measure is
inappropriate and inadequate.” Another teacher states, “NCLB does not take into account any realities that exist
within an impoverished family or community. It is laughable, but unfortunately, we end up crying. Instead of
helping, it is hurting. It is an underfunded mandate with unrealistic expectations that has turned schools into
negative, pressured, joyless places to be for students, staff and parents.”
In 2006, the Civil Rights Project at Harvard University released a study that reports the federal No Child Left
Behind Act (NCLB) hasn't improved reading and mathematical achievement or reduced achievement gaps. The
study also revealed that NCLB won't meet its goals of 100 percent student proficiency by 2014 if the trends of the
first several years continue.
The National Education Association (NEA) has launched a national campaign to reform the NCLB, which they
describe as “fundamentally flawed.” The concerns expressed by SDOL staff in their survey comments are echoed by
the NEA. According to the NEA,
“A great public school is a basic right of every child…The current version of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA)—the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB)—is fundamentally flawed. It
undermines existing state and school district structures and authority, and shifts public dollars to the
private sector through supplemental educational services and takeovers of public schools by for-profit
companies. However, its stated goals—to improve student achievement and help close the achievement
82
and skills gaps that exist in our country—are important to NEA and our society. We want to retain the
positive provisions of ESEA, both those that existed prior to NCLB and those that were added by NCLB, in
the 2007 reauthorization. Congress must shift from the current focus that labels and punishes schools with
a flawed one-size-fits-all accountability system and severely underfunded mandates to one that includes
common-sense flexibility and supports educators in implementing programs that improve student learning,
reward success, and provide meaningful assistance to schools most in need of help.”
SDOL Staff Perspectives on NCLB

In an SDOL survey, staff was given statements regarding the impact of NCLB and the related AYP goals to which
they were given the options of agreeing, disagreeing or indicating that they did not know or were unsure. These
questions taken from a national survey27 of teachers on NCLB. This national online survey was conducted online by
the Teachers Network, a non-profit organization—by teachers, for teachers—with a 26-year track record of success,
dedicated to improving student learning in public
schools nationally and internationally. The Table 38. No Child Left Behind (NCLB) AGREE
national survey had 5,610 respondents.
Perspectives SDOL NATIONAL
The NCLB Act with its AYP goals is helpful in

Table 38 compares the responses of the making sure all students receive a high 27% 10%
quality education
national survey to the same questions on our
The NCLB Act with its AYP goals has
survey by the 104 SDOL respondents—83% of encouraged the elimination of non-tested 63% 69%
whom currently are teachers or had been curriculum.
teachers and now serve in another capacity. The The NCLB Act with its AYP goals is helping to 19% 9%
reduce the achievement gap in education
result of the SDOL survey was extremely close to
The NCLB Act with its AYP goals encourages
the results of the national survey, in essence 88% 76%
teachers to "teach to the test".
indicating that the experience of the staff of the
The NCLB Act with its AYP goals has 83% 75%
SDOL with the NCLB corresponded to other contributed to "teacher burnout".
teachers across the nation. The NCLB Act with its AYP goals empowers
teachers to make instructional decisions 13% 8%
In addition, the responses of SDOL staff to the that are best for their students.
open-ended question—“Please provide any Publicly publishing test scores and/or schools'
progress toward the AYP goals has 24% 17%
additional opinions you have, if any, on the
encouraged teachers to improve their
impact of No Child Left Behind Act and its AYP teaching effectiveness.
goals and state/district testing. (Teachers: How The NCLB Act with its AYP goals is an
effective way to assess the quality of 5% 5%
has the NCLB and state/district testing had an
schools.
effect, if any, on your instructional practices?)
What changes would you like to see made to NCLB?”—were echoed in two recent Reports by The Civil Rights
Project at Harvard University on NCLB: Listening to Teachers: Classroom Realities and 'No Child Left Behind' and
Tracking Achievement Gaps and Assessing the Impact of NCLB on the Gaps: An In-depth Look into National and
State Reading and Math Outcome. The findings of these reports are included in Appendix C of this document.
Their responses and the national controversy on NCLB, indicate that our teachers and educational leaders are
functioning under a mandate that appears to tie their hands, stifle their creativity and cripple their ability to make
sound educational decisions that will benefit our children. Despite a national controversy and dramatic evidence
nationwide that, while NCLB goals may be admirable, how it has been implemented may be doing more harm than
good, especially in urban schools, the Bush administration has been steadfast in imposing these guidelines on the
nation’s educational systems. According to a local teacher, “NCLB has made us teach the tests and are making
students ‘test crazy’, causing student and teacher burnout.”
27
http://teachersnetwork.org
83
The responses indicate that teachers are experiencing high levels of frustration. Overwhelmingly, their comments
reflect dedicated professionals who believe that their ability to serve their students has been seriously restricted by
NCLB. One comment by a teacher that the “joy-of-teaching is banished” is a sentiment repeated over and over
again. One teacher stated that NCLB was, “...an underfunded mandate with unrealistic expectations that has turned
schools into negative, pressured, joyless places to be for students, staff and parents.” Another impression that
emerged repeatedly was the numerous negative outcomes accompanying NCLB and that they were now merely
“teaching to the test”. In addition to purging the joy from teaching and learning, another result was the elimination
of the type of teaching and curriculum necessary for developing well-rounded, well-educated individuals and NCLB
did not allow for addressing individual student needs. Another teacher commented, “We have not been able to give
the students courses that prepare them for life--Family Consumer Sciences, Technology Education, Art and Music.
We are forgetting students need to be prepared to live in this world and be good citizens, good parents, and
productive employees.” You can read the SDOL Survey Responses on NCLB in Appendix C.
Dropout Status
Table 39 provides a comparison of 2002 and 2006 graduation rates for the 16 Lancaster County school districts.
The graduation data is based on a ninth to twelfth grade four year follow-through. Seven school districts had Latino
graduation data: Lancaster, Columbia Borough, Conestoga Valley,
Manheim Township, Hempfield, Penn Manor, Eastern Lancaster County. In SDOL in 2006, 51% of
Latinos did not make the AYP target graduation rate of 80% in two— Latino students did not make
School District of Lancaster and Columbia Borough School District. The it to graduation.
Columbia Borough SD has a 79% Latino graduation rate missing the AYP
target by only 1% while SDOL had a significantly lower 49% graduation rate. While Latino students had the lowest
graduation rate in the SDOL, Whites and Black students also did not make the AYP with graduation rates of 67%
and 57% respectively. Asian was the only SDOL student racial/ethnic subgroup whose graduation rate met AYP
with 86%. With an overall 57% graduation rate SDOL was the only school district in the county not to meet the
2006 AYP graduation rate.
28
Table 39. LANCASTER COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICTS GRADUATION RATES - 2002 AND 2006
Source: 2002 - SchoolMatters.com;
2006 - AYP Report Cards, paayp.com All Students White Black Latino Asian ED+ LEP++
2006 State AYP Target 80% 2002 2006 2002 2006 2002 2006 2002 2006 2002 2006 2006 2006
Lancaster SD 61% X 57% 61% X 67% 67% X 57% 54% X 49% 80% 86% X 61% X 41%
Columbia Borough SD 85% 85% 80% 85% ** 90% ** X 79% ** ** X 69% **
Conestoga Valley SD 87% 90% 90% 90% ** 86% ** 83% ** 100% 91% **
Manheim Township SD 89% 94% 91% 96% ** 83% ** 86% 95% 90% 82% **
Hempfield SD 89% 92% 90% 93% ** 85% 62% 88% ** 83% 87% X 68%
Penn Manor SD 91% 95% 92% 96% ** ** 43% 88% ** ** 91% **
Eastern Lancaster County SD 75% 95% 74% 95% ** ** ** 100% ** ** 96% **
Cocalico SD 87% 90% 88% 90% ** ** ** ** ** ** 81% **
Donegal SD 77% 85% 79% 85% ** ** ** ** ** ** X 69% **
Elizabethtown Area SD 74% 91% 76% 91% ** ** ** ** ** ** X 74% **
Ephrata Area SD 77% 98% 78% 97% ** ** ** ** ** 100% 100% **
Lampeter-Strasburg SD 93% 95% 93% 94% ** ** ** ** ** ** 92% **
Manheim Central SD 81% 88% 81% 89% ** ** ** ** ** ** X 79% **
Pequea Valley SD 89% 93% 92% 93% ** ** ** ** ** ** X 79% **
Solanco SD 85% 87% 87% 88% ** ** ** ** ** ** 100% **
Warwick SD 87% 96% 85% 96% ** ** ** ** ** ** 87% **
+Economically Disadvantaged ++Limited English Proficient
**Indicates fewer than 10 students in a group.
28
Based on a cumulative four-year follow through of students
84
An annual breakdown by race and Latino origin of

Table 40. SDOL ANNUAL DROPOUT PERCENTAGE
the students who dropped out indicates that Latino
01-02 02-03 03-04 04-05 05-06
students are falling further behind. Over the five year
White 21% 18% 19% 20% 16%
period from 2001-02 to 2005-06, Latino students
Black 21% 25% 17% 23% 15%
were consistently overrepresented among the
Latino 56% 54% 63% 55% 65%
dropout group when compared to their percentage of
Asian 2% 3% 1% 1% 1%
the overall SDOL student population. In the 2001-02,
SDOL STUDENT POPULATION CENSUS
Latinos comprised 47% of the SDOL student
01-02 02-03 03-04 04-05 05-06
population but represented 56% of those students
White 27% 25% 24% 22% 21%
Black 23% 23% 23% 24% 24% who dropped out and that trend continued—in 2005-
Latino 47% 49% 49% 51% 52% 06 they were 52% of the student population and
Asian 3% 3% 3% 3% 2% 65% of the dropouts.
Source: School District of Lancaster Table 41. SDOL 2006-07
Just prior to the GRADUATION RATES
release of the release of this report, the 2006-07 AYP data was made available. While 06-07 05-06
Asian students were still the only group to make the AYP graduation target, Black White 73% 67%
Black 74% 57%
student made the greatest gain, with a 14% gain in graduation rate and surpassing the
Latino 56% 49%
White graduation rate, in which White students made a 6% gain. Latino students made
Asian 87% 86%
a 7% gain but still lag far behind with a 56% graduation rate.
Poverty and Academic Achievement
Table 42. ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT AND STUDENT-TEACHER RATIO OF DISTRICTS - 2005

SINGLE-PARENT STUDENTS STUDENTS
2005 DISTRICT ENVIRONMENT
Source: State Education Data Center
ECONOMICALLY HSHLDS PER PER TOTAL
www.schoolmatters.com ENROLLMENT DISADVANTAGED W/CHILDREN TEACHER STAFF
Lancaster School District 11,134 62% 22% 14.8 8.2
Columbia Borough School District 1,461 38% 17% 14.0 7.6
Pequea Valley School District 1,937 20% 9% 14.7 8.0
Ephrata Area School District 3,995 18% 11% 15.8 9.0
Eastern Lancaster County School District 3,469 16% 9% 16.4 9.0
Manheim Central School District 3,138 16% 10% 16.1 8.6
Conestoga Valley School District 3,921 15% 10% 16.5 9.1
Solanco School District 3,940 14% 11% 17.9 8.5
Cocalico School District 3,606 14% 10% 16.9 9.0
Penn Manor School District 5,406 13% 10% 16.8 9.7
Hempfield School District 7,261 13% 12% 16.6 9.2
Donegal School District 2,693 12% 13% 15.9 7.9
Warwick School District 4,576 11% 10% 16.1 9.1
Elizabethtown Area School District 3,963 10% 10% 17.2 9.1
Manheim Township School District 5,417 7% 9% 15.6 9.2
Lampeter-Strasburg School District 3,223 7% 8% 15.4 7.9
The literature shows a strong link with the economic status of the population and academic achievement. The
most significant is the impact of the concentration of poverty on school performance. In his analysis of Title 1 in the
year 2000, Michael J. Puma states,
“Research has shown that the conditions of poverty can severely reduce access to the educational
supports and experiences that children need to be successful in school ... poverty — at both the individual
and the school level — is strongly associated with decreased school performance. Poor children achieve at
85
a lower level, are twice as likely to be retained in grade and are one-third less likely to attend college than
their more advantaged peers (Children's Defense Fund, 1998). The picture for minority children is even
worse... there is an equally ominous gap in achievement between students who attend high- and low-
poverty schools. [The] data support the premise that school-level poverty can be an even more important
factor in predicting school achievement than a student's individual economic conditions... the 1986
National Assessment of Chapter I concluded that the "achievement scores of all students—not just poor
students—decline as the proportion of poor students in a school increases."29
All entities involved in this issue acknowledge that the problems are multifaceted and the impact of poverty,
cultural differences and language place certain areas and populations at a disadvantage. Many Latinos believe that
the “deficit model mentality” among some educators have contributed to the problems. According to the deficit
model:
“Many educators acknowledge that the reasons for the historical academic underachievement of Latino
students could be inappropriate cognitive, cultural and linguistic teaching methods. However, they do not
believe that their own teaching methods or tools cause students' problems; rather, it is the students who
are not "regular" and who have "special" needs…These assumptions have absolved teachers from the
need to critically analyze whether their teaching methods are equally effective with all student populations
... even the most pedagogically advanced strategies are ineffective in the hands of educators who believe
that ethnic, racial and linguistic minority students are at best culturally disadvantaged and in need of
fixing, or, at worst, culturally or genetically inferior and consequently beyond help. Explanations for the
academic failure of Latinos (described as historical, pervasive and disproportionate) have traditionally
relied on such a deficit-based model.”30
Table 43. ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT AND STUDENT-TEACHER RATIO OF SDOL SCHOOLS
ECONOMICALLY STUDENTS PER MAKING

2005 SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT ENROLLMENT DISADVANTAGED TEACHER LATINO WHITE BLACK ASIAN AYP?
ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS
King 549 99.5% 15.3 73% 4% 22% 0% No
Carter and MacRae 409 99.3% 9.8 69% 7% 24% 0% No
Fulton 446 95.3% 15.4 53% 21% 26% 1% No
Price 421 91.5% 13.6 55% 17% 28% 1% No
Burrow 349 90.5% 11.8 50% 18% 26% 5% Yes
George Washington 606 88.9% 13.3 71% 3% 25% 1% No
Ross 340 73.2% 16.2 40% 29% 26% 5% No
Wickersham 462 72.7% 16.2 50% 20% 23% 6% Yes
Hamilton 366 68.9% 20.0 46% 25% 25% 4% No
Lafayette 476 67.7% 17.0 45% 31% 21% 2% No
Thomas Wharton 263 56.3% 19.8 30% 52% 16% 2% Yes
Elizabeth R Martin 273 41.0% 16.4 33% 43% 21% 3% Yes
James Buchanan 423 38.1% 15.1 29% 56% 11% 4% Yes
MIDDLE SCHOOLS
Hand 600 82.7% 14.3 67% 9% 25% 0% No
Reynolds 580 87.2% 13.2 52% 22% 25% 1% No
Lincoln 688 71.7% 13.0 50% 18% 26% 5% No
Wheatland 676 54.3% 7.2 37% 33% 26% 4% No
HIGH SCHOOL
J.P. McCaskey Campus 3,026 25.7% 21.0 49% 23% 24% 3% No
29
http://www.nsba.org/bookreports/title1/PartI.htm
30
29 Enrique T Trueba and Lilia I Bartolome, The Education of Latino Students: Is School Reform Enough? ERIC Clearinghouse on Urban Education
New York NY. ERIC Identifier: ED410367, Publication Date: 1997-07-00
86
School Demographic Change
Figure 26. SDOL STUDENT POPULATION CHANGE

Source: School District of Lancaster
White Latino Black Asian

54%
49%
46%
42%
41%
36% 38% 39%
35%
29%
24%
23% 23% 23%
20% 21% 20%
19%
3% 3% 3% 3% 3% 2%
92-93 94-95 96-97 00-01 03-04 06-07
There is little doubt that the SDOL student body over the last three decades has experienced a dramatic cultural,
linguistic, and socioeconomic demographic population shift. In 1976, Latinos represented only 13% of the School
District of Lancaster. Latino families had started to settle in Lancaster in the nineteen fifties and sixties but was a
fairly small segment of the population. Yet by
Table 44. LATINO STUDENT GROWTH
1970, the school district had already become
75-76 82-83 92-93 96-97 00-01 03-04 06-07
aware of the need to address the cultural and
13% 23% 36% 41% 46% 49% 54%
linguistic differences. In 1971, in response to
1463 2245 3887 4645 5064 5464 6492
complaints by Latino parents regarding their
11,138 9876 10750 11314 11121 11045 11983
concerns about the quality of education being
provided to Latino students, which included a lack of cultural sensitivity, overrepresentation in Special Education
programs and the need to address the language needs of children whose primary language was Spanish,
Superintendent Glass recruited Iris MacRae. Mrs. MacRae, a native of Puerto Rico, had been teaching at Conestoga
Valley School District for over 13 years and had developed the Spanish language curriculum for teaching Spanish.
When she arrived at SDOL, there was an ESL program in place for helping students to learn English but it was not
seen as sufficient. By 1973, Iris MacRae had begun to put in place a bilingual education program.
During the 1970s the Latino population began to arrive in Figure 27. NEED FOR BILINGUAL/BICULTURAL
PROFESSIONALS IN SDOL
increasing numbers and was emerging as an increasing SDL STAFF SURVEY
percentage of the SDOL student population. In the 1994-95
Don't Know
school year it became the majority ethnic/racial population 2% Very Important
49%
in the district and in 2007, they comprised 54% of the
Not Important
entire student population in the district. 6%
While the growth of the Latino student population has

been significant, the recruitment of Latino professionals has Somewhat
Important
been feeble. In 2006, Latinos represented only 6% of the 13%
SDOL’s professional staff. The administration has been Important
30%
asked to address the need for Latino and bilingual/bicultural
professionals for over three decades by parents and
community leaders. The concerns have been two-fold—the need to have professionals with the linguistic ability
and cultural competency to address the needs of this population, and the desire for visible role models to provide
the message to students of what can be achieved and what they can aspire to. Most recently, in the SDOL survey
87
conducted for this report, SDOL staff overwhelmingly viewed the need for bilingual/bicultural professionals as
important—79% responded that it was very important or important and another 13% viewed it as somewhat
important. Only 6% did not view it as important.
Table 45. SDOL PERSONNEL PERCENT CHANGE 1999-00 to 2005-06

LATINO BLACK WHITE
% % %
1999-00 2005-06 CHANGE 1999-00 2005-06 CHANGE 1999-00 2005-06 CHANGE
Teachers and
Professional Support 38 5% 58 6% 53% 53 7% 63 7% 19% 709 88% 788 86% 11%
Administrators 7 7% 12 10% 71% 15 15% 14 12% -7% 75 75% 88 75% 17%
Secretaries/Clerks 12 19% 28 44% 133% 6 10% 8 13% 33% 45 71% 28 44% -38%
Aides 46 23% 65 34% 41% 35 18% 35 18% 0% 118 59% 88 46% -25%
Total 103 9% 163 13% 58% 109 9% 120 9% 10% 947 81% 992 77% 5%
Source: School District of Lancaster
In addition to the cultural and linguistic issues, the concentration of poverty in the city and the increasing
numbers of children living in poverty bring other challenges, discussed previously in this chapter, which must be
addressed to help these children achieve academically and not repeat the cycle of poverty that may be a
multigenerational reality in their families.
LANGUAGE MINORITY STUDENTS

During the past 34 years in the United States, the growing and maturing field of bilingual/ESL education
experienced extensive political support in its early years, followed by periodic acerbic policy battles at
federal, state, and local levels in more recent years. Too often the field has remained marginalized in the
eyes of the education mainstream…What we’ve learned from research has not been put into practice by
those decision-makers at the federal, state, and local levels who determine the nature of educational
experiences that language minority students receive. These students, both those proficient in English and
those just beginning to acquire English, have traditionally been under-served by U.S. schools.
School Effectiveness for Language Minority Students
Wayne P. Thomas and Virginia Collier, George Mason University
Bilingual/Bicultural Educators Views on Second Language Learning

The following are excerpts from interviews with bilingual/bicultural educational professionals with expertise in
working with language minority Latino students.
º I don't really believe that the way that the school district is doing the ELL program is the most efficient way of
doing it. I still believe in teaching in the native language at beginning so that the children are not lost. What's
happening in many other schools is that because they're sitting in a classroom not understanding what's going
on, they're not learning the content until they learn the language. Well, it could take two to three years-- for
them to learn enough English to understand the content and that's where we lose them. They get disillusioned
and frustrated. They don't want to go to school. Especially our high schoolers.
º I'm all for bilingual education if it's done right, and in our district it was never done right. It was never done
right because the emphasis was on English. It was never on creating bilingual children. It was to get rid of
the Spanish and to learn English. It's like taking a five-year-old and reducing him to a one-year-old and
teaching him to speak.
º The elimination of the bilingual education program had to do with politics; people complaining about the
money that was being spent on it, the taxes. It was very political and they used California with all their
problems as a measure. I was working in Carter McRae in 1985 and we still had bilingual classes. They didn't
do away with it until around 88 or 89.
88
º If child is very strong in his own language, he's going to do well in English and everything else. The district's
aim was never to keep those ties very strong. If they had looked at the research which indicates a minimum
of six years for a child to be completely bilingual, we would have had, I think, a greater amount of success.
But because of the political stigma attached to this, it's a two to three year allowance and that's it.
º Bilingual education for Hispanics has always been looked at with suspicion… I believe a lot of the controversy
in the country led a lot of non-Hispanics to focus in on this idea that they should be fluent in two years or that
they should be learning English faster. The research shows that it takes a lot longer than two years for them
to be competent in two languages because one language helps the other and they will be much more
successful in the long run.
º The district never bothered to read any of that research. They never bothered doing anything about it. When
I was in charge I always pointed out that fact all the time. Kids who are good in their native language have a
tendency to excel. I have all that research.
º Where I was, students went out for English as a Second Language and I believe skilled teachers are needed for
that and we have some. Unfortunately, the program was run by someone who wasn't skilled. She had never
taught ESL in her life. I couldn’t work under her because her ideas about how it should be taught went against
every belief I had.
º I work with Kindergarten and first-grades that pull my kids out for half an hour each day. I would love to see
us test children in a bilingual program and compare them to the children in our ELL programs and see the
difference. Yes they might acquire the language and speak it but that's no guarantee that later on they won’t
have problems. Many of them end up dropping out later on because they are so far behind academically.
º When I taught bilingual fifth and sixth grade when I wrote notes on the board in both in English and in Spanish
because I wanted the children to continue reading and writing in their language because it helps them. If
they're learning to read and write in Spanish as well they take those skills and apply them to English. We all
know that depending on how good they are in reading and writing in their own language then they shift that to
another language and language learning becomes easier. I'm a big supporter of bilingual education. Given
that it is truly bilingual.
The Issues – The Literature

A review of the literature on effective programs for language minority students overwhelmingly supports the
views that have been voiced by Latino teachers in the SDOL for the last three decades on the structure that best
serves Latino students that are English Language Learners. There appeared to be three basic concepts repeated by
the educational professionals with expertise in working with ELL students.
First, strengthening a child’s primary language is key to helping them transition more effectively to English
and will help them better grasp concepts in English, because they already have a grasp of those concepts in
their native language.
Second, teaching subject content in their native language while they acquire English language skills assures
that they will not fall behind academically and will provide the building blocks necessary for future academic
success when mainstreamed into regular English language classes.
Third, the language development needed to succeed academically takes longer than one to two years.
The constraints of this document does not allow for a full review of the issues related to second language
acquisition. Therefore, this section focuses on the expertise of SDOL educators expert in this field, who expressed
89
frustration over the lack of trust in their expertise and policy decisions they believe were made bowing to political
pressures rather than what was in the best interest of language minority Latino students. In addition we highlight
one of the most comprehensive reports on effective programs for language minority students, which analyzed over
700,000 language minority student records collected from 1982-1996 from five large urban and suburban school
districts in various regions of the United States where large numbers of language minority students attend public
schools. The report entitled School Effectiveness for Language Minority Students was authored by Wayne P.
Thomas and Virginia Collier of George Mason University.31
ESL and Bilingual Education in SDOL

In 1973, the School District of Lancaster established an ESL/Bilingual Education program addressing k-12 student
needs and parent involvement with the intention of building the students English language skills while providing
course instruction in Spanish in a bilingual setting and gradually increasing English instruction. This effort was led
by Iris MacRae (who was later honored with local Black educator, Elizabeth Carter, with the dedication of the
Carter-MacRae Elementary School.) The basis of the program was detailed in a 38 page document prepared by Iris
MacRae, Rhoda Lopez, and David Walborn entitled A Proposal for E.S.L./Bilingual Education. The following are
excerpts from this document:
A program for students whose dominant language is other than English has been formulated for the
School District of Lancaster in order to insure equal educational opportunity for these students. It is
imperative that we, as educators, begin to recognize the fact that the program English as a Second
Language alone cannot and does not answer the educational needs of the non-English speaking students
in our school system. It is therefore necessary that…we provide educational experiences in the student’s
native language while also providing instruction in E.S.L., in order to make the student functional in his
native language, as well as in English.
Ultimately the goal was:
…to make steady progress towards the earliest possible integration into the educational mainstream…to
insure access to the full range of educational experiences the community offers and, at the same time, to
preserve and develop his native language abilities as a valuable asset…
Four year later, Iris MacRae assisted by Rhoda Lopez developed a 100 page document entitled School District of
Lancaster Bilingual/E.S.L. Program: Revised – June 1977 describing the program and course materials in operation
of the program that had been established four years previously. The basic concept of transitional bilingual
education as a goal remained the same—“The successful development of the non-English speaking student, by
permitting him to learn in his first language, while he is learning to function successfully in English.”
In 1983, just prior to retiring, Dr. Iris MacRae develop a 47 page document entitled “School District of Lancaster
Bilingual/ESL Education and Services: Recommended Five Year Plan.” This document was an attempt by Dr.
MacRae to provide a basis for the continuation of the Bilingual/ESL Program. Copies of the document were
distributed to the administration and the various schools in the district. The plan recommendations included:
1. A continuation of the current program;
2. Evaluation by outside evaluators at a half-way point within the five year period and recommendations
based on evaluation results;
31
http://www.ncela.gwu.edu/pubs/resource/effectiveness/
90
3. A survey of administrators, teachers, counselors, students and parents similar to those contained within
the report; and
4. due to the large number of students from disadvantaged and non-English speaking backgrounds that an
array of services be developed that deal with the emotional, social, and economic needs, in addition to
the adjustment to a different culture and school.
In 1989, the bilingual education program was terminated by the administration and they reverted to providing
ESL, which in 1973 had been determined as not being sufficient to prepare Latino students for academic success.
There is a belief that the decision was politically rather than academically motivated. This mirrored the national
climate of the time, with a vocal English-only movement, in reaction to the increasing numbers of Latino
immigrants. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s bilingual education and bilingualism came constantly under attack.
Bilingual education was erroneously portrayed as keeping students from entering the mainstream rather than
facilitating their entry into the mainstream. This movement was reflected in some of the legislation of the time. In
1980 in Dade Country, Florida, voters passed the anti-bilingual ordinance prohibiting any voluntary expenditure “for
the purpose of utilizing any language other than English, or promoting any culture other than that of the U.S.” The
measure is repealed in 1993 but it demonstrated the growing anti-immigrant, mostly anti-Hispanic sentiment. In
1994, California passed Proposition 187, making it illegal for children of undocumented immigrants to attend public
schools. Later, the Federal courts ruled it unconstitutional. In 1998, California voters overwhelmingly (61 to 39
percent) approve Proposition 227, an initiative that eliminates the state’s bilingual education programs and requires
that all instruction be conducted in English. The continued national climate around the issues of immigrants and
bilingualism has continued to impact the local political environment.
School Effectiveness for Language Minority Students

In looking at the research related to what has proven to work in assuring academic parity for language minority
children, the report by Wayne P. Thomas and Virginia Collier of George Mason University on School Effectiveness
for Language Minority Student32 stood out in its global perspective of the issue. The findings of what works in this
report is echoed through numerous reports in the field and validates a number of the recommendations made by
Dr.MacRae in her proposals to the School District over three decades ago and the views of the teachers interviewed
working with language minority children
School Effectiveness for Language Minority Students investigates the “big picture” surrounding the effects of
school district instructional strategies on the long-term achievement of language-minority children. It includes
findings from five large urban and suburban school districts in the United States and analyzes over 700,000
language minority student records collected from 1982-1996. It provides a long-term outlook (rather than a short-
term view) of the required long-term processes necessary for English learners to reach full parity with native-
English speakers and emphasizes student achievement across the curriculum, not just English proficiency. The
study defines “success” as “English learners reaching eventual full educational parity with native-English speakers
in all school content subjects (not just in English proficiency) after a period of at least 5-6 years.”
The following are excerpts of a few key findings from the report33:
When students have the opportunity to do academic work through the medium of their first language, in
the long term they are academically more successful in their second language…students who emigrated to
the U.S., after having received several years of on-grade-level schooling in their home country, made
greater progress than similar groups of students who emigrated at a young age and received all their
32
http://www.ncela.gwu.edu/pubs/resource/effectiveness/
33
This study refers to the native/first language as L1 and to English as L2. For the sake of clarity I am substituting L1 with the term first language and
L2 with English in the excerpts from the study.
91
schooling in English in the U.S. with ESL support, in U.S. schools…the message from our findings is
overwhelmingly clear that all language minority groups benefit enormously in the long-term from on-
grade-level academic work in their first language. The more children develop their first language
academically and cognitively at an age appropriate level, the more successful they will be in academic
achievement in English by the end of their school years.
We have concluded that first language cognitive and academic development is a key predictor of academic
success in English… While any first language development is beneficial, for students to get the full power
of this predictor, they need to be challenged academically across the curriculum…do cognitively complex
school tasks appropriate for their age in their first language.
We have found that student academic achievement is highest when the bilingual/ESL staff at a given
school feels very positive about the school environment. In general, we have found that the school
buildings with the strongest socio-cultural support for language minority students are those that produce
student graduates that are among the highest academic achievers in each school district.
Cost-effectiveness and the duplication of existing services are issues that greatly concern every school
administrator. We have found that bilingual/ESL program models that find ways to integrate with grade-
level classes in the mainstream instructional program can be highly effective, if they are carefully planned
and implemented by well-trained bilingual/ESL school staff. A second function of the curricular mainstream
is to continue the cognitive challenge…Student groups who are separated from grade-level classes for
most of the school day for several years do not know the level of cognitive and academic work expected in
the mainstream…in our study with higher academic achievement have eliminated most forms of ability
grouping and tracking.
Since ESL-pullout programs…do not explicitly provide for students’ continuing age-appropriate
development in cognitive and academic areas while they are learning English, it is instructionally desirable
that students have shorter exposure to such programs. Continued exposure to such an instructionally
limited program would almost certainly produce larger gaps between English learners and native-English
speakers with more years of this type of instruction, since students’ cognitive and academic needs would
be unaddressed for a longer period of time.
Based on the study’s findings, the following are descriptions of the types of instructional programs for language
minority students in order of most effective to least effective based on long term success in the student achieving
academic parity with English native speakers:
1. Bilingual Immersion Education (also referred to as Dual Language Education): Academic instruction
through both native language and L2 for Grades K-12. Originally developed for language majority students in
Canada; often used as the model for two-way bilingual education in the U.S.
2. Two-Way Bilingual Education: (This is not really a separate model, but a variation of bilingual immersion and
developmental bilingual education.) Language majority and language minority students are schooled together in
the same bilingual class, and they work together at all times, serving as peer teachers. Both the 90-10 and the
3. Developmental Bilingual Education (historically referred to as Maintenance Bilingual Education; another term
used by researchers is Late-Exit Bilingual Education): Academic instruction half a day through each language for
Grades K-5 or 6. Ideally, this type of program was planned for Grades K-12, but has rarely been implemented
beyond elementary school level in the U.S.
92
4. Transitional Bilingual Education (also referred to as Early-Exit Bilingual Education by researchers): Academic
instruction half a day through each language, with gradual transition to all-majority language instruction in
approximately 2-3 years.
5. English as a Second Language (ESL) or English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) Instruction, with no
instruction through the minority language:
Elementary education:
o ESL or ESOL academic content, taught in a self-contained class (also referred to as Sheltered
Instruction or Structured Immersion--varies from half-day to whole-day)
o ESL or ESOL pullout (varies from 30 minutes per day to half-day)
Secondary education:
o ESL or ESOL taught through academic content (also referred to as Sheltered Instruction--varies from
half-day to whole-day)
o ESL or ESOL taught as a subject (varies from 1-2 periods per day)
6. Submersion: No instructional support is provided by a trained specialist. This is NOT a program model, since it
is not in compliance with U.S. federal standards as a result of the Supreme Court decision of Lau v. Nichols.
93
GRADUATES – POST HIGH SCHOOL ACTIVITY

In comparing the documented post-high school activity over a five year period (2001-02 TO 2005-06) of SDOL
students with students in the other county school districts, one glaring difference was that the SDOL had no
documentation of what over 36% of their graduates were planning to do after high school compared to the other
county schools who were able to document what close to 90% of their graduates were planning to do after high
school. We must question if this is an indicator of a gap in the availability of guidance counseling and support for a
significant portion of the SDOL high school students. While it appeared that higher percentages are going in to the
workforce in the other county school districts, it is a reasonable assumption that more of the unknown in the SDOL
would be entering the workforce than would have made plans to pursue higher education, which is more likely to
have been documented.
Figure 28
HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES SELECT POST-HIGH SCHOOL ACTIVITY 2001-02 TO 2005-06
Source: Pennsylvania Department of Education
SCHOOL DISRICT OF LANCASTER - 5 YR CUMULATIVE

4 YR COLLEGE 2 YR / COMM COLLEGE OTHER POSTSECONDARY WORKFORCE UNKNOWN
2%
F 43% 14% 6% 35%
ASIAN
M 38% 14% 9% 9% 29%
F
BLACK
28% 13% 7% 10% 39%
M 20% 12% 8% 17% 40%
F 34% 13% 6% 9% 36%

WHITE
M 29% 10% 7% 16% 35%
F
LATINO
20% 19% 8% 12% 37%
M 16% 13% 10% 18% 39%
COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICTS EXCLUDING SDOL - 5 YR CUMULATIVE

4 YR COLLEGE 2 YR / COMM COLLEGE OTHER POSTSECONDARY WORKFORCE UNKNOWN
F 66% 12% 4% 9% 5%
ASIAN
M 57% 11% 9% 11% 9%
F 42% 16% 13% 14% 9%

BLACK
M 31% 21% 10% 15% 14%
F 52% 15% 8% 14% 8%

WHITE
M 43% 10% 10% 21% 9%

LATINO
F 22% 30% 9% 15% 14%
M 23% 17% 11% 22% 13%
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Higher Education: Four-Year College

Latino students both in SDOL and the other county schools had significantly lower percentages going on to four-
year colleges than Blacks, Whites and Asians. The five graduating SDOL classes from 2001-02 to 2005-02 identified
only 18% of Latino students as going on to a four-year college compared to 24% Black, 32% White and 41%
Asian. During the same periods, in the other county schools combined, 23% of Latinos went on to a four year
college compared to 37% Black, 48% White and 62% Asian.
Two-Year College and Other Post Secondary Education

While Latinos are significantly underrepresented in those attending four-year colleges, a higher percentage are
enrolling in community colleges, other two year colleges and other
post-secondary schooling. In SDOL 47% of Latinas and 39% of While Latinos are significantly
Latinos were documented as going on to some type of underrepresented among those
postsecondary education. In the rest of the County 61% of Latinas attending four-year colleges, a
and 51% of Latinos enrolled in postsecondary education. Effective higher percentage is choosing to
career guidance of students in terms of postsecondary education attend community or other two
for an associate or other technical degree, with career and
year colleges or other post-
economic growth potential, can contribute greatly to the earning
secondary schooling.
power and economic status of the Latino population. For many
students with family obligations, this can provide viable alternatives to a healthier economic future and, hopefully
for some, breaking the multigenerational cycle of poverty. Often, the associate degree serves as a starting point
that can lead to further higher education depending on their career path.
High School Career Guidance

Among Latinos interviewed, there was the common experience of the lack of effective career guidance counseling
in the schools and support and instruction on becoming college-bound or pursuing other post-secondary education,
especially for a population that often comes from families for whom the college or other advanced educational
experience is not common and is often a mystery that seems unattainable. While prep schools and public schools in
more affluent areas have a strong emphasis on career guidance, a focus on preparation for SATs, college selection
and application process, for many urban Latino students this experience and guidance is minimal or lacking. Most
that have made it have indicated that the difference for them was that some individual interceded and provided
them guidance that was not available at home and was not provided at school. Among the Latinos interviewed were
a number of SDOL parents and alumni, in some cases both, who shared that this had been their experience in
McCaskey. Many believed that they or their children were steered toward less challenging vocational courses and
that not being encouraged to take the academic courses needed, which, in case they decided to pursue higher
education, limited their options.
A 2004 report by The American Council on Education and funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
addresses the very concerns posed by Latino community members, parents and professionals in Lancaster.
According to this report,
“The gap in K–12 academic preparation and college participation rates between White students and Black
and Latino high school graduates has widened over the last several decades…Underrepresented minorities and
low-SES [socioeconomic status] students often make their college preparations while constrained by a lack of
trained professionals to advise them. Moreover, within their schools and families, there exists a lack of college
95
knowledge, training, and advising, as well as the invisible barrier of their schools and teachers’ low
expectations of them…
The pathway to college is marked by vast disparities in

college preparation, college knowledge, and college
82 percent of students whose
culture within schools…In 1992, 82 percent of students
parents were college-educated
whose parents were college-educated enrolled in college
directly out of high school, but only 54 percent of students
enrolled in college directly out of
whose parents had completed high school, and only 36
high school, but only 54 percent of
percent of students whose parents had less than a high
students whose parents had
school diploma, immediately enrolled in college after high completed high school, and only 36
school (U.S. Department of Education, 2004)… percent of students whose parents
had less than a high school
Specific to counseling the report goes on to say,
diploma, immediately enrolled in
From research, we know that counselors influence college after high school
students’ aspirations, plans, enrollments, and financial aid
-U.S. Department of Education, 2004
knowledge. Meeting frequently with a counselor increases
a student’s chance of enrolling in a four-year college and if
students, parents, and counselors work together and communicate clearly, students’ chances of enrolling in
college significantly increase. Moreover, the effect of socioeconomic status on the college enrollment of low
income students is largely explained by the lack of counseling…
The enrollment of graduates in college is not built into public secondary school accountability systems, so no
staff member has primary responsibility for college preparatory advising, nor is there a regularly identifiable
K–12 staff member held accountable for graduates’ college enrollment. School counselors would appear to be
the logical choice to provide college access preparation and assistance, and are often assumed to be handling
this role, yet they typically are inappropriately trained and structurally constrained from being able to fulfill
this role in public high schools.
THE MILITARY
Traditionally, one of the alternatives to work or post-secondary education has been the military. The data from
2001-02 to 2005-06, showed Latino males as having the highest percent of enrollment in the military immediately
after high school. Among females, Latinas had the highest rate of enrollment. We did not assess to what degree the
current middle east conflict has impacted this as an alternative for graduates.
Table 46. HS GRADUATES ENTERING MILITARY 2001-02 TO 2005-06

LATINO WHITE BLACK ASIAN
M F M F M F M F
COUNTY DISTRICTS (EXCLUDING SDOL) 7% 2% 5% 1% 3% 1% 2% 1%
SCHOOL DISTRICT OF LANCASTER 3% 1% 2% 0% 2% 1% 2% 0%
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LATINOS GRADUATING FROM PA COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES

A review of graduates from Pennsylvania colleges and universities over the six year period of 1999 to 2005
showed that 9,699 Baccalaureate, 2,436 Masters, and 278 A review of graduates from
Doctorates were awarded to Latinos. These include Latinos who
Pennsylvania colleges and
are Pennsylvania residents and Latino non-residents coming here
universities over the six year
to study. The largest percentage received degrees in business,
period of 1999 to 2005 showed
management, marketing and related fields. The next highest area
was health professions, followed by education. In seeking Latino
that 9,699 Baccalaureate, 2,436
professionals, especially in the education and health fields, we
Masters, and 278 Doctorates
might want to consider targeting colleges and universities across
were awarded to Latinos.
the commonwealth and determining what types of competitive
packages we can put together to entice more of these professionals to Lancaster. As one community member
stated, “In any business setting you're going to have to be competitive for the talent and applicants that you
want. Why would a Hispanic or Black candidate choose to settle in Lancaster City or County if the area doesn't
support the lifestyle or level of comfort that they're looking for?
Figure 29
LATINO PROFESSIONAL AREAS OF INTEREST BASED ON DEGREES RECEIVED
IN PA UNIVERSITIES BETWEEN 1999 AND 2005 (BACCALAUREATE AND ABOVE)
Business, Managem ent, Marketing, & Related 20.2%
Health Professions & Related Clinical Sciences 10.4%
Education 9.0%
Social Sciences 8.0%
Psychology 6.1%
Engineering 5.5%
Visual And Perform ing Arts 4.9%
Com m unication, Journalism 4.0%
Biological And Biom edical Sciences 3.5%
Foreign Languages, Literatures, Linguistics 3.1%
English Language And Literature/letters. 3.1%
Legal Professions 2.8%
Public Adm inistration & Social Service 2.4%
Com puter & Inform ation Sciences 2.2%
Security & Protective Services 2.2%
12.6%
Other Areas of Study
0.0% 5.0% 10.0% 15.0% 20.0% 25.0%
Table 47. PA INSTITUTIONS: FIRST PROFESSIONAL DEGREES AWARDED 1998-99 TO 2004-05 (6 yrs cumulative)
Source: PA Department of Education LATINO LATINO TOTAL TOTAL - TOTAL - TOTAL
Division of Data Services MALE FEMALE LATINO MALE FEMALE DEGREES % LATINO
TOTAL 513 420 933 16,509 14,672 31,181 3.0%
Law (Ll.B., J.D. 166 160 326 5,710 5,005 10,715 3.0%
Medicine (MD) 177 140 317 3,899 3,268 7,167 4.4%
Dentistry (DDS, DMD) 72 46 118 1,338 862 2,200 5.4%
Osteopathic Medicine (DO) 25 21 46 1,535 1,082 2,617 1.8%
Divinity/Ministry (BD, MDiv) 35 6 41 1,708 717 2,425 1.7%
Pharmacy (BPharm, PharmD) 9 21 30 1,333 2,427 3,760 0.8%
Optometry (OD) 12 15 27 450 560 1010 2.7%
Podiatry (DPM, DP, PodD) 9 6 15 333 216 549 2.7%
Veterinary Medicine (DVM) 8 5 13 203 535 738 1.8%
PDE definition: First-Professional Degree - A degree based on at least six years of college work, usually granted in Dentistry, Law, Medicine,
Theology, etc. It signifies completion of the academic requirements to begin practice in the profession.
97
Table 48. DEGREES AND AWARDS CONFERRED BY PA INSTITUTIONS TO LATINO CANDIDATES AND LATINO PERCENT
OF ALL DEGREES AWARDED BY AREA OF STUDY AND LEVEL OF AWARD 1998-99 TO 2004-05 (6 yrs cumulative)
BACCALAUREATE MASTER'S
SOURCE: PA DEPT OF EDUCATION POST_BACCALAUREATE POST_MASTER'S DOCTORATE TOTAL
CIP CODE – AREA OF STUDY M F TOTAL % M F TOTAL % M F TOTAL % TOTAL LATINO %

01. Agriculture, Agriculture Operations, and
Related Sciences 18 37 55 1.7% 0 0 0 0.0% 1 1 2 1.8% 57 1.6%
03. Natural Resources and Conservation 16 15 31 0.9% 0 4 4 0.6% 0 1 1 2.3% 36 0.9%
04. Architecture and Related Services 38 40 78 3.0% 0 6 6 0.9% 1 1 2 1.9% 86 2.5%
05. Area, Ethnic, Cultural, and Gender 31 62 93 3.8% 15 18 33 5.2% 1 1 2 1.8% 128 4.0%
09. Communication, Journalism, and Related 183 327 510 2.1% 5 8 13 0.9% 2 4 6 4.1% 529 2.1%
10. Communications Technologies
/Technicians and Support Services 6 6 12 1.6% 0 1 1 1.6% 0 0 0 0.0% 13 1.6%
11. Computer and Information Sciences and
Support Services 191 67 258 1.4% 25 13 38 0.6% 2 2 4 0.7% 300 1.2%
12. Personal and Culinary Services 2 0 2 1.2% 0 0 0 0.0% 0 0 0 0.0% 2 1.2%
13. Education 121 473 594 1.2% 127 441 568 1.3% 15 18 33 1.3% 1,195 1.2%
14. Engineering 429 154 583 2.2% 101 31 132 1.5% 7 8 15 0.7% 730 1.9%
15. Engineering Technologies/Technicians 13 2 15 0.4% 4 1 5 0.9% 0 0 0 0.0% 20 0.5%
16. Foreign Languages, Literatures, Linguistics 102 239 341 6.3% 9 32 41 5.4% 15 17 32 9.8% 414 6.4%
19. Family & Consumer /Human Sciences 12 54 66 1.5% 1 4 5 1.4% 0 2 2 2.2% 73 1.5%
22. Legal Professions and Studies 9 15 24 2.1% 9 10 19 1.4% 0 0 0 0.0% 43 1.7%
23. English Language and Literature/letters. 105 250 355 1.7% 14 24 38 1.7% 8 10 18 2.5% 411 1.7%
24. Liberal Arts and Sciences, General
Studies, and Humanities 52 91 143 2.0% 18 21 39 2.4% 0 0 0 0.0% 182 2.0%
25. Library Science 0 1 1 0.6% 6 12 18 0.9% 0 0 0 0.0% 19 0.8%
26. Biological and Biomedical Sciences 145 235 380 1.7% 24 34 58 2.4% 14 14 28 2.0% 466 1.8%
27. Mathematics and Statistics 30 22 52 0.9% 5 2 7 0.7% 1 0 1 0.3% 60 0.9%
30. Multi/interdisciplinary Studies 95 114 209 2.2% 17 19 36 2.6% 1 4 5 2.1% 250 2.2%
31. Parks, Recreation, Leisure and Fitness 37 38 75 1.0% 5 6 11 1.1% 0 0 0 0.0% 86 1.0%
38. Philosophy and Religious Studies 91 38 129 2.5% 4 2 6 1.5% 4 1 5 1.4% 140 2.4%
39. Theology and Religious Vocations 44 21 65 1.9% 16 6 22 1.1% 6 2 8 1.7% 95 1.6%
40. Physical Sciences 78 40 118 1.3% 15 9 24 1.4% 11 5 16 1.3% 158 1.3%
41. Science Technologies/technicians 1 3 4 2.4% 0 0 0 0.0% 0 0 0 0.0% 4 2.4%
42. Psychology 139 552 691 2.4% 20 59 79 1.6% 13 31 44 2.8% 814 2.3%
43. Security and Protective Services 126 163 289 2.5% 6 2 8 1.3% 0 0 0 0.0% 297 2.4%
44. Public Administration and Social Service 28 120 148 2.3% 46 124 170 1.9% 1 1 2 0.9% 320 2.0%
45. Social Sciences 436 559 995 2.7% 34 33 67 2.3% 3 4 7 0.8% 1,069 2.6%
46. Construction Trades 4 0 4 0.4% 0 0 0 0.0% 0 0 0 0.0% 4 0.4%
47. Mechanic and Repair Technologies 1 0 1 3.8% 0 0 0 0.0% 0 0 0 0.0% 1 3.8%
48. Precision Production 0 1 1 1.1% 0 0 0 0.0% 0 0 0 0.0% 1 1.1%
49. Transportation and Materials Moving 1 0 1 2.5% 1 2.5%
50. Visual and Performing Arts 259 312 571 2.3% 30 51 81 2.5% 0 4 4 1.8% 656 2.3%
51. Health Professions and Related Clinical
Sciences 94 425 519 1.5% 70 206 276 1.4% 8 25 33 1.5% 828 1.4%
52. Business, Management, Marketing, and
Related Support Services 1,082 989 2,071 2.0% 366 257 623 1.5% 2 2 4 0.8% 2,698 1.8%
54. History (new) 124 91 215 2.1% 6 2 8 1.0% 3 1 4 1.5% 227 2.0%
TOTAL 4,143 5,556 9,699 1.9% 998 1,438 2,436 1.5% 119 159 278 1.6% 12,413 1.8%
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A PERSON WHO MADE A DIFFERENCE – HOW I MADE IT

Many successful Latinos in Lancaster came from disadvantaged background—some socioeconomically,
educationally, geographically and others from dysfunctional families. In examining how they overcame obstacles
and how they “made it” we found a strong commonality in that they encountered someone or more than one
person in their life that believed in then and provided them guidance, support and encouragement. Others who did
not find this early in their life, found themselves later in life carving out a path to a better life. The following are a
few examples of some typical stories of Latinos who made it despite the odds. Below are highlights of these stories
that you can read in full in Appendix A.
1. LATINO
Teachers became our parents. In the Bronx we had Ms. Sanchez who really cared for us…These were Latino
teachers who took an interest and who believed in us despite of where my family was at, at the time. They knew
about my mom and they knew about my dad but nevertheless believed in us and told we were smart. They
encouraged us. I'm the oldest; my sister comes after me and then my two younger brothers who are four to five
years apart from me. My sister went to Cheney University and she graduated. She's an underwriter for an
insurance company. My brother is in fact right now in Harrisburg Area Community College. He wants to be a
Respiratory Therapist. My other brother went to York Technical Institute and became a pastry chef. …since they
believed in us, we began to believe in ourselves and so our grades reflected that…So they told me…to go to
Manhattan Center High School for Science and Mathematics which is a college prep and they geared are towards
helping you get good grades and test better and get better SATs and they guide you towards college. So because
of those early teachers building me up and then advocating for my placement in junior high school and in high
school. They're the ones who really pushed me to believing I guess college is for me…I came here when I
decided to go to Millersville University…I think one of the key people who helped me was Dr. Rita Smith Wade-
El… I remember going to her when I was struggling with time management, getting my work done. She sat me
down and developed a class schedule for me and a study schedule. I was the first kid to go to school, so my
family had no clue what college life entailed. Some of the issues were that you're the oldest and the first person
to go to Millersville University, so they have high expectations of you and you don't want to let them down or let
them know you're struggling. . A lot of Latino students feel trapped between a projected image the family has of
them, and of not letting them down and keeping to themselves.
2. LATINO
When I was in high school my high school counselor was Juan Galarza. I did know what I was going to major in
but he found me an internship at a major insurance company—Educators Mutual. There actually wasn't an
internship program but there was an HR person who agreed to set up an internship program for one student but
they have to major in business and so I decided to major in business and I worked there every summer I worked
in every department. I learned the whole business. That's how you can make a difference in someone's life. One
internship for one student can make a difference. All this later prepared me to be able to run for office and
become the President of a premier economic development organization. This is what can result from that kind of
investment in one student…Actually Juan was not my formal counselor. I had a White counselor who did not help
me and Juan would informally identify 20 or 30 Latinos that he would help and push toward college. He drove me
to Ohio to check out a private school where I ended up going. Can you imagine a counselor driving you up to
Ohio? He took a bunch of us to a college visit. He helped me fill up my financial aid because my parents couldn’t.
This was one guy and it wasn’t really his job.
99
3. LATINA
I attended Washington Elementary, Higbee, Edward hand and then McCaskey. There weren't many Hispanics in
the school at the time. In high school I was given a minimal amount of guidance regarding going to college. I
always wanted to be a teacher but financially I didn't think I was able to go…My parents never talked to me
about going to college. No one mentioned my getting a college education. I worked as a teacher's aide for 3 1/2
years and the teachers at the Higbee Elementary encouraged me to go to college…they said, "Go get your
degree. You can do this."…I thought that once you graduate from high school, you got a job. So that's what I
did. In high school I didn't know any of my Hispanic friends who went straight to college. In fact my best friend
was number one in the class. She was very bright and she didn't go to college…She was number one of 550
students and Puerto Rican—quite an accomplishment, but no one advised her to go to college…I still lived at
home while I was a teacher's aide and I met my husband…he talked me through the process of applying for
school, financial aid, etc.. So I went to college because I was encouraged by the teachers I worked with and…was
helped by, what was then, my future husband, who guided me through the process.
4. LATINA
I dropped out of school in the 11th grade from McCaskey…I actually got my GED before my class graduated,
because after dropping out. I found I had nowhere to go and couldn't get a good job. So I made a vow to myself
that I would get my GED before my class graduated and that is what I did. I then was offered a position at
McCaskey working in the business department. I worked there for a year and a half then got a job at Wyeth Labs
making pretty good money as a laboratory inspector of the influenza vaccine. I then got a job in Millersville
University working for the assistant to the President for affirmative action. It was after I had a child, moved to
the Bronx for eight years and then came back to Lancaster that I decide to pursue an associate degree majoring
in paralegal studies at HACC. I was working at the Lancaster Bar Association and was informed there would be
tuition reimbursement…After obtaining the associate degree, I…jumped around a little bit in terms of jobs, and
then…while attending an event in Philadelphia with a friend and mentor, I shared with her my frustration with my
career and where I was going. I was in a dead-end to job with a law firm as a business manager. And she told
me that to move forward I needed to further my education and of the Human Services Masters Program at
Lincoln University, of which she was an alumni. She even offered to be my preceptor. When she said "This is
something you should consider. I know that you can do this..." She planted a seed in me that night, and I took
off after that. I'm glad I actually took her up on it. It was like a challenge I think. She challenged to me to
actually consider doing something different. Because of what I have learned things can be different for my
daughter. She constantly goes online to look at the different SAT requirements in the different campuses from
different colleges, including places like Harvard and Princeton. She can't wait to do that kind of thing. I think
what motivates her is a combination of what she sees that I'm doing and the different things that I've exposed
her to. In addition to the circle of kids that she is involved with, most of them aspire to go to college.
5. LATINA
When I was in high school I didn't know anyone who had gone to college and the teachers were not talking about
how you should go to college. They didn't talk about any of that. But I had a guidance counselor, bless her heart,
who although I didn't spend a lot of time with her, instead of giving me just a commercial diploma, which was
what I had asked for, so that I can work to support myself and help the family, she also gave me academic
courses and I ended up being in school much later. I went to school early in the morning and wouldn't get back
home until after six because I was working towards a double diploma. I'm glad that I was accepting of that. She
was very farsighted. She always said. "you never know." She wasn't Latina. She was just a very goodhearted
person. I tracked her down because I wanted to say thank you to her and it turned out that she retired here in
Lancaster…I have always been fortunate in having teachers that listened to me.
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YOUTH IN LANCASTER
LATINO YOUTH VOICES AND PERSPECTIVES
The following is a group of eight young people ages 14 to 19 representing current SDOL students and recent
graduates. The graduates were in Millersville, HACC, York Technical Institute and one was a 2007 graduate with no
current plans. Of the current students one attends Lincoln Middle School and the rest attend McCaskey. Prior to
coming to SDOL, one student had attended school in Puerto Rico, another in the Dominican Republic and one had
gone to Conestoga Valley.
[It's no secret that Latino Students in the SDOL are dropping out at about the rate of 50%. Why do you feel so many
Latino students are dropping out of school?]
º I think because they don't have the support or encouragement they need to keep on going. I know a lot of kids
who say "I don't want to do it. I don't want to come to school anymore." or "I hate school." and it's probably
because they don't have that encouragement or someone to push them. A lot of people don't have it at home.
º I'm just going to be real about it. We feel when the

teachers try to push us they're being hard on us because I know a lot of kids who say "I
they don't know where we're coming from or what we've don't want to do it. I don't want to
been through. When they push us, they're not as clear as come to school anymore." or "I hate
they should be. Now some will say, "I'm not trying to be school." and it's probably because
hard on you I'm just trying to help you because I know you they don't have that encouragement
can do it." I've had teachers who were straight up with me or someone to push them.
like that like "I know you can do it. I know you're smart."
and that motivated me. Other students who have that "I-know-it-all attitude, like I use to have, they don't
allow the teachers to comment on them. So then they feel that the teacher is coming down on them instead of
trying to help them, which creates a conflict and makes them feel like they don't want to be there anymore.
Their parents are like "Why are you being so tough on my kid? They're not doing anything." Lots of times there
is the language barrier. They believe the kid and not the teacher because sometimes the parents are ignorant
as well and they come from two different worlds and don't understand that the teacher is trying to help them.
They don't see it that way.
º There are some teachers who don't encourage you at all. They tell you "If you don't do it, you don't do it.
You're not going to do well at all." There are some teachers who encourage you and they do push you but
there's more bad than good.
[Do the teachers spend a lot of time in the classroom disciplining kids and taking that time away from teaching?]
º Yes. But it's been better because they have alternative schools and they send them out.
º Yes. It goes on everyday in my classes.
º Yeah, babysitting. I also think that the older generation of teachers who have some moral standing and
excellence, they’re retiring. So we're getting a lot of these young teachers who party at night so the standards
are different.
º I remember when we were at Lincoln, Mrs. B told us that they considered us "The Lost Generation" because so
many programs they tried on us just never worked and when we got to McCaskey they threw all these things
at us that we never learned. And every year we'd have new teachers, a different program and we never knew
what to remember and what to not worry about and I just think we ought to get back to the basic stuff like
101
Algebra and Geometry because now you have us doing this "Infogram". What the heck does shoelaces going
across the country in 1840 have to do with 2 + 2 = 4?
[Do you think if there were more Hispanic and Black teachers in the school district it would make a difference?]
º When we see one, we feel "There's someone we can relate to and who can relate to us and we want to learn
from them." At least that's how I felt. I'm not saying they would be any better, but we could relate to them
more. My White teachers, I like them just as much as the minority teachers I've had. But I've had only two
Black teachers and one Puerto Rican teacher my
whole school career and I got along with them just
I remember when we were at Lincoln,
as much as the White teachers I've had. But my
Mrs. B told us that they considered us
peers don't want to give the White teachers any time
"The Lost Generation" because so many
because we feel like "Who are you? You're trying to
come into my life, teach me and tell me I'm doing
programs they tried on us just never
wrong. Who are you to say that?" So yes, I think it
worked and when we got to McCaskey
would be better if we had them.
and they'd throw all these things at us
and we never learned that.
º I think, too, that we need people who are passionate
about what they do. I know some teachers, they're
so smart and they just teach, teach, teach, but there was this one teacher, Mr. Feeley, a mathematician, and
he was so excited when he came into our class. It was so interesting because at first you don't understand,
but you were so drawn to him because he loves what he's doing. He explains to you and he gives you all these
examples and he compares it to real life and that's when you start to understand. You don't get bored because
he's so hyper and you can see that he loves what he's doing.
º There are some teachers who are just there for the money and will throw a sheet of paper in front of you and
sit down.
[So it's a matter of dedication too?]
º Yeah. I had this one math teacher, thank God he left for the rest of the school year. He didn't teach us
anything. He would just give us a test. If we did good job on the test then that would be our grade. If we
didn't then that would be our grade. He didn't teach us. When he did, we didn't understand anything because
he was so unenthusiastic about it. When we got a substitute teacher I got A's and B's because he was actually
interested in teaching me instead of just giving me a test and saying, "You do it yourself."
º In 10th grade my History teacher, I learned absolutely nothing in that class because he would only give us
papers and, yeah, I would read about things but I didn't understand what in the world it was about and I
started to hate History because of that.
º There was a teacher who used to give us a poem every day, and that was it. Then we would discuss the poem
and do a little vocabulary and that was our day.
º He was the one who would sit and wait until everyone was quiet and if no one got quiet for the whole 50
minutes he wouldn't teach.
º He would get so upset. And it was one of those things where if you would say, "Can I go to the bathroom?"
and he would say, "I don't know. Can you?" If you would say, "May I go to the bathroom?" he would say,
"Okay you may go." He had this attitude every single day. No one liked him. I almost failed because of that
teacher. Because of that teacher I wanted to quit because he made you feel so low. Like if you tried and you
didn't get it right he would yell, get upset, and your conversation was finished. If you wanted to talk to him
about something you would have to make an appointment. Even one of our guidance counselors wanted to
talk to him about a student and he had to make an appointment.
102
[Have you ever been given the opportunity to evaluate your teachers?]
º I don't think that they'll ever ask us to evaluate them because there's a lack of teachers and I've heard so
many complaints about our teachers and it's like... nothing. They don't do anything.
[How much is language a problem?]
º One of my friends came here straight from the Dominican Republic and he used to tell me to tell the teacher
what he was saying and he could hardly understand what she was saying. He had ESL but it was only one
period so he didn't really understand so he just didn't do his work the whole year and he failed. There were
these two Dominican girls in my class too and I don't know if they were practicing but although they couldn't
speak English that well they comprehended because they were pretty smart.
[Why do you think McCaskey has a reputation for being one of the worst schools?]
º Okay. We are stereotyped! They say a lot of stuff about our school just because we have a lot of minorities.
Yeah, stuff goes on but you never hear about how stuff goes on in other parts of the county. They do their
stuff in secret but we're more open about it.
º I used to work at Wal-Mart in Manheim and this older

I really felt stupid in that SAT
man asks me "Do you go to McCaskey!" He acted like he
Prep because I didn't know anything
was amazed that I was alive. they were reviewing...but you know
what? Somehow, someway, the
º In McCaskey they teach you things but when you go to
White kids knew everything they
take your SATs you're seeing things that are totally
were talking about, but us, we didn't
different. In Manheim Township they have some stuff
where they equip them to be prepared and feel confident
know anything. I don't know how the
about taking those SATs.
heck that happened.
º In McCaskey you feel dumbed down.
º You're scared to take the SAT.
º That's why I didn't take my SATs because I was afraid of failing.
º They have that little program that they paid for you, but they wouldn't teach you anything. They told you to
get on that same program that you can get on at home and practice. But did it help you? Did it tell you what
to look at, what not to look at?
º I really felt stupid in that SAT Prep because I didn't know anything they were reviewing...but you know what?
Somehow, someway, the White kids knew everything they were talking about, but us, we didn't know
anything. I don't know how the heck that happened.
[So you did have a period where you considered dropping out of school?]
º Yes, if I could have I would have.
º Yeah, me too.
º Well the reason I stay in school is because failure is not an option in my house. You can't drop out. That's not
possible.
º Yeah. McCaskey has so many students and not enough staff. The classrooms are overcrowded, the teachers
feel overwhelmed and the guidance counselors are never there. They're either in meetings or out at
conferences... there's just not enough staff and not enough money to put out to get more staff either.
º My freshman class was one of the biggest they'd ever had and by the time we graduated we were one of the
smallest graduating classes ever. Like '06 was bigger than us. The guidance counselors would tell us all year,
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that first year, how we were one of the biggest freshman classes ever and by the end they were so shocked
that we were one of the smallest graduating classes. They went to alternative schools or Job Corp, Career
Link. They would just look at other options. Some left because of pregnancies, the drama at school; they didn't
like the teachers, got in trouble with the police...
º What a lot of kids do today, they drop out and think, "I can just go into the Army or the Marines."
º I also considered dropping out because of the way some of the

students act because nowadays they jump people. There are some
My freshman class was
guys they call pretty boys who think they're better than you and
they'll pick on you just walking down the street. That's happened
one of the biggest they'd
to me plenty of times.
ever had and, by the time
we graduated, we were one
[What's your experience been in Lincoln?]
of the smallest graduating
º To be honest. I hate school. Because of all the drama. Anything classes ever.
you do, anything you say, anything you wear, someone will be
like, and “I don't like it." You walk in the door and someone will
say, "I don't like your hair." The teachers will say, “if you don't do this we're going to give you detention.” You
drop your pencil, you pick it up you're going to get detention.
[If you drop your pencil? I don't get that.]
º Let's say you're told you can't get up out of your seat and your pencil falls and you go get it...
º Detention right away! And we have cops in our hallway now.
º Also at East and West.
º The other day there was a fight and they gave two fines of $300 in one day.
º Because they fought. But they were no where around the school. They'll give you a fine even if it's no where
around the school or on school property.
º That's because they're still responsible for you until you do get home.
º They shouldn't be fighting anyway.
[So you're talking about a $300 fine which is actually a fine the parents are required to pay?]
º They've been doing this for quite a while now. Even when I was in school a few years ago. I don't think they
were as strict with it as they are now.
º I don't know about East but at West they used to have Peer Mediation and you were basically forced to attend
that if you got into a fight. And it really helped because the fights started to die down because people did not
want to go to Peer Mediation. When you went there you had to solve your problem or go to Detention or
whatever. But it did help.
º Because in Peer you found out deeper things. Like other people were dealing with stuff at home and when
something happened at school they'd just blow up.
º One time I went to Peer Mediation and it really changed my view of the other person because while we were
talking I found out a lot of stuff about her that I didn't know and after that we really became good friends.
[What is your overall impression of the job that school counselors are doing in the school district?]
º My counselor was always there for me. I wanted to drop out and go to Phoenix and he wouldn't let me. For me
he was very helpful. He would always listen and push and encourage me. He told me that I was one of his
104
toughest students and the change in me now makes him proud. He always went out of his way to make sure
you were okay. That's just my experience. I do feel like there aren't enough guidance counselors.
º I haven't met my guidance counselor yet.
º There's not enough. My counselor was always there for

me…He would always listen and push
º I don't like mine. You'll go to her for a problem but
and encourage me. He told me that I
then she'll push you like "You'll have to start talking, or
you'll have to do this or that." and then when you open
was one of his toughest students and
up she'll push you away because she has to go do this
the change in me now makes him
or she has to go do that. proud…That's just my experience. I
do feel like there aren't enough
º Both counselors I had during my years at McCaskey
guidance counselors.
were really good. They really encouraged us. We
actually talked about more than just school. He
actually cared and I don't think there's a lot of guidance counselors out there like that who actually care about
what's going on at home. I think that's one of the things that motivated me. Also, one of my teachers, she
showed me that she really did care about me, other than my school work, and I hated the class but went
because of her. I wanted to drop out but I stayed because of her because she encouraged me and she cared.
[Now that some of you are out of school when you look back on you experience in SDOL do you consider it a good
one... one that you're glad to be done with... what's your perspective on that?]
º Hearing about all the other school districts I think it was a good choice to go to McCaskey. I really enjoyed
being there even though there was some little stuff going on here and there, I really liked being there. There
are a lot of things you learn. Not just in the classroom. Getting to know people. The diversity. The different
cultures, the different backgrounds and things that they've been through, you can really relate.
º College is a whole different thing.
º I think I could have had a better education.
º There's so much you can get involved in like clubs and stuff like that. I was proud to go to McCaskey.
ABOUT GANGS
º I'm not sure it was a big problem. I know once we were scared after school because we heard there was going
to be a drive-by. But they're not gangs. Not real gangs. I mean there's a gang called "The Goonies". They just
want to make a name for themselves. They want to feel important. That someone is there that's going to back
them up. If they could get that in school they wouldn't go looking for gangs. If they could get teachers and
counselors like the two we had I think it would be better.
[So your experience when you were in school two years ago, that there wasn't that much of a gang presence there?]
º Well when we were there that's when it started to become a problem. The year before that there was nothing.
But then there were almost fights every day.
º But now, since school started this year there's been a fight every day.
º There's a group of girls who have made themselves into a little gang and they fought after school, in my block
and they got arrested.
[What's it like being a teenager in Lancaster? What do you do? Where do you go?]
º Right now I just go to school and church and work.
º I'm always over at my friends’ house. I sleepover or what have you. Hang out. Go up to the library.
105
º Also there's the pressure of friends telling you to do

this and that. You don't want to but you feel the "I think that's why there are gang
pressure because you don't want someone to make problems and so much violence
fun of you, look at you in the wrong way, or for them because there's nothing to do. If
to think. "Oh you think you're better than us. you're looking for something to do,
º "I think that's why there are gang problems and so
free of cost, the only thing there is to
much violence because there's nothing to do. If
chill and do nothing.
you're looking for something to do, free of cost, the
only thing there is to chill and do nothing. If you're going to pay for something it's the movies, maybe bowling
and... I don't know. There's hardly anything to do. It really is hard growing up in Lancaster. Every one that I
talk to have had the same experience. And at lot of people, especially in the city have problems at home and
all this stuff and there's no where to run. There's people who can't even communicate because there's no one
to talk to. Even young kids, they have no one to talk to.
º I think if there were more things to do probably the violence and all the drugs and stuff would go down. I
remember one of my friends telling me that he smokes because he's got nothing better do. He drinks because
there's nothing else to do.
º [There's a lot of concern on the part of the public that the gang situation in Lancaster is on the rise and more
kids are getting involved with them. Have you seen that in your circle?]
º Some of my friends were gang leaders and they're people that you would never imagine.
º Girls are "Queens".
º One of my friends was like, “Yeah, join the gang and be one We need more programs that
of the cool kids.” The truth is, if you're in a gang that's how actually show us our value
you're considered. There are people who, when I first met because there are so many people
them, were all quiet and shy, and then when they create who think they are worth nothing.
their gang and people start joining all of a sudden they're
I was one of them.
like the popular kid.
º It's just people trying to belong somewhere.
º We need more programs that actually show us our value because there are so many people who think they are
worth nothing. I was one of them. I remember two of the girls here telling me I was worth this and worth that
and I was like, "What are you talking about?" because I never thought I was worth anything.
º A lot of people don't know what to do and they'll tell you, "Well I never got taught that." There are mothers
who want to be best friends with their daughters instead of being a mom. When we have mothers who are
hard on us because they want us to succeed you feel like, “Why can't she be more like those other moms?”
and there's conflict there. Moms should be moms and friends should be friends and there should be no in-
between.
º That's why I feel we should be educating these kids about morals at an early age because you have so many
mothers that are teenagers, who don't know how to be mothers and that's what they're showing their kids.
But if we teach these kids when their young, they'll remember that and will pass those lessons on to their kids.
I have a suggestion for the school district. I think that at the elementary level kids should have some kind of
lessons on morals. You know she was saying that if she dresses a certain way or if they look a certain way
she's made fun of. Nobody is teaching these kids that they shouldn't be doing that. If they're taught this when
they're kids, when they get to middle school or high school they won't act that way.
[If you could design a place where you would like to hang out, what would it look like?]
106
º I'd like to learn how to skate.
º I think it would have lots of activities. Basketball. Different rooms. Learn how to play the guitar.
º Stuff that you could try out to find out, "Hey I'm good at this." I didn't know what I was talented at until a
couple of years ago and I'm 17. Kids don't know what they're good at.
[Let me ask all of you a hypothetical question. If and when you have children, would you like to raise them in
Lancaster?]
º No.
º I don't know because my experience is that Lancaster was kind of a refuge for us. I mean you really have to
look for the help but when you do find it... Lancaster really helped our family. I love Lancaster. This is my
home. I wouldn't want to live anywhere else.
º I would want to raise my kids here.
º I would go out to the suburbs, somewhere out of the city, small town.
º I live on Pershing. Yeah, I've sat on my porch and witnessed shootouts in broad daylight, but that's my home.
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LATINO ADULTS ON LATINO YOUTH IN LANCASTER

º The fathers today are afraid to discipline their kids, because they're afraid they might get arrested. Some
kids threaten their parents and say if they hit them they will call the police. My daughter said that to me,
and I smacked her and gave her the phone and told her go ahead and call them.
º The kids know the system. They know it better than you do. Some will try to bully you and get away with
things. If you're a strong parent, they can't bully you…My youngest boy gave us a hard time, but he was a
good kid and by being there and staying on top of him, my husband and I kept him in line. I don't believe
you have to use physical discipline. It's a matter of whether it's one parent or two parents, being there
constantly, staying on top of them and not letting them quit.
º I think academic failure is partly the responsibility of parents

and the emphasis, motivation and encouragement they instill I feel there needs to be sort
in their kids. They lack that home support, at times, but even of a tipping point where it's
in homes where that support exists, I think the peer pressure ok to be smart. Not only is it
in teen culture to fit in is tremendous. If you excel in okay, but it's celebrated…
academics sometime you can be ridiculed for "acting White" or
for trying to move beyond, or that you're a snob for trying to engage in certain activities in sports or other
extracurricular things. I feel there needs to be sort of a tipping point where it's ok to be smart. Not only is
it okay, but it's celebrated, and I don't know if we see enough of that.
º We live in the United States and there are many serious problems for young people of all races but it's
intensified for poor kids. When you are poor, Hispanic or Black you deal with racism, low expectations in
some cases, and you deal with a culture that tells you you're supposed to be a thug, a gangster or have
lots of babies and work in a factory. That's the expectation that's easier for these kids to fall into because
the mold is set and the box is ready for you to just fall into. If you say, "I don't want to do that. I don't
want to work in the local factory, I have other ambitions, it's sometimes difficult to find people who will
support and encourage that.
º My kids went to public school in Lancaster; McCaskey and middle schools here. I think, partly because of
who their parents were and the kind of conversations we had with them, they had a pretty good
experience in school. But I remember, my son in particular, having a lot of peer pressure and being told
"you’re acting White" if he spoke a certain way or if he wasn't interested in certain things he was accused
of acting like a White boy. I remember while in middle school he came home once on the verge of tears,
telling me that. He was like "Dad, I know you want me to do certain things but it's hard and I get made
fun of. I want to have fun in school and I want to have friends. I don't want to be on the outs.”
º I was born and raised here of Puerto Rican parents. When we were younger, we only had the Boys and
Girls Club. We have to provide more for our youth. A lot of our young people are not going to college. We
have to inspire our youth and give them something to look forward to and give them something to do in
the future. They are not going to college, they grow up in the streets and end up working at McDonald's
and we need to be a positive influence for them.
See additional comments in Appendix A
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SCHOOL DISTRICT OF LANCASTER STAFF SURVEY

Since it was determined that education was at the core of the issues impacting the socioeconomic status of
Latinos, a survey of SDOL was conducted to get their perspectives on the issues affecting the academic status of
Latino students. The ability to effectively serve the Latino language minority population has been an issue of
controversy and debate for over three decades, with many past and present Latino educators in the District feeling
that their knowledge and expertise in this area has been ignored and at times rebuffed.
Interestingly, Latino teachers are not the only ones expressing that they have not been listened to or heard. This
is a common complaint among teachers in the District, with some stating that there are consequences for speaking
out. In 2007, at a gathering for two school director candidates, an SDOL non-Latino teacher indicated that teachers
will not speak out about the things they believe to be wrong in the District because it was clear that those
statements would be held against them by the administration. A local consultant, working with another
organization on Latino issues, discussed this study and indicated that she knew teachers who had not responded to
the survey out of the fear of who would see their responses. It was outside the parameters of this study to assess
whether their fears are grounded in reality as it relates to recent school administration or based on a long term
experience with past administrations.
METHODOLOGY
An online survey was developed and the administration gave permission for the distribution of the survey via
school email. SDOL staff was notified via email and directed to the online survey. Within days after sending the
emails we received 45 responses. Shortly thereafter, we received a number of emails from staff attempting to
respond complaining that our site was being blocked by the school district’s Internet filters and thereby prohibiting
their access to the survey. We attempted to contact the administration to resolve this issue, and sent a follow-up
email to SDOL staff encouraging those unable to access the survey via school district computers to complete the
survey on-line via a non-SDOL personal computer. An additional 59 surveys were received following the second
email bringing the total number received to 104. The SDOL Internet access issue was not resolved. Approximately
1000 emails were sent and 104 responses were received for a response rate of 10%.
The respondent demographic data was primarily collected through partial open-ended questions; information
regarding issues of concern was elicited utilizing some Likert Scale questions and a number of open-ended
questions to allow independent feedback unguided by a predetermined list. Due to the qualitative nature of the
study, the open-ended questions allowed for expanded feedback from staff. Open-ended questions were sorted
into categories that then were quantified in terms of the issues that emerged.
Respondent Demographics
Eighty-three percent of the SDOL respondents were or had been teachers and 20% were or are ESL/ELL
instructors. In addition, 3 principals and 7 current or former assistant principals or deans of students participated.
The respondents represented a broad range of current or former positions including educators, administrators,
specialists and other staff. Educationally, 41% had Bachelor degrees, 52% held Master’s or Master’s Equivalency,
1% had Doctorates and 6% had completed high school, vocational/technical or some college. Three quarters of the
respondents were female. The respondents somewhat reflected the racial balance, although Latino professionals
responded at a rate higher than their actual representation see Table 51. Seventy-seven percent of the respondents
were White, 16% Latino and 6% Black. The majority had been educators for eleven years or more. Fifty-three
percent had a Master’s degree or higher. Sixty-four percent identified themselves as knowledgeable or very
knowledgeable of issues affecting Latino students and another 31% considered themselves somewhat
knowledgeable. Forty-four percent indicated that their ability to communicate in Spanish with students and parents
109
was good to excellent, 38% indicated it was poor to none. Eighty-seven percent indicated that 40% or more of the
students they serve are Latino and for fifty-four percent, Latino students represented over 60 percent of the
students they served.
Table 49. RESPONDENT DEMOGRAPHICS

GENDER RACE/ETHNICITY AGE YEARS AS EDUCATOR
TOTAL SDL
Female 75% Respondents 21-29 17%
0 to 5 19% 32%
Male 25% 30-39 20%
White 77% 6 to 10 23% 29%
40-49 26%
Latino 16% 11 to 15 13% 11%
50-62 37%
Black 6% 15 to 20 19% 11%
Other: 1% 21 or more 25% 18%
KNOWLEDGE OF ISSUES ABILITY TO % OF STUDENTS
AFFECTING COMMUNICATE IN YOU SERVE THAT
EDUCATION LATINO STUDENTS SPANISH ARE LATINO?
Doctorate 1% Very Knowledgeable 18% Excellent 17% 0-20% 3%

Master's Degree 49% Knowledgeable 46% Very Good 14% 21-40% 9%
Master's equivalency 3% Somewhat Knowledgeable 31% Good 13% 41-60% 33%
Bachelor's Degree 41% Limited 4% Fair 16% 61-80% 20%
Graduated High School/GED 2% Little to none 1% Poor 26% 80-95% 21%
Vocational or Technical School 2% None 12% 95-100% 13%
Attended College-did not Graduate 2% Other 2% Other. 2%
Table 50. RESPONDENT PRESENT OR PAST POSITION IN SDOL

N* %
Teacher 83 80% Responses to “Other”

ESL/ELL 21 20% coach (2) Enrichment Facilitator
Community School Director Outreach Paraprofessional
Asst principal/Dean of Students 7 7% computer specialist Principal's secretary
Guidance Counselor 5 5% Coordinator of Testing, Research & Project Specialist for Safe
Evaluation Schools/Healthy Students
Teachers Aide 5 5% Coordinator, Future Planning Center School Nurse (3)
Instructional or SLC Facilitator 9 9% Extended Day Specialist School to Work Coordinator
Intro to Foreign Language Spanish
Administrative Support Staff 6 6% Literacy Coach (2) Speech-language therapist
Principal 3 3% Media Specialist (3) Teen Parent/ELECT Staff (2)
Office of Teaching and Learning Title I Reading Tutor
Other 27 26%
*This column may add to more than 104 since some respondents had more than one role.
Of the 58 Latino professionals in the SDOL 14 Table 51. 17 LATINO RESPONDENTS DEMOGRAPHICS
responded to the survey, a response rate of 24%. In Education Years with SDOL
addition, 1 Latino administrative support staff person Bachelor's Degree 6 35% 0 to 5 6 35%
and 2 Latino paraprofessionals who work with Master's Degree 8 47% 6 to 10 4 24%
Other: graduate with some
students also responded—all of whom have been college 2 12% 11 to 15 2 12%
working for the school district for more than fifteen Graduated High School/GED 1 6% Over 15 5 29%
years. Eight had master’s degrees while another six Positions Held Past or Present Age
had bachelor’s degrees. Twelve of the seventeen Teacher 12 71% Under 30 3 18%
were, or had been, teachers and seven had Have taught ESL/ELL 7 41% 30-40 4 24%
experience teaching ESL-ELL students. The Administrator 4 24% 40-55 8 47%
administrators that responded included a principal, Counselor 1 6% Over 55 3 18%
two assistant principals and one program director. Administrative Support Staff 1 6%
More than half had children that had gone to SDOL. Paraprofessional Aide or Support 2 12% Gender
Of the 17 respondents, ten were females and seven Children have attended SDOL 9 53%
Male 7 41%
were males. The majority were over forty and six Female 10 59%
had been with the school district for five years or less, four were there six to ten years and seven had more than
ten years experience in the district.
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SDOL’S EFFECTIVENESS WITH LATINO STUDENTS

Staff was asked to rate the SDOL’s effectiveness with Latino students from poor to excellent in several areas.
They were given the opportunity to opt out of the rating if they felt they did not have enough knowledge to respond
to the question. The responses were then graded based on the 4.0 grading system—the don’t know/not sure
responses were not counted in the rating. Overall, SDOL was given a grade point average of 1.54 (letter grade
equivalent of D+) on their ability to serve Latino students effectively in the areas identified. The area with the
highest rating was 1.83 and the lowest was 1.27. The lowest ratings were on addressing the factors that led to
Latino school dropout and having effective programs and policies related to the teaching and mainstreaming of
Latino students.
Table 52. Rate the SDOL’s effectiveness with 4.0 3.0 2.0 1.0 0.0 Don't Know/ GRADE
Latino students in the following areas: Excellent Very Good Good Fair Poor Not Sure POINT AVG*
Bridging the Academic Achievement Gap 0% 8% 39% 36% 13% 5% 1.44
Addressing the factors that lead to Latino students
1% 10% 21% 30% 21% 17% 1.27
dropping out of school
Providing Career and Vocational Guidance 7% 15% 26% 16% 13% 24% 1.83
Providing College Preparatory Skills and Higher
6% 19% 17% 18% 15% 26% 1.79
Education Guidance
Providing an educational background that prepares
Latino students to be competitive in higher education 3% 17% 28% 18% 17% 16% 1.64
institutions
Addressing the Overall Needs of Language Minority
2% 15% 30% 35% 15% 3% 1.52
Children
Effective policy/programs related to teaching and
mainstreaming Latino children who are not fluent in 2% 11% 25% 37% 24% 2% 1.28
English
*The GPA for each question was based on the responses excluding the Don’t Know/Not Sure responses and assigning the following grade points: Excellent-4.0,
Very Good-3.0, Good-2.0, Fair-1.0 and Poor 0.0
TEACHER COMMENTS AND PERSPECTIVES

Rather than provide a predetermined list that might have influenced the responses elicited, staff was given the
opportunity to provide their views by responding to the following open-ended questions:
1. Identify the top three critical issues that you believe affect the academic achievement of Latino
students in the School District of Lancaster.
2. Name up to three factors that you believe contribute to the high dropout rate of Latino students in
the School District of Lancaster.
3. Can you identify any recent changes (within the past three years) implemented by the
administration that you believe will positively impact the academic achievement of Latino students?
4. What changes would you suggest the administration implement over the next five years that you
believe would positively impact the academic achievement of Latino students?
Open-ended questions were sorted into categories that then were quantified in terms of the issues that emerged.
The categories that are listed in the charts emerged from the responses provided. The charts are followed by
summaries of the concerns identified within the topic areas that emerged. You can view the actual responses in
Appendix C.
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Critical Issues Affecting Academic Achievement of Latino Students

Table 53. Identify
the top three critical issues that you believe affect the
academic achievement of Latino students in the SDOL
%
N
SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT—CURRICULUM--SOCIAL PROMOTION 63 61%
FAMILY: LANGUAGE/CULTURAL/EDUCATIONAL BARRIERS—
PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT 59 57%
LEP—ESL—ELL 35 34%
FAMILY ENVIRONMENT/DYSFUNCTION 22 21%
BEHAVIORAL/NEGATIVE INFLUENCES 19 18%
ECONOMIC DISADVANTAGE 13 13%
EDUCATION NOT IMPORTANT 10 10%
ABSENTEEISM 8 8%
EXPECTATIONS 6 6%
EDUCATION--NOT COOL TO BE SMART 5 5%
SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT—CURRICULUM—SOCIAL PROMOTION
The most identified issues had to do with the school environment and its impact on the educational process.
Among the concerns were: large class sizes impacting the ability to provide individualized instruction, the impact of
PSSA and the lack of a well-rounded curriculum, the lack of faculty diversity and Latino role models, a need to
involve Latino students in extracurricular activities, the need for more effective guidance counseling for students
related to either preparing them to enter college or other postsecondary educational programs, and the need for
professional development in the areas of understanding second-language acquisition and other training on more
effectively working with Latino students. Some respondents believe that the academic environment was affected by
a policy to promote students whether or not they have mastered the skills necessary to move on and indicated that
it was virtually impossible to fail a student. As a result, students had increasingly large gaps in their education,
especially in the basic foundation curriculum that determines future academic success. This was especially crucial
with students that were entering SDOL with poor educational backgrounds.
FAMILY: LANGUAGE/CULTURAL/EDUCATIONAL BARRIERS—PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT
Over half of the respondents addressed issues related to the disconnectedness between the family and the
teachers/school. This was related to a number of issues including: cultural and language barriers, low educational
levels of some parents and their ability to help children with homework, parents lacking an understanding of the
educational process and the resources available to them, a perception that parents do not understand the
importance of higher education, a lack of teacher knowledge in how to engage or outreach this population and a
need for the staff training on cross-cultural issues.
LEP—ESL—ELL
The third most identified issue affecting academic performance was the Latino student who was an English
Language Learner and the lack of an effective program to educate and mainstream these children. The need for a
bilingual education program was expressed in which the child was kept academically at grade level by teaching
them content in Spanish while building English language skills. Having mastery of the first language was seen a
prerequisite to be able to master concepts in a second language. Responses indicated that not enough time was
given to transition students due to a lack of knowledge about language acquisition. In addition, ESL was not seen
as consistent across schools within the district. Requiring ELL children to take the PSSA and have it count against
school and district scores was seen as unfair.
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FAMILY ENVIRONMENT/DYSFUNCTION
For some students an unstable and dysfunctional family life was seen as the issue most affecting their school
performance. Some parents were not seen as providing parental support or adequate discipline. The stressors faced
in single-family and blended-family households and teenage pregnancy were issues of concern. Transience was one
of the prominent issues identified with transient families seen as causing gaps in the child’s education.
BEHAVIORAL/NEGATIVE INFLUENCES
Issues of student discipline and bad behavior, lack of motivation and self-control were seen as disrupting the
learning environment. Other negative influences identified were teenage pregnancy and gangs. One respondent
indicated that some Latino students coming directly from the islands were typically well-behaved but then
developed behavior problems here due to the influence of more disruptive students.
ECONOMIC DISADVANTAGE
Poverty and economic need was seen as affecting the students’ ability to focus on academics in various ways
including the need to work to help the family economically, needing to take care of siblings so parents could work,
and working parents unable to be at home to supervise their school-aged children.
EDUCATION NOT IMPORTANT
There was a strong perception by some respondents that the Latino culture did not value education; that
education was not a priority in the household and, therefore, students did not spend time doing homework. Also,
they felt Latino students did not comprehend how education could improve their quality of life and afford them
greater opportunities in the future.
ABSENTEEISM
Absenteeism and tardiness were seen as chronic problems for some. In some cases, it was related to family
obligations where families needed them to translate when keeping social service agency and medical appointments.
EXPECTATIONS
Low academic expectations were seen as an issue but it was not clear if the expectation was that of the student
or the teacher.
NOT COOL TO BE SMART
Peer pressure related to appearing cool and the idea that being or acting smart is not cool was seen as
negatively influencing the goals of some students.
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Factors Contributing to the High Dropout Rate of Latino Students

Table 54. Nameup to three factors that you believe contribute to the high
dropout rate of Latino students in the School District of Lancaster
%
N
EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM 43 41%
FAILURE, FEEL INADEQUATE, FRUSTRATED, HOPELESS,
DISCONNECTED FROM SCHOOL 34 33%
ECONOMIC NEED 29 28%
PREGNANCY 23 22%
LACK PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT/SUPPORT 21 20%
GANGS, VIOLENCE, PEER INFLUENCE 9 9%
TRANSIENCY 8 8%
ATTENDANCE 8 8%
FAMILY ISSUES 7 7%
LACK ROLE MODELS 5 5%
LANGUAGE 5 5%
EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM
Issues related to the school system’s ability to serve the needs of students was the most identified issue related
to the high dropout rate of Latino students. The issues identified included: a lack of resources and supportive
services; not enough academic support; the lack of a solid academic foundation upon entering middle school and
high school which leads to high frustration levels and behavorial issues; the need for more encouragement of
Latino students to pursue higher education, support and guidance related to the preparation for higher education;
the need for more support staff to help with academic gaps and emotional/psychological issues; that teachers need
to know more about cultural differences and classroom management; sensitivity training for district officials; school
discipline is punitive rather than restorative; the lack of an effective connection with parents and students; the
need for afterschool programs; the need for more personalized attention; too much testing and too many
suspensions.
FAILURE, FEEL INADEQUATE, FRUSTRATED, HOPELESS, DISCONNECTED FROM SCHOOL
Student frustration, hopelessness, lack of motivation, low expectations of themselves, feelings of inadequacy,
lack of career goals, inability to envision a successful future, educational gaps; are all issues identified as
contributing to Latino student dropout. In addition, unaddressed academic gaps due to social promotion lead to
frustration and contribute to behavioral issues and truancy. Some students are viewed as seeing academic
achievement or higher education as unimportant or beyond their reach.
ECONOMIC NEED
Poverty and the need to work to support self or help family lead some student to drop out and take jobs that
don’t have a future. Some work and go to school tired due to the hours they are working.
PREGNANCY
The high rate of teenage pregnancy contributing to dropout is attributed to a number of causes including wanting
to get pregnant rather than attend school, dating men rather than boys their age, seeking to be loved and some
view it as being culturally accepted or encouraged. Some respondents indicated that there is a need to reverse the
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perception that this is a positive event and to create an awareness that they are likely assuring a life of poverty for
themselves and their child.
LACK PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT/SUPPORT
Lack of parental support and involvement was seen as a contributor to dropping out. Some of the issues included
parent tolerance of "dropping out"; parents and students who undervalue what education can provide, a lack of
understanding of the importance of becoming competitive in a highly skilled job market and parental apathy.
EDUCATION NOT IMPORTANT
Some respondent indicated that education is not seen as a priority by some families and students did not believe
that education will improve their quality of life. Growing up in families where no one else has graduated from high
school, the importance of an education is overlooked; lack of understanding the importance of getting a good
education; completing high school isn't compulsory in the family and some simply don't seem to care. Some
respondents believe that there is a cultural disregard for education and obligations to church and family take
precedence which interferes with time needed to focus on homework and academics.
GANGS, VIOLENCE, PEER INFLUENCE
Gang membership and violence was seen as contributing to some students dropping out. Peer pressure the idea
of it being cool to quit school and uncool to do well in school were also seen as issues. Intervention to provide safe
and effective alternatives to gangs was seen as a need.
TRANSIENCY
Movement back and forth between schools and native country was identified as contributing to gaps in learning
and leading to student frustration. Moving from school to school was seen as a frequent problem, with many Latino
children continually moving back and forth to Puerto Rico or the Dominican Republic. Transience was seen as
making academic progress very difficult.
ATTENDANCE
Absenteeism; being disengaged from school and unable to catch-up were seen as contributors to dropout. On the
other hand, the lack of success in the classroom was seen as a causal factor in poor attendance.
FAMILY ISSUES
An unstable home life and lack of support for school at home were seen factors contributing to dropouts. The
need for support services to address the family issues was identified.
LACK ROLE MODELS
The lack of positive role models was seen as another concern in various settings including the school and
community settings. Role models were needed to provide some perspective of the possibilities.
LANGUAGE
Language barriers were seen as another issue impacting academic success and dropout.
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Changes Implemented Within the Past Three Years
Table 55. Can you identify any recent changes (within the past three
years) implemented by the administration that you believe will
positively impact the academic achievement of Latino students?
%
N
NO 42 40%
SUPPORT SERVICES—PROGRAMS FOR AT RISK 27 26%
ELL PROGRAMS—SUPPORT 17 16%
STAFFING—STAFF DEVELOPMENT 12 12%
CURRICULUM – TEACHING 8 8%
NO—NOT HERE THAT LONG 5 5%
OUTREACH TO PARENTS 4 4%
NO
Forty percent of the respondents could not identify recent changes implemented within the past three years that
they believed would positively impact Latino academic performance.
SUPPORT SERVICES - PROGRAMS FOR AT RISK
Several support services and programs needed for at-risk kids were identified including: tutoring programs both
before and after school, PLATO programs, the Future Planning Center, Parent training, Twilight School, a number
of initiatives to identify middle school students in danger of dropping out and several alternative education settings
have been developed. The most identified initiative was the creation of the Phoenix Academy to provide alternative
graduation opportunities. In addition other efforts identified were the continuation of the International School;
more staff involved in directing students into available alternatives to dropping out; more of a push to get students
in LCCTC and area colleges part days; College Plannning workshop for all Juniors at HACC in conjunction with
parent college information nights and dinner; Small Learning Communities; more outreach to students who are
chronically absent; and increased services supporting family and individual student wellfare, health, and safety.
ELL PROGRAMS – SUPPORT
Additional staff and services related to ELL were identified, which included additional ELL teachers and support
staff, ELL/Spanish speaking teacher co-teaches with the regular teacher, a District Coordinator for ELL, increased
translation of materials, smaller classes for ELL students, enrichment and remediation programs, and additional job
postings with preference for bilingual/bicultural applicants.
STAFFING – STAFF DEVELOPMENT
Some progress in hiring and staff development was identified: some Latinos have been promoted to
administrative positions, additional ESL staff, and some workshops.
CURRICULUM – TEACHING
In the area of teaching and curriculum the following improvements were noted: use of a standardized common
districtwide curriculum; ELL teachers being trained to pre-teach students the concepts being taught in the
classroom; and offering Spanish instruction at the elementary level.
MISCELLANEOUS
Other positives identified were; addressing attendance; additional funding; partnership with the community
businesses; school resource officer; and uniforms in the middle schools and elementary schools
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Suggested Changes for SDOL to Implement
Table 56. What changes would you suggest the administration

implement over the next five years that you believe would positively
impact the academic achievement of Latino students?
%
N
CURRICULUM-SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT 28 27%
ELL-ESL – LANGUAGE 13 13%
OUTREACH TO PARENTS-FAMILIES 9 9%
COMMUNITY OUTREACH 5 5%
.
CURRICULUM-SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT
Staff made a number of suggestions to improve the school and learning environment including:
The need for open dialogue and conversation about common concerns and goals between the staff and
administration without fear of reprisals
More vocational programs targeting skilled jobs with a future rather than low wage low-skill positions
Smaller classrooms – better teacher-student ratio – This issue was one of the most emphasized
Not allowing students to move on without mastering grade level skills and concepts – Strong emphasis on this
issue
More availability of guidance counselors and more guidance counseling around higher education
Allow for more individualized instruction geared toward student needs
Training on multicultural issues
Improved discipline policies
The establishment of a district-wide Latino Advisory Committee
Place students based on ability, not age
Remedial or basics courses for students with little educational background before placing them in the
appropriate grades
STAFFING—STAFF DEVELOPMENT
There were a number of suggestions related to staff development and the hiring of more bilingual/ bicultural and,
preferably, Latino professionals to serve both language needs and provide role models. These included:
Hiring more staff trained in working with language minority students—ELL/ESL
Providing Spanish language instruction to non-Spanish speaking staff
Consulting with and appreciating the value of current Latino staff
Hiring more people with counseling, bilingual capabilities, and peer mediation strategies
Training staff on understanding language acquisition, cultural issues and classroom management
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ELL-ESL – LANGUAGE
The need for improved programs serving ELL students. The opinions varied, with some more focused on ESL
while others felt strongly about the need for bilingual education. Others emphasized mainstreaming, the need for
smaller class sizes and additional bilingual staff. The following are other specific suggestions:
Developing a truly comprehensive ELL Program
More emphasis on improving the ESL program. More materials are needed as is a consistent instructional
model across the district. Some entry level ELL students receive 20 minutes a day of ESL instruction in their
first year in the SDOL. This is hardly enough to help these students achieve English language proficiency as
quickly as possible
All documents in Spanish and English
Introduce Spanish Reading Recovery in first grade so that students may become literate in their native
language. This way they will have a foundation for their second language
OUTREACH TO PARENTS-FAMILIES
Suggestions to have more parent–school interaction with Latino parents:
Creating community schools where the parents of our Latino students can go and have access to many
organizations in Lancaster city. By doing this, we can get the parent support as well as allowing the parents
to feel invested in the schools
Offer English classes, GED classes and parent involvement classes
Educate the parents and community leaders on the importance of homework time / study time. Our high
school students should not be babysitting while the parents go out and have "a life"
Parent involvement that focuses on building leadership among Latino parents which would empower them and
encourage other Latino parents to get involved
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
Make every school a full service community school linking community social service, non-profits and the
schools to pull resources
Build partnerships with the big employers of our parents to support the education of their children. I am
talking about Dart, QVC, Armstrong, Donnelley, etc.
Work more closely with Boys and Girls Club leaders so that if a kid isn't going to school he cannot play on their
sports teams
Get out into the community, into the churches, into the social clubs etc
Neighborhood meetings, visits to each school to talk with and listen to parents' concerns
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Suggestions to WIB and the Local Business Community

The Workforce Investment Board and the local business community have asked what they can do
to help address the school dropout situation and quality of education issues in the City of Lancaster.
What suggestions would you make?
v The health of the city is directly connected to the health of the school district. Invest in downtown businesses
which could then hire graduating students/city residents as well as broaden the tax base here. Offer
workforce training to students. Provide business and/or college mentors to kids in middle and high school,
and donate in-kind services whenever possible. Support alternative/flexible work schedules for parents of
district students, so they can keep involved in their child's education. Offer quality childcare for employees to
alleviate that major stressor and cause of absenteeism on the job. This is a difficult question that demands
more thought than is possible at this time. Further forums of business members and families would be
beneficial for both.
v Support the purchase and implementation of technology within all schools. Establishment of scholarships for
students [majoring in] urban education with the expectation that these teachers would return to the city to
teach. The development of summer internships for students of all sorts [across] all segments of the business
community. Support for ELL programs with funds for on-site visits to practical institutions such as a bank, a
hospital, a university, a factory, courthouse, etc.
v Some businesses allow employees to spend work time volunteering in the schools as guest readers or
buddies for students who need some individual attention. This seems to be a great way for businesses to
contribute.
v Take students to the work place and educate them on what they need to achieve to get to that profession.
Assist with after school tutoring.
v The earlier we implement the involvement of local businesses in the education of our students, the better.
Students will be able to set future educational goals with hands-on experiences. Junior Achievement is a
great way to connect with local businesses.
v Continue to give students exposure to career choice through internships. Bring companies into the schools.
School-to-career liaisons. Assign students to a business mentors responsible for motivating students to be
productive citizens in the workforce.
v Direct communication with the students showing them the importance of continuing with their education vs.
the money made at a full time job without an education.
v Allow students to serve as "interns" a couple times a week, so that they can see where their education will
become valuable.
v Be supportive of students who participate in after school activities and work around their schedules.
Students who are involved in something at school will be less likely to drop out.
v Become involved. Work with the schools by sending professionals etc. to work with students-we need more
people who are capable, who are willing to spend time with kids and who are willing to listen to individual
kids' problems.
v Kids need mentors! They need positive role models who value education, and they need these mentors to
stick with them for long periods of time. We also need to teach students that higher education is affordable
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and do-able. Maybe the business community could provide internships or work experience for kids to learn
about different professions.
v Limit the number of hours students work and encourage teen workers to continue their education. Attend
classrooms and encourage students to remain in school, giving personal testimonies. Provide flexible hours
for dropouts to go back to school at non-traditional hours.
v Demand that politicians stop paying lip service to education. Demand fair and equitable funding of
education.
v Do not hire students without GED or diploma.
v Do not employ teenagers to work during school hours or late on school nights. Encourage work/study
programs.
v Don't take away our tax base. Don't "slam" the district at every opportunity (how many times is there
negative press on SDOL vs. other districts?). Don't assume every Latino student is a "thug" - show respect
and you will get respect.
v Educate administration on the importance of "soft skills" in employment environment. Regardless of how
well a student might perform here academically, if they do NOT possess accountability/dependability skills,
they will NOT be successful in future pursuits.
v Help fund additional for additional teachers so we can reduce class size.
v Help to keep their family life stable, good paying jobs for parents, apartments they can afford and keep
v I believe that a lot of these community business/owners do not even live in the City to even understand
where the problem stems from. There's a poor representation of Latino Community Leaders to advocate for
the Latino population.
v Instead of force feeding a cookie cutter concept of learning to at risk students, consider alternatives which
promote cultural diversity and academic success. Take a look at the Community Schools Movement
throughout the US. It works!
v It is imperative that we find ways to bring vocational programs back into the curriculum. There is a
misguided belief that all students can perform (or desire) within the confines of a strictly abstract academic
curriculum. Some can only grasp these concepts through concrete application. Auto-mechanics, woodshop,
masonry, CAD and graphics programs can help struggling students find ways to be successful and would
perhaps also reduce discipline issues and drop-out rates. We have, as we have become a more consumer
oriented society, devalued skilled laborer and artisans.
v Jobs and housing. Reducing crime and making the city more attractive to businesses and individuals.
v Mentor students, especially our 8th and 9th grade students weathering transition, and over-age students.
Our students are hungry for caring adults. Provide transportation for students to workplace shadowing
experiences during 10th grade.
v More work/study arrangements for high schoolers, allowing them to go to an internship type experience
during the school day and receive some sort of small stipend for their time.
v Offer high students part-time jobs while encouraging them to do well in school. The employers should
emphasize that education is more important than anything else.
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v Offer internships at businesses. Get energetic and exciting presenters to come in a work with our kids
periodically the way Armstrong does. Offer tours of their businesses and emphasize the skills needed to be
successful in a career.
v Partnerships with the school to provide assistance such as: 1) Mentoring Services 2) Advisement to Small
Learning Communities based on their areas of expertise. 3) Providing Technology Services for our parents
(at the parent center) etc.
v Provide career training both for parents and for high school students; be involved in schools and find out
individual needs of each school in the district
v Provide meaningful jobs, hire local people first, career and job fairs in middle schools, mentors.
v Provide more opportunities for students to get involved in community life. Provide more opportunities for
Latino students to volunteer or work in the city that they strive to become members of. Provide more "Work
to School" programs. Many Latino students don't "know" Lancaster City because they have just moved here
from places that are very different. Provide opportunities for them to get to know and become a part of their
new home.
v Provide the funds and monitor that the district uses them appropriately
v Smaller class sizes would be very helpful. Students would have an opportunity for more practice and to
build closer relationships with teachers. We need the money to make that happen.
v There seems to be the county, which is White and German. Then there is the city that is diverse. They need
to positively blend the city with the county. I think that the mindset of the county is that if you live in the
city, you must own a gun. They need to work on the public relations between the two.
v To research other districts with similar demographics and see what programs, initiatives have been
successful.
v We need to allow work release experience for students as young as 15. They need to see that the grass
may not be as green as it appears.
v We need to build partnerships with the big employers of our parents. There is a big disconnect between the
business community and the school system. Perhaps promoting more family friendly business and
employment practice would be nice.
Other Comments and Opinions

Do you have any other comment or opinions you would like to share relevant to this
study?
This question allowed respondents to share views they may feel are relevant but were not addressed in the
questions asked. The following are the responses to this question.
v As a society, we are fixated by the notion of instant gratification. We all want results and we want them now.
The problem is that until we are willing to plan longitudinally (i.e. 12 -15 years—This does not mean that we
forsake intermediate goals or fail to refine and redefine over time) we will never know how efficacious our
plans are. I also think that superintendents should be willing to commit to at least 10 years to any one
district where they serve.
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v As a White middle class teacher, I've tried to educate myself about Hispanic/Latino issues by living in Puerto
Rico for a year. However, I still feel like I have only a limited understanding of the issues facing the
Hispanic/Latino community in Lancaster.
v Businesses and Social Service Agencies have to form strong bonds with the school in order to address the
needs of our community as a whole. Our students will become their employees or our citizens within the
school district and we all must have a vested interest in them.
v Get the discipline under control. Until that happens we will never get AYP. Students see others misbehaving
and very little consequence. They then begin to fall into the same problems. Sooner or later they are in
missing school, or placed into one of the alternative programs. Sooner or later we will have more students
graduating from the alternative school than regular high school. Many of our Hispanic students graduate, but
with no skills. They end up in a low paying service jobs. The language in the hallways is atrocious. Some
teachers accept this as that’s the way "they" live. This lack of respect builds, and this accepted behavior
carries on to adulthood. These students are not employable in real jobs because they don't have the social
skills. As a district we need to employ these corrections as we teach them History, English and Math. If
their parents could hear the way they talk in the high school they wouldn't believe it. This is the culture
today. Unfortunately our kids think it’s acceptable. They get a rude awakening when they try to get a job,
with low language skills and little knowledge of how to dress for an interview.
v Getting and keeping families involved with education, no matter what their ethnic background. Education is
the key to a good future and a healthy community and country. Being consistent in what the district
conveys to the community.
v Hard work and dedication to family and self while staying clear of lawlessness will propel a student forward.
v Have more role models come into the school who are from the Latino culture. Example.... High school grads,
college grads, military, lawyers, doctors, business owners and have them share their stories because I am
sure they struggled at some point just like our students.
v I am going to return to my grade sequence. I taught many years ago when we had junior high schools.
Ninth graders helped run the building. They were mature enough to accept leadership roles. 8th graders
are not. The loss of that leadership experiences returns at the high school level. If returning to the junior
high model is not possible, a 9th-grade-only building should be explored. If, as studies show, that the 9th
grade year is crucial to success, then we should do our best to give them the tools to be successful in the
high school setting. Currently, our 9th graders are too ill-prepared socially. Earning your way to the high
school, rather than being promoted, would be a major step in ensuring future academic success.
v I am grateful for the support and investment in our students by the WIB Youth Council.
v I have had many Latino students who showed lots of promise through my years here, but somewhere along
the way their family situations got the best of them and they either did not finish school or they did poorly.
If we could find more ways to get their parents involved in the schools the way other parents are would help
tremendously.
v I hope that something good does result from this survey. We are losing our kids. As a parent of a senior
trying to get help for my son (financial aid, etc.), I had to continuously pursue guidance counselors to get
any information at all and even when I did it was too late to apply for the college my son will be going into.
We need to have counselors and teachers and other personnel who really care and are willing to go the extra
mile for our kids. Otherwise we are fighting a losing battle. All students are not "bad". Some just need that
extra helping hand. The question is "where is the helping hand?"
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v I realize this study is on Latino students but I do not feel the district is putting as much effort into the needs
of special education students as it is in ESL. The building I work in has 3 full time ESL teachers as compared
to one-and-a-half learning support teachers.
v I think we have to start from K-3 and up instilling in our kids the importance of a higher education.
Sometimes this is not a priority at their homes and many lose interest by the time they are leaving middle
school.
v I wish I had some additional materials to help students learn effectively, such as more textbooks, audio
tapes or videos (and a TV/VCR to show them on!)
v In terms of people who have just come into the country, I think we can be extremely insensitive and
intolerant.
v It is often disheartening to see so many Latino students fall by the wayside. Something definitely needs to
be done to make a difference. Many students come to school to socialize or look good. There is no respect
for school authority, even abiding by simple school rules. The lethargy and apathy that permeates our
classrooms is debilitating. The majority of students don't even bring a writing utensil to class much less a
notebook, or textbook.
v It takes a village to raise a child. It takes all of the Lancaster community to raise our kids.
v Latinos are no different than any other people. If they come to school with skills necessary to cope, respect
authority, and value learning they will be successful.
v More administrators need to better understand the culture.
v Our Latino children deserve all the support they need to succeed both academically and socially, as do all of
our students.
v Our students have an advantage that few others in surrounding districts have. They have a strong
background in a "foreign" language coming into school. With the proper education AND expectations, we
can create students who are strong bilingually (in a work-world that is ever more demanding of this skill),
and can possibly help teach them three or even four languages using existing foreign language programs
(which I would love to see extended in to middle schools as well, instead of offering only Spanish.)
v Over the time I've been working in the district, 16 years, there has been a steady decline of behavior,
attitude, and work ethic. There has been a very steady degradation and it's very disturbing to witness. What
used to be doable in a first grade lesson is now barely attainable in third grade. In another 16 years, will the
same work be only attainable for fifth? WE MUST BRING PARENTAL ATTITUDE AROUND IN ORDER TO
EXPECT THE KIDS TO WANT TO DO WELL OR CARE.
v People who are living hand to mouth do not have time to influence the education of their children. We need
to provide opportunities for everyone to thrive economically so they can look beyond basic survival for the
family.
v SDOL is moving in the right direction with the education of our Latino students but we have to continue to
research and see what we can do to improve we can't just stand still and think we've provided all that needs
to be done to meet the educational needs of our students. The education of our Latino students is a work in
progress.
v Students should not be promoted until they have met requirements of the present classes.
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v The ESL program should be taken more seriously. The ESL teachers are not in the district to be substitute
teachers. They have the responsibility to teach students that most of the times are behind the others and
need consistent instruction.
v Yes, we need a better math curriculum. The latest report from the Dept of Ed. suggests that our students
not only score the lowest overall in PSSA results, our Honors and college bound students score the lowest in
virtually every area on the SATs (compared to all other schools in the county).
v Do not administer district assessments throughout the year to try to predict how the students will do on the
PSSA. These assessments only tell administration what the teachers already know about the students and
burn the students out by the time they actually have to take the test. Further, these district assessments
take valuable time away from teaching. I would recommend using the mid-term and final exams as
indicators of PSSA performance.
v Do not allow students to fall back into Spanish-speaking or allow this to become a crutch to the students.
The more students (and their parents) understand that it is far better to be strong IN BOTH LANGUAGES
than to rely on Spanish and stay in enclosed communities, the better future we can build for our students.
v These children deserve only the very best we can provide.
v Too many of the students have become dependent on group work as a means of learning and getting a
grade. Placing students of like ability will keep the pace for students to learn higher. Discipline problems take
too much time out of the instructional day. Address discipline, personal accountability issues and social
needs of the families.
v We need to stop making excuses for all students and focus more on preparing them for the "real world".
Regardless of what career path a student chooses, they will not be successful unless they learn the
importance of self-discipline, accountability, etc.
v Yes, we as a community in Lancaster City must stop talking about many great things but start doing the
great things.
v Glad you are doing this survey.
v I am glad to see the questions being asked!
v I hope that this survey was not a waste of my time.
v I took the time to fill this survey out because it is the first one on this topic that I have received in six years
working for the school district. I think this is fantastic research and hope to see the positive results of this
study.
v I'm glad to hear that there are others that care about the situation of Latinos in Lancaster County.
v Thank you for asking for the opinions of educators who work daily with students. A solid education with hope
that the future is limitless can make a difference for all populations!
v Thanks you for your focus and resolve to address this issue.
v WE AS TEACHERS NEED TO HAVE A VOICE IN WHAT WORKS AND DOES NOT WORK IN OUR CLASSROOMS
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APPENDIX A – COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVES
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ECONOMIC, EMPLOYMENT, AND HOUSING STATUS
The principal issues expressed by members of the community and professionals in the area of employment were
underemployment and the general designation of the Latino labor pool to industries and companies paying the
lowest wages; access to jobs at all levels; the under-representation of Latino professionals in local public and
private sectors, especially at the management level; and job discrimination. Other concerns were the lack of
benefits in full-time jobs and the growing use of temp agencies. There is also evidence of educated Latinos coming
to Lancaster from Latin American countries where they served in professional occupations who are now in low-skills
jobs due to language or certification issues. Included below are views on the issues of affordable housing and
single parents.
Employment
º It is easy to document unemployment records. What has never been accurately defined is
underemployment in the Latino community because of their number in temporary agencies and documenting
the lack of health benefits in that labor force. I'm not talking about the entire labor force but very little has
been done to document the state of underemployment. An underemployed person is one who gets up and
goes to work every day and remains poor as a result of employment practices that are very negative. I
think that employers who use temp agencies are doing a huge
disservice to the workforce. They're not getting the benefits and
An underemployed person
they don't get the wages of a regular employee. As a result, they
is one who gets up, goes to
remain below the poverty line forever and ever, unless the situation
changes and they get a full-time job with benefits somewhere. But
work every day and remains
that's not the trend. When you can't cover yourself, your wife and
poor as a result of
your kids with medical coverage, that's my definition of
employment practices that
underemployment. When your income doesn't allow you to get are very negative.
above the poverty line, you're underemployed. When your income
still leaves you within the range of government benefits, you're underemployed and I suspect a huge
percentage of the Latino workforce is there, but no one's ever bothered to document it. You know,
unemployment is only at one or two digits. Big deal. Underemployment may be 30% to 50% of the Latino
workforce! It could be that 40% of our workforce is structurally underemployed, lacking benefits, job
security, working in nebulous fields in these temp agencies which is the equivalent to being ripped off. I
think that's a major issue among Latinos. If you do anything, that is key.
º My grudge is, you get a corporate human resources person, and he comes up with this great idea of using a
temp agency. By its very nature it is social injustice, and he takes it to his boss and he says, "I saved us
some money on our health coverage." and the guy gets a promotion and that's a virtue. It is really hurtful to
the community. It is a social injustice to the worker. It is not a virtue. It is an absolute negative and I think
that message never comes back. The temp agencies go, "Well, that's just the way is". It shouldn't be like
that. It doesn't need to be like that.
º We work in meat processing, the hospitality industry, food processing, light manufacturing, foundries and
some of these companies are almost exclusively Latino. Our employment desk sees 858 clients a year. We
may place 150 of them in jobs. The rest—I hope they get a job without our help. They're not the type of
people who can walk into CareerLink and say hook me up with all kinds of stuff. They have language issues,
transportation issues... We need to invest... We need to put a sufficient amount of dollars, for a long period
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of time, in a consistent manner, towards raising the Adult Basic Skills level of that population. It's not
happening. It doesn't happen. So if you want workers in that community to pass building trades
apprenticeship program designed by the ABC tomorrow. I don't have anybody to send you. But, if you put
some money down here to raise the Adult Basic Skill levels, in two years I could have a lot of people up
there. I think the solution to our underemployment problem is investment in Adult Basic Ed and ESL and
match it with certain occupations that make sense for us.
º Lancaster County has a large number of small family-owned

You just can't say "we
businesses that collectively are huge, and I think you often see
want more minority
these small companies with 10, 20 or 30 employees hiring very few
applicants but they just
minorities. They tend to hire people who look like them, from their
communities, maybe a buddy of the truck driver or a friend of
won't come..."
someone on the assembly line. You look at company photos of these
family-owned businesses and I see a huge lack of diversity. People say that's their right but it's tougher for
people of color or who speak Spanish or other languages to penetrate those businesses. I just got invited
yesterday to go to Cromwell Manor Nursing Home in Lebanon because they're interested in doing more
outreach to minority applicants for jobs at that facility, and that's what it takes. You have to be assertive.
You just can't say "we want more minority applicants but they just won't come..." What are you doing to go
find them and facilitate entry into your company? That's what needs to happen.
º We have families that have just moved here and from the time they arrive to the time they find a decent
job, it’s taken a toll on the entire family. Immigrant Latinos arrive here with great expectations that they’ll
find a job and become stable in a month. The reality takes most by surprise. Another big problem that I’ve
seen is families that work with temp agencies. So many people and families have suffered when they accept
jobs through temporary service agencies. People looking for jobs must now enroll and go through a temp
agency before they can get hired at certain industries. My husband was working at a pharmaceutical
company in Columbia for about five years, and some temp agency came in and the company began laying
people off. Temp workers started working for lower wages and no health insurance. I think that most
Hispanics are finding that the fastest way to get a job is through at temp agency, but it’s not always the
best way. Because of limited English language skills and a lack of education, a temp agency job appears to
be the best way. I’ve seen families that come here from Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Cuba and it’s
hard for them to find stable jobs, so the temp agencies really use them.
º I think around here what we have is recent immigration and a lot of foreign trained medical people coming
in. So you don't always have unskilled folks walking through the door, sometimes you have a doctor from
the Dominican Republic or Cuba or Peru or whatever; nurses, attorneys who can neither practice here or
know the language but they have formal training and formal education. It's a group of as many 30 or 40. At
a time when the medical community is crying out for bilingual people, here's this group of people, plucking
chickens or packing meat. What a shame.
º We must try to accommodate for more people to take ESL classes and learn to speak English. I met with a
single mother that worked two jobs to make ends meet, but wanted to take an ESL class and could not.
º The other thing you want to discover is where are the jobs? Are they in the city or in the county? I think
you'll find that most of the jobs are in the county and if our population has a transportation problem, that's
an issue.
º I have a few employers who tell me that if they can communicate well enough to get through an
employment interview that's good enough for them to hire them. Transportation is another issue. Most of
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the people I work with tell me to just get them a job and they'll find a way to get there. Most of them do.
They get rides with other employees with cars, they hitchhike, take public transportation when possible.
º Many Latino professionals come here and they're not licensed in this country and they may not be fluent in
English. In some Latin American countries where there is extreme poverty, the reality is that the salaries
that are paid to professionals there are at poverty level and they prefer to immigrate. We have quite a few
professionals that come here and end up working in factories. It's not unusual to go to New York and find a
Dominican who was a medical doctor driving a taxi or to find an engineer working in a factory. Here in
Lancaster, we have individuals who are engineers, chemists, who may be working in Tyson or some other a
factory or you may find a doctor who is working in some company—maybe in construction. This is not just
true of Dominicans but of professionals coming from many other Latin American countries. We have
individuals who are engineers, agricultural technicians, chemists, and doctors. I know two cases of two
doctors. I know of two doctors who work at Tyson Foods. So instead of working an emergency room, an
operating room or taking care of patients, they're working in a factory.
º I know of a young man who is an economist. He went to the University for five years and earned his degree
as an economist and he is now working as a caregiver in a nursing home. From the money that he earned
working in a nursing home as a caregiver he was able to bring his entire family here, provide for them, and
he couldn't earn that kind of money as an economist. The reality is that if you're well-connected politically or
you’re politician or you hold a certain status, you might make a much better living. But if you are an average
person and are one of many who went to the University and got your degree, the average professional does
not earn that much money.
º Discrimination intended or unintended is an issue to consider. I can take you around all downtown Lancaster
in any company and you can just simply see the lack of Latino representation. In the nineties there was a
situation where a class action suit was brought against Dart Container. There was a settlement of about half
a million dollars. They discriminated against people of color, particularly Blacks and Latinos because they
were either not hiring them or were hiring them at significantly lower pay for the same jobs. I know that
that happens everywhere. Any Latino professional can
tell you that you can have the same educational If you look at the financial
background as your White counterpart and you’re not services industry and you look at
going to achieve at the same rate and you get very
the mortgage companies which are
frustrated by that. But it's a cold hard fact.
the lower paying companies, they
º They discriminate with salary and they also typecast probably have a much higher
you as worthy only of an urban market where they proportion of Latinos than you
want you to simply serve the Latino population. I would find in the commercial
believe that I'm capable of serving any market. You’re bank.
also limited in terms of title. In order to get to the
level of vice president I had to move from the city market to a bank in Manheim Township to get away from
being pigeonholed. It is a more lucrative market. I struggle with it personally but I had to do what was right
professionally. If you allow yourself to be typecast as a Latino you're going to have fewer opportunities and
make less money. Sometimes we allow ourselves to be martyred because we're Latino. In a bank you have
a small Latino market and you going to top out at a branch manager if you allow yourself to be limited. If
you look at the financial services industry and you look at the mortgage companies which are the lower
paying companies, they probably have a much higher proportion of Latinos than you would find in the
commercial bank. That's only anecdotal but I believe it to be the case. I don't know about other companies
because I come from the financial services field so I'm not sure how that happens in the other corporations
around here. I do know that mortgage companies will tend to hire more Latinos than are hired by serious
commercial banks for the same kinds of jobs. Many mortgage companies are fly-by-night. They come and
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they go. I know tons of mortgage originators who are Latino. How many Latino commercial lenders do you
know of, which is a coveted position within commercial banks? I don't know of any in Lancaster County.
º It is rare when you see a Latino supervisor or a manager or who has a high position. I think that we have to
aspire to more. I also think that some Latinos tend to think that the job comes first, but because the family
depends on the job, the job really needs to come before family. The more educated Latinos understand that
family is important but they also realize that they have personal goals and are more ambitious and do other
things to move ahead. I would also have to say that one of the issues is that we Latinos are too
accommodating and conformist. Sometimes Latinos get a job and they offer them eight dollars an hour and
they figure well that's good enough and they don't challenge that they should be getting paid more. I have a
family member who works in getting employment for people and
she finds that a lot of the companies will ask for Latinos because They tell her that she does
they know that they can offer Latinos seven or eight dollars an hour a good job and has received
and they will be satisfied with it and so very often they ask for awards because of her
Latinos because they know they could pay them less and Latinos attendance, but she works
don't complain. Many companies know they can get away with
fulltime and doesn’t have
paying Latinos the minimum. I think this relates to the less
insurance.
educated. I think the more educated Latino is more ambitious and is
not as easily satisfied with being given minimum wage. They are typically seeking a better salary and higher
position.
º There are lots of people working full-time and not getting benefits. My daughter-in-law works at a local
nursing care facility and receives very little income. They tell her that she does a good job and she has
received awards because of her attendance, but she works fulltime and doesn’t have insurance. She can’t
afford to have $50 taken out of her paycheck weekly. Employers aren’t being fair to their employees. Why
wouldn’t a local nursing care facility pay for health insurance for their employees? We have lots of
underemployed people. When I arrived in the 1970s, I can remember the culture shock of not being able to
find a grocery store on every corner. I remember there was one grocery store everyone identified with. The
concentration of Latinos was in a specific area in the city and most of them were Puerto Rican. There were
some smaller pockets of Cubans and a few Dominicans, but in the city it was mostly Puerto Ricans. The
other group that existed was out of New Holland, and they were Colombian and that’s because at the time
they had Sperry New Holland, which was an industry with a base in South America. They brought in some
managers from South America—most of them were Colombian, some from Argentina. They had started here
as supervisors, which was a very wise decision at the time, because a lot of these Puerto Ricans that I’m
talking about that lived in the city were working there. They kept the Latinos there because they had
supervisors that spoke the language and they had on-the-job training. They had additional training sessions
during work hours that Latino employees could take advantage of. Why did they do that? Because they
knew they’d get better productivity and success. Nowadays that’s just not happening. There was another
factory in the area at the time—now it’s Tyson Foods, but originally it was Weavers. Weavers was catering to
the Latino population—even providing transportation to and from work. Those were the two outstanding
groups of Latinos in this area, the Puerto Rican community and the Colombian/South American. The two
groups came from very different socio-economic backgrounds. The Colombian community out in New
Holland was middle to upper socio-economic class. The majority of Puerto Rican community was from a low
to middle socio-economic—so they were from both ends of the spectrum.
º When my family first came here, they were mostly immigrants. They used to work in the fields and they
would go back to Puerto Rico. Eventually they started staying here and then moving into the city and that's
how our people started moving here. Now there are a lot of professionals in Puerto Rico without jobs. [Does
that have to do with the economy of Puerto Rico?] Absolutely. There are unemployed doctors and lawyers
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out there and we're seeing a lot more professionals coming here. With some of the mayors that have come
here from Puerto Rico we've talked about maybe somewhere down the road setting up a system where if
they gave us a list of professionals who were willing to relocate and move here, our part would be to marry
them up with the needs of the community. The Cubans do that a lot in Florida.
º I have to say that one of the issues is that employers say “I'm interested in helping these folks to learn
English but just enough to crank out these widgets.” We get approached by employers, and I've sit in on
meetings with private sector people where they say "We just need them to work at this hotel, make beds,
and answer a couple of basic questions in English when a guest asks them for more towels; or, we only need
them to put these peas in a can, make sure it's sealed right and that they can count up to 48 when they put
so-and-so in a box." Ideas like that are disservices to those employees—to continue to allow them to
operate without English skills beyond the bare necessities. I wish these employers would take the view that
these people need to function in a larger society and they can play a part in helping that to happen by
bringing in an entity like I.U.13 to do basic skills, or setting up structures in the workplace that require folks
to learn more than the basic knowledge to make widgets.
º When you fill out an employment application now, they look at your
credit. What does credit have to do with being able to do your job?
I wish these employers
When you're poor, and you often have to borrow from Peter to pay would take the view that
Paul, because economically you can't make it, of course you're these people need to
going to have bad credit. Credit is something that they take into function in a larger society
consideration for both employment and housing nowadays, and and they can play a part in
most poor people don't have good credit. As a result Latinos are helping that to happen by
more victimized for lack of good credit. bringing in an entity like
º We really need to provide more education in what one really needs
I.U.13 to do basic skills…
to become a business owner and be able to compete for the big
contracts. We need to develop more. I have a brother-in-law who is so handy, and I keep telling him, this is
what you need to do and you have to participate in this program, you need to be licensed, you need to have
insurance, and he doesn’t know what I’m talking about, and I’m sure he’s not alone. We’re not doing a good
job in that area. [Have you ever referred him to ASSETS?] I have, yes. He’s working fulltime, so when he
comes home, he has all these side jobs that he’s doing and he’s okay, he’s bringing in extra money, but I
can’t sell to him that he would do much better if he were to complete the course and be licensed.
Community Revitalization
º Fifty percent of any success we might have in the economic, or any kind of, revitalization of Lancaster
depends on the revitalization of the school district. Municipal government has also come to realize we have a
problem and we can't just use the school district as a scapegoat for problems like taxes and crime. We are
beginning to realize that 50% of the revitalization of Lancaster depends on the perception of our schools.
The mayor needs to be an agent of change where the school district is involved. Reading is a great example
where the influx of money that the school district has seen in the last year has less to do with state
representatives or the superintendent and more to do with the mayor of Reading advocating in the right
places for the school district. I think those steps are beginning. The mayor is meeting regularly with the
superintendent and city council has a representative that attends the school board meetings and reports
back to city council on what is going on with the school district.
º The business community should have a vested interest in the school district because the quality of their
future work force will rely on the quality of the school district. It is undeniable that many, if not most, future
workers will be a product of the School District of Lancaster. These are also their future consumers. It would
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be great to see some ways in which the school district and the business community can collaborate.
Certainly one of the ways they can help us with funding. Although this is only one of the ways, others are
volunteering, tutoring, and serving internships. Here we have some of our best minds. They should come
together and find innovative ways to support education. The business community should realize that they
can't just look at the Latino community as their source for entry-level positions.
º The way the city goes is the way the county goes. One of our biggest issues is getting the county to accept
that the problems of the city are the problems of the county. In Lancaster City and county we have great
planners who have looked at these issues. They have looked at the concentration of poverty and have
developed viable solutions. But unfortunately, they remain as plans and are not executed. There is no true
initiative by elected officials around the county of solving the problem we have of the concentration of
poverty within the city and of the concentration of services in the city. Let's look at the fact that the county
commissioners take by eminent domain one of the most important corners in the economic center of our city
for their county offices. Drive around the county look at the number of empty spaces where their offices
could have been placed. There is no real interest, I believe, in the county to address the issue of poverty.
City leadership has to say "enough is enough." How long can we support that every homeless shelter is
located in the city and this continues to feed the concentration of poverty. Because you're homeless doesn't
mean you shouldn't have options. If you are from the county and you become homeless, it should not mean
that you have to move to the city.
º Affordable housing is an issue – because $800 a month plus utilities is not affordable.
º I’m very proud of SACA because it has rebuilt a lot of homes. Latinos are becoming homeowners, and some
of the communities are getting better. I’ve lived on Ann Street for 20 years now. I remember when I was
going to school, it was one of the best blocks to live on. It has deteriorated to some degree. Now, because
you have people that are starting to buy homes, I see more and more Latinos buying homes and it makes a
difference. Even the block of Ann Street that had a bad reputation has improved. I think that home
ownership is very important. Some people need to get educated in certain areas. Keep in mind some of our
people are used to a rural lifestyle and didn’t live in the city. Sometimes it’s an adjustment and there is an
education that goes with that.
º SACA is looking at revitalizing whole communities. They have taken ownership of what’s happening in the
Seventh Ward. They’re buying these houses and selling them at a much more affordable price after they are
redone. They’re not just doing one, they’re doing blocks at a time. When you do that in blocks, then it’s
going to change a whole community and I’m seeing that. Before, it was a community was forgotten. Nobody
wanted to buy those homes; nobody wanted to go there, but that’s changing and it’s changing because of
SACA’s vision. At times, Carlos is very frustrated because he too wants a piece of the pie when it comes to
employment and training. There’s a lot of work for him to do in that area.
º One of the stereotypes is that we don't make it, but all around us are Latinos who have made it. The growth
of Latinos in other parts of the county reflects many who have made it. Unfortunately part of what has
occurred is that making it has been equated with moving out of the city and buying a house in the suburbs.
That creates a stereotype that only the poor Latinos stay in the city and that those of us who live in the city
only live here because we don't have a choice. The reality is some of us who are not poor or in need choose
to live in the city because we like living here. Sometimes we move because the house in suburbia says
you've made it. When you choose to live in the city, you have to constantly justify yourself and convince
people that you live in the city because you want to.
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Single Mothers and “Making It”

º As a single parent one of the big things I did experience was the issue of housing. I was on Section 8, and I
did try to get a better job so I could afford a better place. Then you get to a certain level where your income
is too high for any of the services that are out there for you. Now, you’re past that certain income where
you're not high enough that you can really live comfortably like everybody else, but you don't qualify for
programs. So now you're caught in the middle. "Where do I go? What do I do?" That's when you have to
take the two jobs to be able to afford the place and it makes a big difference. You have these income
guidelines where you have to make $34,000 or less. You make $36,000 and you no longer qualify but you
don't make enough to live comfortably somewhere else. So I ask myself is it worth it, making more money
and facing more obstacles or should I have stayed making less and still able to get Section 8 and childcare
help?
º As a single parent, I've always had to take two jobs just to

make it. If I didn't want to live in the city, I needed to have
As a single parent, I've always
two jobs to pay the higher price rent for a decent place, to
have a car and to provide for my children. Right now I have
had to take two jobs just to
a full-time job and a part-time job. I always had to have a
make it. If I didn't want to live in
lot of structure with my kids. My older daughter would
the city, I needed to have two
watch her brother after school and I would cook dinner in jobs to pay the higher price rent
between jobs. They have a schedule of exactly what they for a decent place, to have a car
needed to do when they got home. I would always call and to provide for my children.
them and supervise them over the phone and make sure
that they ate dinner, did their homework and got to bed on time. Because I was always working, I wasn't
able to be there to take my kids to a lot of after school activities but my son always participated in baseball
every summer. My daughter did take track after school but she couldn't get involved in too many different
things because she had the responsibility of taking care of her younger brother so that I could do what I
needed to do to support the family. There were times that she wanted to do other things, and I wanted to
let her but I couldn't because she had to watch her brother. It’s hard is a single parent. When you have a
husband you can say "Hey take him to the baseball game will I take her to do something else." Also, when
you have two incomes, you can make it a little better and you have more time for the kids. But when it's
only one and you have two jobs, it's very hard. On top of that if I had my degree I could earn more but I
had to put it off while my kids were younger so that I could provide for them. I have a wealth of experience
that combined with a degree would mean I could be earning a lot more.
º DPW is pushing Latinas who don't speak English to go out there and look for work and many of them don't
even have a high school diploma. Most of the women have to go through CareerLink and take English as a
Second Language, and they can get their GED there and there are other programs like if they want to be a
CNA or LPN. I think there is a lack of self-esteem and feeling that they can't do it. Most of their lives they
have been caretakers and now, transitioning to focus on themselves and do something that they have never
attempted before is scary for many of them. My job is to empower and encourage them. I help them
practice their English and try to encourage them to use it, but they are scared that they won't know how to
use it the right way or that people will make fun of them. Finding work for many of these women is not very
easy. We talk to them and we encourage them and send them out to different agencies. Often they come
back either not having found anything or finding something that is temporary. Sometimes they take a job
and get laid off and end up having to go back on DPW. Most of these women with low educational
backgrounds or low skills primarily find manual labor jobs in a warehouse packing stuff or factory work.
Some are hired to work in housekeeping.
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º Childcare and affordable housing are big issues. What do you do when your child is sick and the childcare
provider won't take them because they are sick? I try to encourage them to have a Plan B—a backup so that
they don't have to miss work. Missing work because they have a sick child is something I see a lot. Without
Section 8 housing I don't know how many of them could even afford an apartment on their own. They can’t
get a job if their skill levels are low, or their education levels are low they are not going to be making very
much, maybe $6 or $7 an hour, and on that she can't afford a place for her and her children.
º I work primarily with women who have experienced domestic violence and you find patterns of some who
are scared to get into another relationship and others who repeat patterns and get into other unhealthy
relationships. Unfortunately, a lot of them end up back with the abuser because they don't know how to go
it alone. They may not see themselves as having alternatives, and sometimes it's issue of loneliness and not
being with someone. They will excuse the abuser by saying, "Well, he always took care of me and he always
paid the bills—look at me now. I don't have enough education to support myself or my kids." Sometimes the
women get angry and ask “Why me? Now I'm raising kids by myself.” and this bothers me. We try to tell
them that although this has happened to them, they should consider it a transition in their life and an
opportunity to do something different. Many of them lack self-esteem, and we try to help them with that.
We tried to motivate them and tell them "You can do with this."
º These young women see so few role models in their lives. There’s definitely the gender-related stuff such as
women are supposed to stay home, taking care of kids. I see more division with gender and hear comments
like “That’s his business and sometimes he gives us money and other times he doesn’t.” I’ve been trying to
work this out and find the best feminist response to this type of situation. Can I help empower women to
help claim their lives without imposing any kind of thing on them? …Every once in a while I meet a 19-year
old and she has this spark. If placed in a different family situation and environment, she could attend a
place like Yale. It’s so heartbreaking to see really smart kids with so much pizzazz. I’ve encouraged a few to
enroll at HACC.
Latino Homelessness
º I served over 900 homeless kids last year. This is my
13th year and the majority of the kids were º …they would not come to the homeless
Caucasian at first. Gradually the number of Latino

If I had the ability to create an
shelter. They would move in with a sister
kids has increased. Although, they are not the

environment
or an aunt, whichI is
thought
why you would
would have
majority. One reason they are not is because in the help, I'd develop
multi-families moreone roof...We
living under
past they would not come to the homeless shelter. don't have a real
transitional housing that measure
wouldof
They would move in with a sister or an aunt, which homelessness among Latinos because of
have social workers and
is why you would have multi-families living under that factor.
counselors on staff because these
one roof. That's still goes on. We don't have a real
parents need the guidance, to be
measure of homelessness among Latinos because of
that factor. But that's changing because many of the
given some positive
Latino adults were raised here and have a more Western direction…There's transitional
value set than their parents. Also, many families live in housing out there but it's limited
public housing and if it is discovered you are housing and not enough to meet the
another family you could lose your Section 8. current need.
º One single mother I worked with has seven children and
is originally from New Jersey. I first met her seven years ago when she had four children. She was in a
domestic violence situation and someone suggested Lancaster as a refuge and she ended up at the Mission.
I got her a referral to Section 8 housing. She had housing for four to five years. Gradually she added more
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children to seven or eight. Last year three older children

Welfare is trying to force
were academically on target. She has very respectful kids,
them into the workforce but
well mannered. They did very well in school. They were
middle school age 12, 13, 14. I was concerned because
they're not prepared. They
Edward Hand has some gang problems and the boy was say, after five years you
picked on. Because they have so much potential, I lose your cash grant, but
encouraged them to apply at Milton Hershey School. I what happens to the
thought the Hershey school would be able to guide them children after five years?
more and help them fulfill their goals because of their
academic ability. So they're in Milton Hershey. Now she still
had this house and was living on welfare, but because she lost three of her children to the care of Milton
Hershey, she lost a portion of her grant. So even though she was Section 8, she was unable to keep up her
house financially and so she lost her house and she's homeless again living in an attic of a friend's house
with four of her children—three at elementary school age and one preschooler.
º I have five children living at Milagros House, which is another shelter and they have been there since last
school year. Mother was living common-law with a guy who was arrested last year for drug dealing, so they
lost their home. She's now at the shelter with five children. Milagros has five houses and it's a transitional
facility. She's trying to get her GED and Milagros encourages some kind of post education training so she's
planning to go to HACC.
[Roughly, how many of the 900 children you saw last year were White, Black and Hispanic?] I'll roughly go
with a third of each or 30% Black, 30% Hispanic, and 40% White. But, remember those families who are
doubling up and don't come to the system. I don't see them. If the school finds out about family doubling up,
they will refer them to me. So the number is growing. When I first started less than 10% were Hispanic. I
believe that the main factor for the increase in the percentage of Hispanic homelessness is that the housing
and economic situation is forcing the issue and because of the stringent Section 8 rules, families do not double
up as much as they used to.
If I had the ability to create an environment I thought would help, I'd develop more transitional housing that
would have social workers and counselors on staff because these parents need the guidance, to be given some
positive direction and to help them not make the same mistakes they've made in the past. There's transitional
housing out there but it's limited and not enough to meet the current need. Our families need structure,
especially our young parents. They haven't had the structure or guidance as they were growing up. There
aren't parenting classes prior to having children. For everything else you needed training or a degree. Our kids
are becoming parents at 13 and 14 years old. By providing transitional housing with guidance and counseling
you're providing a structure these parents lack.
[It sounds to me like you're talking about more than just a transitional living situation. It sounds like low
income housing with supportive services on-site.] Yes, and it would work. That's what Milagros House is doing.
They’re there for three or four years. They just bought that fraternity house on College Avenue which is
gorgeous. There's a bunch of young girls over there; a 19-year-old with four children and a 14-year-old with
three children and she is in 10th grade.
One context that we might consider in which this would work is, for example, at Garden Court or Hillside
Apartments. Having a counselor located there is a more permanent type of solution, instead of just transitional
because there are a lot of people there who lack guidance and need it. Welfare is trying to force them into the
workforce but they're not prepared. They say, after five years you lose your cash grant, but what happens to
the children after five years? “Back to Work” is the ideal, but not everyone at the welfare office works well with
people. They're ill-prepared to deal with these people.
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LATINO/COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVE ON EDUCATION

The following extracts primarily reflect the views of Latinos including parents, SDL Alumni and educators
interviewed—some interviewees fit two or all three categories. It also includes comments from some non-Latinos
educators working with Latino students and parents.
Parent and Student Experiences

º In my case with my youngest son, SDOL was pretty much on top of things, but I think it was mostly
because I worked at the SDOL and I knew what things were going on, and projects and what could and
could not be available for a student in need. I was part of the administration, so they knew what my
expectations were. I literally had to do a lot of follow-up and investigating. My son attended the SDOL in
middle school from 6th grade until he was ready to go into the 9th grade. He decided that he didn’t want to
continue in the SDOL. He was not challenged academically. Teachers, principals and counselors were very
fond of my son because he had a great personality and he liked to be involved in different things. He just
didn’t feel that it was fulfilling for him, and he decided to go to the private school. I consistently and
constantly kept reminding a lot of people that a lot of our children—and not limiting it to Latinos—are
labeled and put in certain boxes. This is how we deal with, treat and educate the Latino children, for the
most part. When you take a Martin Luther
King Elementary School, where you [had] a I think the school experiments with our
Latina principal who [was] very aware of kids. For example, in SDOL they were
the needs of students, [she put] her whole teaching my daughter a new way of learning
heart and soul into trying to get that to math and now she has to take pre-calculus
happen. over. They screwed with her. They found that
the test scores went down, and now they are
º I think the school experiments with our
kids. For example, in SDOL they were
finding that this new way doesn't work.
teaching my daughter a new way of
learning math and now she has to take pre-calculus over. They screwed with her. They found that the test
scores went down, and now they are finding that this new way doesn't work. I can fend for my kid, but what
about those kids that don't have parents that can fend for them. This will affect whether they succeed or fail
in college.
º My youngest son just graduated this past year and it was a struggle to get him through school. He could
never get comfortable in McCaskey and he went to another school and did well. There was something in
their curriculum that obviously wasn't appealing to him. [Do you believe McCaskey was supportive?] No, I
don't think so. We met several times with teachers and counselors there and all they said was “that's the
curriculum and he just has to adjust to it.” They had the attitude that they just didn't care whether or not he
graduated. That was our perception. And we heard that from several parents that they could care less
whether they graduated or not. They are also too quick to sign our kids out of school.
º I have a son that today is a computer engineer. He's very smart. He speaks five languages. When he was at
McCaskey, he was bored with his curriculum and he wanted to change it. He felt he knew this and he knew
that. They called me in and told me about it. They also told me they were going to sign him out. I asked
them "why you going to sign him out?" They said, ‘because he says he's bored with the curriculum and we
can't do anymore for him." I had this conversation on the phone with them while I was at work. So I told
them I would be right there and I left work and headed directly to McCaskey. So they told me when I got
there that the only thing they could do was to give him a series of tests, and if he passed them all he could
graduate and come back for his diploma later. So I opted for that idea. My son took the tests and he passed
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with really high scores. My son ended up going into the service at 17 years of age. I signed him in. If I
hadn't gone to the school and dealt with this directly, they would have signed him out and he would have
just been another dropout. They were encouraging him to leave school rather than encouraging him to stay.
I'll never forget that.
º My son participated in the learning communities program that they had. As a result, he went to college. But
by the time my younger son went through, that program had gotten smaller and they were suggesting
vocational school for him. So I have one son with a
Masters degree and another one who went to vocational At McCaskey, if you don't have
school. They recently got a new principal and the posting the inside scoop about the
for the job for that principal was very hush-hush. Later programs they provide, the
you found out that they had appointed a White principal. counselors don't reach out. If you
I spoke to a former minority principal, who is now retired, don't go up to them and tell them
who said that many qualified minorities weren't even that you know about a particular
given the opportunity to apply for the position. That was program and that you want to get
certainly wrong because the majority of the students at in, you lose out. It's about who you
McCaskey are minority.
know and what you know. Many
º That happened to my nephew, they sent him to kids who want to learn are left
vocational school and there was no mention of college. aside.
º At McCaskey, if you don't have the inside scoop about the
programs they provide, the counselors don't reach out. If you don't go up to them and tell them that you
know about a particular program and that you want to get in, you lose out. It's about who you know and
what you know. Many kids who want to learn are left aside.
º They have the mentality that the second language Spanish it is more of a problem than a plus. Other
countries around the world they have second language in the use of Spanish to their advantage. Here our
school system won't allow a second language. They had bilingual education back in the 80s, but they got rid
of it.
º My children are Hispanic because my husband is Hispanic and one of things that we're doing is we're
teaching them to be bilingual. Having Hispanic staff is something that is important to me. I don't want my
children to go to a school where they stand out. It's unfortunate that I don't know any district that has a
larger amount of Hispanic teachers.
º In New York the school system is very different. My mom raised four of us, and when we got out of school
there was an after-school program to go to and in the summer time there was a summer program that we
attended until it was time to start school again. Where I grew up, they always kept the kids involved in the
school system, whether it was after school or in the summer. They kept us busy, and the kids weren't
hanging out in the street. There were gangs were I lived, but the school system kept a lot of kids out of
them. There was always something to involve the kids in and it had to do with the school system, because
our parents didn't have the money to send us a special programs. Here they have nothing to do.
º I would say my daughter did well because it's a lot easier for an educator, when they have a class of twenty
or thirty students, to focus on the three or four students that are shining spots in your day. When they come
in, they have their homework done, they're on time, they're energetic, excited about the subject matter;
those kids are easier to deal with and I think the kids that are mediocre or struggling don't get the attention,
when it should be the other way around. I think the attention is given to those who are successful. You
know, it's like, "We can help these students." Unfortunately, some of the ones who struggle get overlooked
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because there are many more of those. I'm not trying to knock any teachers but, in my experience, teachers
sometimes focus their efforts on the ones that are doing the best work.
º In other school districts before moving to Lancaster I remember teachers saying "you're a smart kid... you
have potential" and so on. At McCaskey, I think primarily because of sheer numbers that I was just one of
many kids who were doing well in school so I got encouragement from a few teachers but not nearly to the
degree I would get later at private school where it was all about preparing you for college. We had SAT class
prep, vocabulary prep, specific math courses and curriculum that prepared you to do well on the SAT and
there was constant talk and consultation about where you would go to college. That was just an ongoing
conversation. I think that created an environment of
friendly competition but also high expectation and I I actually remember this about a
loved it. I liked the idea that this was a given, that high school administrator at
you're going to college, that you're capable and you McCaskey. I chose to confide in him
can and we're going to prepare you. That is something I had never said to anyone,
something I think the public schools find harder to that my home life was a mess, that we
do with the numbers and the budgets they deal with. were poor and struggling because my
º I would say that in junior high and high school I had
mother divorced and we were on
some good teachers but I don't remember getting a
public assistance and I found it hard
great deal of encouragement as far as college was to focus on school. I was kind of
concerned or having a lot of conversations about reaching out for help and I found out
what the future held for me. I actually remember through a second or third party that
this about a high school administrator at McCaskey. I this administrator went to them and
chose to confide in him something I had never said said, "That kid is nothing but a con
to anyone; that my home life was a mess, that we artist."
were poor and struggling because my mother
(Latino Alumni, Parent and Educator)
divorced and we were on public assistance and I
found it hard to focus on school. I was kind of
reaching out for help and I found out through a second or third party that this administrator went to them
and said, "That kid is nothing but a con artist." That I was trying to make excuses for why I was missing
school, and I was trying to con him into feeling pity for me. In the meantime I had never opened up and
been that honest with anyone, and then I find out that he thought I was conning him and that just turned
me off entirely from seeking out any support from the school. I just thought, "Well, nobody here is going to
help me succeed. I think I excelled in elementary school and through most of high school driven by "who are
you to tell me I'm not as good as you." I became an educator. My undergraduate degree is in secondary
education as an English teacher and I did my student teaching at McCaskey High School.
º I have a daughter who went to Catholic High for one year, but she didn't like it there and felt that they were
prejudiced against her because she was Latina. This was back in the 80s. So I signed her out and I sent her
to McCaskey. She didn't do well there either, and ended up dropping out. So my sister who lives in Buffalo,
New York is, "why don't you send her here to live with me?" So my daughter went to live with my sister and
went to school there. She was like three years behind in her school work, but she caught up and she
graduated. My daughter was very athletic. There she was involved in volleyball and basketball. They
encouraged her. I don't believe they did that here. There wasn't that type of encouragement.
º My daughter was in Catholic school from pre-K until sixth grade. I switched her over to public school in the
seventh grade. I originally put her in Catholic school because my sister encouraged me to do so. Upon
moving back to Lancaster from coming from the Bronx, I still had that Bronx mentality. I wanted to protect
my child. As a single mom there was a great program in the church and I qualified for it and was paying
close to nothing for tuition. I took her out because I felt we were both being limited in terms of what she
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learned, and they didn't offer a lot of the extracurricular activities that you could get in the public school.
She has been in the School District of Lancaster now for two years. Initially it was very negative. I don't
think she was prepared for what she actually encountered in terms of the peer pressure specifically that
exists in public school that didn't exist in Catholic school. During her fourth week of school in the public
school system, she was assaulted physically by another female student and suffered injuries. The police was
involved. It was a very shocking experience for both of us -- I think more for me than for her. She
considered it a survival thing -- "I needed to go through this, now I know better." Her second year in the
middle school went much better, because then she
took a proactive approach and became involved in My daughter complains about
soccer and cheerleader. I think, initially, she felt things like "why don't we have
that she needed to prove herself to a certain extent better sporting events?" "Why don't
to a certain group of kids. She became popular. Her we have a better math program?"
grades got really good and I would always receive
"How come Manheim is having $1
positive comments from teachers. She enjoys the
million stadium built for their
experience. Now she is ready to move on to high
school?" She understands now how
school. She is going to the honors program at
the Lancaster city schools are so
McCaskey.
much different than the suburbs.
º My daughter complains about things like "why don't
we have better sporting events?" "Why don't we have a better math program?" "How come Manheim is
having $1 million stadium built for their school?" She understands now how the Lancaster city schools are so
much different than the suburbs. The other thing is that the learning is not comparable to Catholic school.
When she went to Lincoln she had already done a lot of the work she was given. The one thing I can say
about Lincoln Middle School is that the teachers are young and energetic. They are open to speaking to
teens and my daughter felt a level of comfort with some of her teachers, especially in the music program
where she really blossomed. They help her to recognize the talent that she has, and now she's thinking of
pursuing it -- music, singing. I think, if it had not been for the teachers that may not have happened.
º My son did go to the city schools for a while because I lived in the city. But getting him out of the city school
and putting him in Manheim Township gave him a better opportunity to concentrate more on his studies. I
also like the peace and tranquility of living in Manheim Township. There were too many negative things
going on in the city. When my son would tell me about the things that he observed I decided that I'd better
make a change before he ended up involved in those things. He was in 10th grade when I moved him out of
the city. They had hard time transitioning, but eventually he got to know some kids and made friends, and
he had to adjust academically. In the city schools they have, what I consider to be a negative, but they
consider it a positive. There used to be a time when you can go to school and just take academic classes,
seven periods a day, I think that now because of the challenges that these kids are meeting, they
implemented other programs where, if they're not academically inclined, they are encouraged to go into an
a program where they can just learn a trade. Supposedly it is so that if you are not academically inclined
you can at least have the skills to get a job. I'm skeptical about that. Maybe it’s good that they're giving
them an option so that they can learn a trade and get a job, but at the same time it’s hurting them because
they're not academically where they should be. I believe my child was directed more towards vocational
training and a trade rather than towards focusing on academics. When he struggled with the academics the
easy answer was "Why don't you just go to Vo-Tech?" I believe that even if he was interested in attending
Vo-Tech, he should still have been given his academics, because that would have given him more
opportunities in the future. If you leave high school without the academics that you need and later you
change your mind and decide to attend college, you have a serious disadvantage. Many kids who might be
able to go to college, but don't have any confidence in themselves, might take the easy way out by just
taking a vocational track and learning a trade.
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º I think that more parents have to get involved with the

schools, especially Latino parents. Right now in the warm
I believe my child was directed
weather when they have classes many of these
more towards vocational training
classrooms have no air conditioning. In many cases they
and a trade rather than towards
don't even have a fan. I had my girls in the hot weather
focusing on academics. When he
come home with headaches and dizziness because the
classroom was so hot that they couldn't stand it. How is a
struggled with the academics, the
child going to learn if the temperature in the classroom is
easy answer was "why don't you
unbearable? You would think that to have a good learning just go to Vo-Tech?"
environment that the children would have a comfortable
temperature so that they can concentrate on their studies. I just don't understand with all the millions of
dollars that supposedly are approved for the school district how it is that our classrooms can be in these
conditions. On top of that, look at all the school taxes that we pay. I have personally gone to the schools. I
know about the discomfort in some of those classrooms. I also have checked out the meals in the lunch
room. They get these meals that come to school frozen and they're supposed to be microwaved or whatever
and on more than one occasion I've seen where these meals aren't even properly heated and children
receive meals that are cold and sometimes still partially frozen. I was there with my daughter one time
when she got her lunch and it was chicken nuggets and when she got them the nuggets were still half
frozen. A lot of parents don't even know their kids are being served like that. This really made me angry
because I felt that these people were just not doing their jobs.
Do Latino Parents Value Education?

º I do know parents that do value education. What I
experience is that for many of our parents their
focus is survival -- being able to dress and feed
In my view, it depends on the socio-
their child, making sure he or she is healthy. That
economic background of the family.
is number one with them. Education is secondary.
When they live in poverty, their focus
They don't assume any responsibility for it. "I and priority is getting food on the
bring him or her to school. Teach him everything table…being able to pay the rent…to
he or she needs to know." I think it's a cultural provide the basic needs for the family.
thing. They believe they do their part, they
believe their part is to make sure their children are well fed and taken care of and that they have a safe
home, and that the education is the teacher's responsibility. They hand them over to us and it is an
awesome responsibility they give me. But we are trying to teach these parents that they are the first
teachers. Parental involvement is one of our biggest challenges. If I asked them to come in for a meeting
they might come for one meeting but the issue is consistency. They feel if they come once it's enough
because they have other things to do. They see it as, "That's your responsibility -- you take care of it." That
is the mindset I'm trying to change. It's been an issue since I started teaching.
º You need to understand the mentality of the parents. How they're treated at home and what the
expectations are of them. It's not that the parents don't care. Parents do care but they feel intimidated by
the society, especially, when they don't have in a command of English. They're intimidated saying "these
teachers are telling me to do these things but I can't do them but I am too embarrassed to let them know
that I can't do it.” Here we are able to deal with that because of myself and the other staff here who know
the language and understand the culture. So I haven't had too much problem with that but I know what
happens in many of the other schools. They won't go into schools because they are intimidated especially if
there was no one who is Latino there. Especially in the middle schools where there is no one Latino there.
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None of the four middle schools has a Latino administrator and this is where parents are most needed to
help guide their child.
º To say that these parents just don't care, that is to not understand the real issue. If you're dealing with
Maslow’s hierarchy and you're providing for the basic needs and sometimes it's hard to look for these other
issues. And you don't necessarily have the time that you need to invest. It is really an elitist point of view. If
you compare middle class families and lower class families their circumstances are different and the
educational levels may be different. I believe Latino families do value education but some lower
socioeconomic families don't have the luxury that some middle class families do. I have the luxury. I had
educational background. Does that make me more interested in my child than that of their parents? No. It
just means I have more privilege than that parent. And because you have resources, you can send your kid
to summer camp and you can do all kinds of interesting things that enhances their education. It makes you
look like a better parent but the fact is I simply just have more social privileges. It's all part of all larger
social issue for example give that parent a better job at Fulton bank so that they'll be able to provide better
for the child. I had two parents to carry the load so those coming from a single-parent family have even
more obstacles to overcome.
º I do not agree with the view of Latino parents I look at how kids are being educated
as not having education as a priority and not today. I’m an intelligent, totally bilingual,
wanting to be involved. There are so many of bicultural Latina, and if I had to sit down
our families that live in the cultural poverty. and teach my kids today – the system that’s
I’ve been talking about this with a few people being used to teach the kids today isn’t that
in the last two weeks that have been inquiring simple anymore. So parents feel very
about why is it that these parents come here
inadequate and they can’t provide the
and not make an effort to learn the language. I
support that the kid needs, so it appears as
keep saying that you can’t throw that out there
though that’s not their priority. Latino
as a blanket statement. You have to look at
where these parents are coming from – what
countries value education and there’s an
their individual situation might be and you
awareness that without an education, you
can’t clump everybody together. In my view, it
won’t get far.
depends on the socio-economic background of
the family. When they live in poverty, their focus and priority is getting food on the table for the kids when
they come home from school – being able to pay the rent – being able to provide the basic needs for the
family. Depending on the size of the family and other circumstances surrounding the family, it might appear
as though education isn’t the priority – but that might not be the reality – that might just be the perception
out there. They are concerned about the education of their children. You have another group of parents and
families where that is their focus, except they don’t know how to provide the support and motivation and
what that child may need while in that school building. If language, for example, is a barrier, and parents
don’t know the language and the children aren’t really bilingual, the parent feels very inferior, disconnected
and almost disabled with being able to provide what the child needs in the classroom.
º There is a level of intimidation that exists in the Latino community where they feel they don't understand a
lot of the stuff and why even come to a board meeting? Most of the time the parents are angry by the time
they visit the school. Many times the experience that they'll get and the welcome that they’ll get -- it'll be a
bad experience. They think that they don't have anything to contribute.
º There is a high percentage of Latino parents who have not completed their education. Not only that, with the
new teaching methods, sometimes the parents are taught let's say how to do math in a certain way but
when the child brings a problem home, the child is taught a new math method that the parent doesn't
understand and that they weren't taught. Sometimes a parent tries to help the child and teach them how to
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do a problem and the child will tell them that know that they don't understand and that they don't know how
to do it because that's not the way that the teacher taught them to do it. The parent says that they can’t
help them because of the child is telling them that they're not doing it right.
º I look at how kids are being educated today. I’m an intelligent, totally bilingual, bicultural Latina, and if I
had to sit down and teach my kids today – the system that’s being used to teach the kids today isn’t that
simple anymore. So parents feel very inadequate and they can’t provide the support that the kid needs, so it
appears as though that’s not their priority. Latino countries value education and there’s an awareness that
without an education, you won’t get far. Again, circumstances do not allow you to pursue that goal. I think
it’s more a matter of perception by the people out there looking inside and interpreting what they’re seeing
without investigating. I went to middle school, high school and university in Puerto Rico and absolutely
education is a priority, and I’m talking years and years ago. Now even more so. I don’t think most schools
or teachers know how to reach out and get the results they need, as a result they don’t make an effort to
get the parent involved and find the tools to educate the parent so that the parent can be supportive for the
kids.
Academic Environment and Achievement

º I think the reasons why young people are leaving school are well documented and it's about educational
failure, not about economic necessity. That's one of the myths, that kids are leaving school because they
need to support their families. Maybe, in 10 percent of the cases that's true. But, in the majority of cases,
it's because kids have lost interest. Education is no longer relevant to them. Kids have gotten just too old for
the school district and they just walk because it makes no sense to them to stay. It has no relevance to
them. If 300 kids dropout of school and 85% of them are Latino where is their second-chance system?
º Regarding underachievement of Latinos in the school district, I think the bars are set low across the board
and the bar seems to keep getting lower because the parents are poor or because of a lot of other reasons I
will expect so much from this child. If you were to watch any program about the successful teachers that
have taken children from the bottom—the most underachievers—and they embraced them and they held
them accountable. That had a lot to do with their achievement. There is so much attention on the teachers
right now. It’s all about reading and math right now. Don’t worry about the science or worry about social
studies. It’s about the reading and the math and the scores. No field trips. We're really not exposing them to
anything all. We’re worried about PSSA. We’ve got to practice, practice, practice.
º What I'll say about the Lancaster School District is that they have an excellent curriculum, they have
wonderful programs for students but one of the things I feel is missing is a real-life connection, the
relevance for these kids. The relevance for me comes from other human beings, from other people who are
successful and I don't think kids in our community see enough of that.
º Even though Puerto Rico is not supposed to be in as developed as United States, I believe we have better
technology and better schools. We also have better and more nutritious lunches. Here the schools seem to
be always doing without. But I have seen first-hand schools where everything looks so outdated from the
furniture to the computers. You have computers so old that the technology has far outdistanced those
computers. And, sadly, sometimes they don't even have basic supplies for the children. Sometimes teachers
have to conduct to fund raisers just to get basic materials for their classrooms. I think this goes on all the
time and I don't think anyone is really talking about it. It’s almost like they keep it covered up.
º I did some research for some papers I was doing for school. In the research that I was doing there many
factors and many of them that are interrelated. One of the things I found was that many of the students in
the school district don't like the way they are treated by the teachers and that is what motivates them to
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leave the school. They are not happy with the way Latinos are treated in the school district. Some children
live in families where there is economic hardship and sometimes the parents encourage them to leave
school so that they can find a job and help contribute to the family-- especially young men 16 and over. For
these papers for school I interviewed various people and I interviewed students. It was in those interviews
that students expressed that they didn't like the way they were treated by teachers. Another reason for her
teens leaving school is teenage pregnancy where young women get pregnant and decide to leave school.
º One of the problems in middle school is that students are being passed from one grade to the other without
really mastering all the material. Lots of time even if they flunked a certain courses they still get passed
from one grade to the other. You end up in the high school sometimes with twelfth grade students taking
classes with ninth grade students because they haven't mastered
the material and were passed on. I do think that at the middle I think the reasons why
school level both parents and students disengage. The students are young people are leaving
trying to act as though they are older now while the parents also school are well
disengage seeing the child as being older.
documented and it's about
º We are losing the children at the middle school level. I prefer K to 8 educational failure…
because in the middle schools that's where it starts. You hear it all
the time. My husband and I are looking at pulling our children out of middle school and putting them in
private school and then pulling them back out in high school because the middle schools are not working.
And not just in the city, the suburbs have their problems too. In the elementary schools, you have the
parents in and they're volunteering in the classrooms. Then in the Junior High the parents aren't there at all.
You may find parents coming to the football game, to the cheerleading, but other than that they're really not
there at all. And if your kids are not involved in that, really, the parents are not there. It's so much harder.
They go from a safe environment in the fifth grade and pretty much people know you. You're in a small
school where everyone is together. As a teacher you get to know the kids and the other classrooms and you
can tell the parents. I taught in the middle school for a while, but I didn't know many of the kids there or
the parents. I think the environment of a small school community is better. Look at the Catholic schools they
do it and it works. And a lot of private schools do that not just Lancaster Country Day. In the schools that
have K through eight, you can use the kids as resources to work with
the younger kids. It does something to have the older kids teach. And
We are losing the
you have some kids that are not on grade level but yet they are able to
children at the middle
teach some of the younger kids and build self-esteem and then they
want to better themselves.
school level. I prefer K
to 8 because in the
º You actually begin the effect in fifth grade -- about February or March, middle schools that's
as it gets closer the spring, the kids are thinking about how school is where it starts. You
almost out and next year I'm going to be in middle school. And it seems
hear it all the time.
like there are more behavior issues that crop up. It used to be that they
were behavior issues in the sixth grade now it's moved down to the fifth
grade. I think it's because of that knowledge that now I'm going to middle school. But if you go back to K to
8, the problem won't happen till eighth grade. They've gone through that whole hormone thing but in a safer
environment. In the sixth grade, we would we would switch classes but it may be three teachers and it
would all of the kids. We did start switching in the fifth and sixth grades, I remember that. But it's not like
six to seven classes you're talking maybe three. I really think the middle schools are very detrimental. I
have had the experience of coming from an elementary school and then having to go teach kids in the
middle school and the attitude of the teachers is very different. There was no attempt and there was no
modification, nothing individualized to help them grow from where they are.
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º I taught middle school for a while and let me tell you I’m delighted to be back in elementary school. In
elementary school you get to know parents. Sometimes you even go to their houses for dinner. They know
you and you form a connection with them. In elementary school we get twenty something kids all day for
five days and of course you can form a connection. But in middle school they're getting six groups of kids
sometimes as many as 150 kids. I can understand it would be hard to connect with 150 kids. They’ve had a
lot of trouble with the middle schools. They keep changing ideas and how it's going to work and what they're
going to do. They've tried. They talked about K to 8. It's not for lack of trying because they keep bringing all
these experts in the middle schools but whatever they're doing isn't working. You hear every year that there
are problems in the middle school.
º The kids are happy in elementary. Most kids want to

I loved literature and art and I
be in school. That is not necessarily the case in high
thought that I was going to get to
school.
share this with young people and
º You have to start with the whole root cause of they're just going to eat it up, fall in
disparity. I go back to the whole construct of this love with it and it's going to be
country in the whole foundation of it. In this country great...But, when I got there and
were trying to reform a very corrupt and racist started teaching and found that
system. I wanted to start with that premise because discipline was such a major part of
for example you talk about student achievement and it
my work because of kids who were
all comes back to expectations and if people expect us
as angry and disillusioned as I was
to achieve at lesser levels it's going to happen. That
as a young person coming to school
was my frustration on the school board.
not having that love for learning.
º We need to have a tighter connection between the
school district and our community. The community must see education as their problem, their issue. They
must see education of the urban kids as their problem. They do say it's not money but it's very interesting
that the two school districts with the highest test scores in this County are the two richest school districts.
Hempfield and Manheim Township.
º [You're educated parent who can obviously fend for her daughter. What about those kids with parents who
can't fend for them. In many cases, the kids fend for the parents.] You know, it's sad to say, but I look at
them as victims. Victims of society, who either will get lost in the system or get caught up in the wrong
thing unnecessarily because a lot of them have the potential. A lot of them are creative and talented and
highly capable of having a successful life. Many won't because they don't have an advocate. Once you put
an educational system on notice and let them know that you're there, you're not going away and you let
them know what to expect for your child -- you can tell them, “You need to work with me, because we need
to make her successful.”
º I believe that Latino kids somewhere along the line get the message, "you don't need to pursue this -- so
why even bother." We need to do so much more as a community to help these children.
º I was disillusioned by what I found in public school classrooms and I don't think I'm different from a lot of
teachers who had this sort of idea about what teaching high school was, sort of high-minded people. I loved
literature and art and I thought that I was going to get to share this with young people and they're just
going to eat it up, fall in love with it and it's going to be great. That's similar to what happened to me as a
student in Puerto Rico in private school. I thought I could bring that kind of enthusiasm to kids. But, when I
got there and started teaching and found that discipline was such a major part of my work because of kids
who were as angry and disillusioned as I was as a young person coming to school not having that love for
learning. Although, there was one or two in the class, I think that just caught me off guard and threw a wet
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blanket on my enthusiasm for teaching at that level. I thought "...this is going to be way harder than I
imagined." and I had a group of kids, at least that year, who weren't really excited about school, and maybe
I failed them by not working harder to encourage it but I just thought that I would end up burned out so I
decided to work with adults.
º I think we see kids are excited about school until halfway through elementary school. Somewhere between
5th and 7th grades they tend to lose steam and interest in school. I don't know how (in present
circumstances) you keep that going. But I think those students who are not the "A" students, The "A"
students many times will do well regardless of the level of support; they're smart, they're motivated and
they need less. Kids at the bottom and the middle are the ones that need that encouragement from
successful people, teachers and counselors.
º We should get rid of all the general courses and make sure the student's take academic classes because
they need them to compete anyway. We don't need to baby-sit kids in general classes and put them in the
kind of classes that they would take at a private school.
Provide them with support services and I'm not speaking
Provide them with support
about social services. I'm talking about counselors that
have time to counsel them about their classes and real
services and I'm not speaking
advisement about what they need to do to get to college.
about social services. I'm talking
Tutoring would be great. I wish my son had had that. I about counselors that have time to
have my son in private school because he can't make it in counsel them about their classes
the public school system. We pay extra for him to get to and real advisement about what
tutoring. My daughter on the other hand didn’t need it they need to do to get to college.
because she is a smart kid and she was able to make it at Tutoring would be great.
McCaskey. There are no tutoring programs and I'm not
sure that the school could necessarily afford to do that. Some schools have tutoring centers that you could
go before and after school.
º With a lot of the poor Latino kids there seems to be a problem with identity. There are a lot of reasons why
this might have happened. I see this all the time--In the way they dress, they speak and with that go a lot
of other things. If you come here with that sense of identity, that has a value, you want to achieve. You
want to do something but if you feel that it doesn't matter, that you don't know who you are... This has
always been my feeling about a lot of the Hispanic kids. They really don't know who they are. If it does not
come from the home, then I think the school should get into this. Also, a lot of people would not believe the
problems that some of our kids live with. The problems in the home. We had mothers who never seem to
have moved from a childhood developmental stage to the maturity developmental stage. I don't know what
the answers are. It's a miracle that the kids do as well as they do a lot of the time.
º As a guidance counselor one of the things that bothered me was that I wanted to work more with the
children and there was so much paperwork in the job of the guidance counselor that I ended up doing it, in a
sense, at my own expense. I was the scheduler, also, for all the meetings— those meetings to determine if
the child was going to special education or to a gifted program. Those meetings had to take place after
school or before school because the teacher had to be there and you can't pull the teacher out of the
classroom. I would stay in school sometimes until seven o'clock in the evening just some of the paperwork,
if I wanted to meet with the kids in the daytime. Also, as a bilingual guidance counselor, I found myself
doing so many things that were needed, I was asked to do them but they weren't valued because I wasn't
paid for that. In New York City guidance counselors are paid extra if they're bilingual because it's an
additional skill that you're bringing. I was translating letters for the school to use for the departments to
send home to the parents. Even though I may have a full schedule of parents that I had to meet with, I
would be asked to cover a classroom if the teacher was absent, as well as yard duty and line duty. I
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wouldn't mind in the morning being at the door because I would get to see the kids and greet them, but I
thought it was not respectful to the parents or the children to tell me I have to forget about my schedule
and cover the classroom. Guidance counselors are not valued as much as they should. And if you're
bilingual, you’re doing double the work for the same pay.
º A lot of the Hispanic kids don't know what we have contributed, not only to make this country great, but to
the welfare of the world as a whole. They don't know that we have had people who were against slavery
long before they thought of it here. A lot of the boys don't know that there were Puerto Rican men who were
for women's rights and women's education long before the women got the right to vote here. I think in the
textbooks we need to be taught about our heroes. Kids should learn about our men of letters were great
politicians -- the great people in our culture.
º To address the needs that we have in the school system, the first thing would be smaller class sizes and,
with all the problems you have in the school system, maybe somebody for every two to three classrooms
that the teacher can call if the child gets disruptive. Somebody trained to deal with these situations because
the child has to be respected and has to be given options. You have to look at what is going on. Who could
take a child out and talk to him so that he could
go back to the classroom later without To address the needs that we have in
interrupting the education of all the other kids. the school system, the first thing would be
My experience was that the people that I smaller class sizes and, with all the
worked with were mostly very caring. A lot of problems you have in the school system,
those teachers at King School are saints, but maybe somebody for every two to three
they need help. classrooms that the teacher can call if the
º Let's be honest the School District of Lancaster
child gets disruptive. Somebody trained to
is at the bottom for all the test scores. So you deal with these situations because the
have a school district, like every other urban child has to be respected and has to be
school district in this country, that is not given options.
educating their kids well. If you add to that a
population that might be more transient, I'm surprised they get any education at all. The Black kids who are
least likely to be transient are not getting educated. The kids are not educated. They are not reading,
writing, adding or subtracting at anywhere close to where they should be. It's not happening. You add to
that any language barrier, the mobility, and the Latino students are even worse off. They give up and
dropout. So they have, I'm told, the highest dropout rate in the School District of Lancaster. They drop out
sometimes for economic reasons but lots of times I think they drop out because they're not getting
anywhere. Nor do they see the benefit of staying in.
º I think the quality of education is high and teachers are being held more accountable. I think our minority
students are not taking advantage of the opportunities in the schools. I think we have a lot of young parents
who don't complete school, so education to them isn't important, so their children learn what they live and
they're picking up that same vibe. Also, the outside influences, music, the media, no goals towards
education and bettering themselves. They are out to make a quick buck selling drugs or other street activity
more so than education. I think that's what happening to our kids, especially our males. I think they're
laying back on the gang life and the gangster lifestyle and they figure they don't have to get an education.
There are not enough role models. The girls are having children to different men and none of them are
fulfilling the traditional dad role model so the kids are just missing out. There's no quick solution to this
problem. I would start at the elementary school level. They need more positive role models. The teachers
today are trying to teach but there are so many social problems to deal with. We were poor but I didn't have
to worry about having clean clothes to wear to school, or if my mom was going to be home after school.
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Staffing and Diversity Issues

º I've seen comments in the newspaper from former administrators where they've said, "Well, you hire the
best person and race shouldn't enter into it." But that dismisses the major importance of kids in a
predominantly minority school district seeing people who look like them and have similar cultural
backgrounds. I don't know how the district will accomplish it but I think there has to be greater diversity
within the teaching staff, especially at the elementary school level where the majority of teachers are female
and White
º One obstacle is the lack of Latino employees in the school district. I know, the superintendent [was] making
a conscious effort to hire more and I can't blame her, because they are trying hard to find some. Lancaster
is not very attractive to young people coming out of college. So we don't get an influx of Latino educators to
work with us. It is so difficult for me to find the
ELL teachers who should be bilingual and bicultural The 28 year-old Hispanic or African
-- mine are not. I have two the rest are Anglos, American candidate with a Master's
who have learned the language and some who try degree is being fought over by schools
to live in this neighborhood so they can learn the
in New Jersey, Delaware, Philadelphia,
culture and learn about our children. There are
Maryland, and then you have Lancaster
only two Hispanic school administrators in the
in there saying "Yeah come see us and
whole district.
maybe we'll pay you less, you'll live in a
º They talk about not finding enough Latino teachers community that doesn't particularly
for the school district, but I have a niece who is service your particular needs”..
working in Manheim Township, because they didn't
hire her in the School District of Lancaster. This was some years ago. That was the same year that they put
a big announcement in the paper about how they wanted to recruit more Latino teachers, and that they
were going to Puerto Rico to look for Latino teachers. Yet they didn't hire her and Manheim Township
scooped her up.
º The 28 year-old Hispanic or African American candidate with a Master's degree is being fought over by
schools in New Jersey, Delaware, Philadelphia, Maryland, and then you have Lancaster in there saying "Yeah
come see us and maybe we'll pay you less, you'll live in a community that doesn't particularly service your
particular needs..." that doesn't sound nice. I'd say "Hell no!" to that. I'd rather go to Delaware, Maryland or
Philly where I'd make more money and live in a community where there are more people who look like me
and who are at my educational and income level. I think that's tough. In any business setting you're going
to have to be competitive for the talent and applicants that you want. Why would a Hispanic or African
American candidate choose to settle in Lancaster City or County if the area doesn't support the lifestyle or
level of comfort that they're looking for? So if there's no place to get your hair cut or buy the kind of food
that you like at the market or no place to go to hear the kind of music that you like, or the social
environment that you're seeking, why would you come here?
º [Recruitment] It's hard to attract them. So you have to be able to offer bonuses and benefits. Think that will
make them come. So far I think this community hasn't been willing to do that. I do remember a few years
ago they actually spend extra money going to Puerto Rico and New York and people had screaming fits. I
know what they've done in other places; I haven't seen it done here. In other places they've done things like
talk to the realtors and talk to the people that own apartment buildings, and the issue is “if you come to
teach our school district you don't have to give a month deposit and then you get three months free rent.
Other kinds of things like you get a deal on a car.
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º SDOL has pretty much told Millersville “We will hire every Latino and African-American that you graduate.
We will give them a job.” They are pretty much guaranteed a job in the School District of Lancaster. "Please
send them to us. We will give them a job." The problem is that the state now has this rule that you can't
teach in this state unless you have a 3.0. That you can't even enter the teaching courses now unless you
have a 3.0. They also have required them to take a number of courses that are not education related. Kids
come in and they find they can't get close to that 3.0, because the Black and Latino kids that come out of
urban schools, that are not educating them, come to college behind the eight ball. They graduate and they
do fairly well, but getting a 3.0 may be harder than it is for someone coming from Hempfield or Manheim
Township. I am willing to bet that the number of Black and Latino kids coming out with teaching degrees is
really shrinking. Blacks and Latinos now want to be other than teachers. I'm not sure that were instilling in
our kids that what you should do is become a teacher. We're not sure it pays enough and I don't know how
many parents are saying be a teacher -- be a teacher -- be a teacher. The next best thing to do is to work
with a homegrown population but we are just beginning to have a group of Latinos from Lancaster County
going into college and maybe graduating.
º I believe a lot of the teachers and a lot of the staff to work in the school district are close-minded. If you're
from this community they may make certain assumptions about you and they treat everyone the same. I
live in this community because I want to, not because I have to. I believe that just because you're a teacher
it doesn't mean you were meant to be one in that it requires certain social skills and the ability to deal with
people from different cultures.
SDOL has pretty much told
º Regarding the need for more Latino educators in the
Millersville “We will hire every
School District of Lancaster, I think it all goes back to a
Latino and African-American that
very limited pool of people. When you have an inferior
you graduate. We will give them a
education, how are you going to come back to teach here
in the first place. [How about recruitment from other
job.” They are pretty much
areas?] Yeah, but there's only a finite number of people in
guaranteed a job in the school
other areas. You would be taking them from other areas district of Lancaster.
and if they also have inferior systems, we'll all be fighting
for the same candidates. Our students are getting into business and other areas. We haven't been very
successful at grooming and growing students to come back and teach in our system and in Pennsylvania you
have the whole brain drain thing where there's not enough opportunities for students coming out of college.
I do believe that we can do more recruitment and that we can try to take students, for example, starting in
ninth grade and groom them to try and come back to teach in the district.
College Preparatory Issues

º I think one of the best things that the school district did was to introduce the partnership program with
Millersville University. You had a lot of kids graduating from high school with a lot of general classes and
what the partnership program did was to require them to take biology, chemistry, English academic level
classes so the kids could start qualifying for college. So now we have a pool that we can work with to help
them look at what they want to study and but I don't think anything has been really done about encouraging
them to become teachers and come back here. The focus was primarily just simply to get them into college.
º If you check the majority of the kids in the baccalaureate program are White. When I asked Black kids how
many are in the baccalaureate program they typically say “one or two of us” or “a few of us.” What I want to
look at is not how many they have at ninth grade -- because there are more at ninth grade. I would be
interested in knowing how many Latino and African-American kids are in the baccalaureate program by 12th
grade because the school district has got to be 70% Black and Latino. I would be surprised if it was 20%.
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º My daughter just graduated from McCaskey and it appears to me that there aren't enough counselors to
give our kids the attention they need. Even if the ratio of guidance counselors was comparable with other
districts, it may be that our kids require more attention because of their backgrounds so the more
counselors are required.
º For some of our kids there is not a tradition of going

to college. They don't have that family history. I . My wife and I had to be very
thought there wasn't much done in terms of pushing involved in our daughter's education
kids to prepare for the SATs, to visit college in order for her to make it to college.
campuses, no classes about scholarships, etc. My We were able to do that because we're
wife and I had to be very involved in our daughter's both college graduates but we saw
education in order for her to make it to college. We
very little support from the school in
were able to do that because we're both college
terms of preparing students for
graduates but we saw very little support from the
college. My daughter graduated with
school in terms of preparing students for college. My
honors and she was one of their top
daughter graduated with honors and she was one of
their top students and yet even she didn't get that
students and yet even she didn't get
type of attention. So what's happening to the other
that type of attention. So what's
students? Yes, the curriculum might be there. Yes, happening to the other students?
the expectation might be there but there doesn't
seem to be much focus on the nuts and bolts of preparing the students to get into the top schools or even
college regarding what they should be studying or how to get there. On the other hand I talked to a friend of
mine whose child is in another school and their holding your hand and giving new deadlines and telling you
what you should be doing.
º You know that the approach in Country Day is very different and you know that they are handholding and
that they're setting up expectations that the students will go to college and will go to the best schools.
They're hand holding them and they're making sure that they take the right courses and prepare for the
right tests. You don't get that in public education. As a result even the students that make it to college are
flunking out in their freshman year. I think that the area to invest in the schools is in the area of counselors.
I think they they're not doing a good job in the area. The biggest thing that I saw in the public schools was
that they were not taking the right courses. Who’s going to make it in college if you don't take the right
courses in high school? They’re not rigorous enough. Now they did change it five or six years ago in
Lancaster when they established and learning communities. You could no longer graduate with just a
general degree you had to pick a major such as pre-college or humanities and my daughter's case honors.
They have to have a major so you can graduate with something which I thought was a good idea.
º The average SAT score of a White student at Millersville is about 1100. African American and Latino students
between 900 and 950. They become regular admits. They are not put into our special programs. As you
know, you teach to the middle of the class and they are about 200 points below. It's not a measure of
intelligence but it's the vocabulary that you have. The kids that we expect in our ACT 101 programs have
combination SATs of 700 to 800. They are in our special programs and we try to keep them in classes
together the first semester but after that, they're spread out. They’re in even more trouble. We get people
graduating from McCaskey that we have tested who are on a reading level of the fifth and sixth grades and
they graduated with good grades. They can’t read their text books. This is college, so even if you're reading
at an eighth grade level your textbook isn't written at an eighth grade level. It is written at a college level.
They definitely don't know how to do critical reading. I'll tell you what I mean. They can read the words but
critical analysis which is what is expected in college. You can’t just read this, you have to think about it and
what are the implications. That's why their SATs are low because the SATs now are almost all critical
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reading. I had a young man last year who had no number

fact skills. He still counted on his fingers and he wasn't the
The average SAT of a White
only one. How do you graduate from McCaskey with a
student at Millersville is about
diploma and you’re still counting on your fingers. Something’s
wrong!
1100. African American and
Latino students become regular
º I think businessmen need to investigate a way to devise a tax admits between 900 and 950.
base for the school district that will allow us to spend per- They become regular admits.
pupil what we need to. You have to understand that They are not put in our special
businesses do all that they can to excuse themselves from
programs. As you know, you
having to pay city taxes even when they're in the city. We
teach to the middle of the class
know that if we continue to use the real estate tax, because
and they are about 200 points
people the city are poor, we are never going to have the
below.
money we need for the school district. So we need a better
tax base. We need to recruit quality teachers.
College
º The retention issue is a major issue, just like it is nationwide. Millersville is basically at the level of other
universities in terms of their problem in retaining African-American and Latino students. I don't think
Millersville is doing anything that's necessarily cutting edge. Although, now there is an emphasis on learning
communities for freshman students. One of the philosophies of the ethnic studies communities is that
African-American and Latino students come here and they are shocked in terms of the culture, in terms of
the work ethic, academic ethic. To be honest the Philadelphia area and the Lancaster city areas don't have
the best school system for many reasons. It's not just the schools. It's the poverty and those kinds of
things. [Do you get a lot of students coming in from Lancaster city?] Not as much as Philadelphia. That was
one of my concerns. The emphasis seems to be Philadelphia. What are we doing to actively recruit from the
Lancaster city area? In our ethnic studies program
it's like 30 students and a handful are from
They don't come in knowing the
Lancaster, the rest are either from Philadelphia or information that a college professor
Reading. I would think that since where near assumes they know…they don't
Lancaster and given the Lancaster partnership necessarily come in with writing skills
program that there would be more minorities on or language skills. They often don't
the Lancaster city area but there's not. The Ethnic have lab science skills…study skills.
Studies Learning Community is premised on the Time management skills and time
fact that one of the ways to help with the culture management experience.
shock is to provide them at least with a structured
environment where we have study halls that are
monitored by peer mentors and a staff. That's five days a week at night from six to 9 pm. Many of our
students come from poor schools and they don't have study skills and writing skills. Also, we provide a
provide college 101 type of class on a weekly basis. How to study, how to put communicate with professors.
How to tap into resources on the college campus that will help you. How to get involved with the
organizations on campus. How to read a paragraph and how to read a textbook. How to take notes.
Anecdotally we had one Latino student last semester who was not part of the ethnic studies program but
found the study halls also we did so helpful that she wanted to be a part of it. So informally she was part of
the program and she ended up having the highest GPA.
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º [What do you think of the biggest retention is issues with students?] Preparation. They don't come in well
skilled. They are two sets of skills. Actually, three sets of skills. One is content. They don't come in knowing
the information that a college professor assumes they know. Second, they don't necessarily come in with
writing skills or language skills. They often don't have lab science skills. A third set of skills they don't have
is study skills. Time management skills and time management experience. They go from high schools where
they've gotten A's and B's studying two hours a week to us telling them they have to study two to three
hours for every hour they’re in class. Now many of them will only have 12 credits to start. That means they
should be studying 24 to 36 hours a week. I tell them this and they look at me as though I must have lost
my mind. I have in my Ethnic Studies Language Learning community a mandatory study hall from six to
nine Sunday through Thursday. It's like pulling teeth. It's mandatory. Oddly enough, the Latino students are
much more compliant. They come to study hall but often they don't make use of it because they're not sure
what to do. They find it hard, even though we tell them to change subjects every hour, study 50 minutes
and take a 10 minute break. I say it's a lack of preparation, not lack of effort, not lack of encouragement
from home. So therefore those Latino students that come in as regular admits from suburban schools—they
come from White schools—are retained at a significantly higher rate than those that come from the urban
schools. So that's why think it's preparation. It obviously isn't brains and not effort.
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A PERSON WHO MADE A DIFFERENCE – HOW I MADE IT

“I think that role models and more minority teaching staff would make a difference. It’s huge because we're
telling these young people to get their education, learn the ropes of being successful in this society and you'll
be fine. That's not exactly true because the motivation is low if you don't see anybody who's done it! Until you
see a human being standing in front of you who's African-American or Hispanic and they've been down that
road I don't think it's real to these kids. It's a fantasy, when the only successful minorities you see are
athletes, talk show hosts or hip hop artists. They need to see people like them in this community who are
doing well. I would encourage the SDL to create, not just mentoring programs but regular, routine visits from
people, not only teachers, but minority people in the community who are successful to encourage students on
a regular basis. Ideally it would be mentorship relationship, one-on-one, one-on-a-few, but they need to see
people who are real, not fantasy people in magazines and on TV.”
—Lancaster Latino Parent and Educator
The following are a few examples of some typical stories of Latinos who made it despite the odds.
1. LATINO
[So you come from a family with a drug abusing father and they weren't educated. Both your parents died of
AIDS. So what do you think is the factor that led to you to finish school and go on to college?] Teachers.
Teachers became our parents. In the Bronx we had Ms. Sanchez who really cared for us. By the way, I attended
her retirement party last year. We have people like that in our lives that we stayed in touch with throughout the
years because it wasn't like I’m your teacher for this year and that's it. So we attended Ms. Sanchez retirement
and we attended my fourth-grade teacher’s retirement. These were Latino teachers who took an interest and
who believed in us despite of where my family was at, at the time. They knew about my mom and they knew
about my dad but nevertheless believed in us and told us we were smart. They encouraged us.
[How many brothers and sisters?] I'm the oldest. My sister comes after me and then my two younger brothers
who are four and five years apart from me. [Did your brothers and sisters go to college?] My sister went to
Cheney University and she graduated. She's an underwriter for an insurance company. My brother is in fact right
now in Harrisburg Area Community College. He wants to be a Respiratory Therapist. He's part-time there and he
has a music studio. That's how he makes ends meet—working with kids from the community who want to be
rappers. My other brother went to York Technical Institute and became a pastry chef. He just resigned from a
five-star restaurant in Philadelphia for an upstart restaurant outside of Pottstown. He was recruited by their
executive pastry chef.
[When you got into high school did you have support systems that helped you get through school and go on to
college? How did you know or learn about college because a lot of Latinos say their parents know little about it,
and they have no idea what it really meant.] I go back to the issue of teachers at elementary school because
since they believed in us, we began to believe in ourselves and so our grades reflected that. In New York, for
better or worse, they have this tracking system with teachers say "we can see the students doing this or we can
see that student doing that.” So they track you. One teacher told me "you probably should go to that junior high
school, because they are for the smart kids.” I ended up going to that JHS instead of my local junior high school
that was bigger and had a bad reputation. So they guided me and told me to go to this school because it was a
better school and had teachers who cared for you and teachers who knew the system and could tell you which
high schools to go to. They told me you should go to Manhattan Center for science and mathematics -- this was a
college prep type of high school. In New York they have different specialty high schools they have the graphic
design high schools, the vocational types of high schools... so they told me to go to Manhattan Center High
School for Science and Mathematics which is college prep and they geared towards helping you get good grades
and test better and get better SATs and they guide you towards college. So because of those early teachers
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building me up and then advocating for my placement in junior high school and in high school. They're the ones
who really catapulted me to saying well I guess college is for me. I really didn't know what I wanted to do but I
knew that in my high school it was about getting into college. The atmosphere was one that you're supposed to
get into college. So that's what helped me transcend graduating high school and then not going into a factory
like my dad. It was the expectations of that school. I don't think I did extremely well in SATs but it was enough
to get me accepted through the normal admissions process.
[Did you siblings experience that kind of support too?] Yes they did. More in elementary school because by the
time we moved to Lancaster my brothers were going into junior high school and my sister was going into high
school but it was enough that they knew those teachers believed in them. That is why I’m going into school
psychology.
I came here when I decided to go to Millersville University. I lived in the South Bronx most of my life and since I
had family in this area I looked around and found that there was a university nearby in Millersville so I applied
there. I entered Millersville in the spring of 1992.
[How was your experience at Millersville?] It was a good experience. I think it was a little culture shock in that I
was raised in the South Bronx and my only exposure was to Whites, for example, was via television. So I always
thought that Whites were rich, affluent and when I came to Lancaster I was shocked that there were poor White
people. And that they seem to have the same issues and conditions as poor Blacks and Latinos. Millersville, I
think because there was some faculty of color there, helped me with the transition of getting acclimated to living
with a White roommate; the structure that I needed being on a campus; and the university environment where
you only take two or three to hours worth of classes in the day and the rest of the day is what you make it. It
was culture shock in terms of the structure that I lacked growing up and the people that I wasn't used to being
around.
[That anyone mentor you through that process?] I think one of the key people that helped me was Dr. Rita Smith
Wade-El, although she was African-American, because she was a professor. Dr. Rita Smith Wade-El was a faculty
member that had great influence with other professors and she knew the system. A lot of Latinos and a lot of
African-American students saw her as a mother figure in addition to her professional role at the university. I
remember going to her when I was struggling with time management, getting my work done. She sat me down
and developed a class schedule for me and a study schedule. Something else that helped me at Millersville was
the Latino Organization. It helped me to meet other Latinos when there weren't a lot of Latinos at the university
at the time. But there were enough at the meetings to make me feel that I wasn't the only one. I was the first
kid in my family to go to college, so they had no clue what college life entailed. Some of my issues were that I
was the oldest and the first to go to a university so they had high expectations of me and you don't want to let
them down or let them know that you're struggling. A lot of Latino students feel trapped between a projected
image the family has of them, of not letting them down and keeping to themselves. So the Latino Organization
helped me by allowing me to confide in other students and share similar stuff -- good and bad. That also helped
me to be more of an advocate for myself and to learn how important it was for me, not only to stay within the
Latino organization but to be more open to other organizations on campus that could be of help, not just to
myself, but to other Latinos students.
[Do you think generally Millersville does a good job of providing support for Latino students?] I think it could be
better. I think their heart is in the right place. I think now as a graduate student and able to see more clearly
about the resources that are there but as an undergraduate sometimes you're not very astute as to tapping into
the resources. There were a lot of Latinos that were just like me who were not really used to seeking help. I
don't know if it's a cultural thing or what not but you're not used to asking for help as it relates to an outside
source. So they have resources but what I think they can improve upon, to be honest with you, is the
recruitment of a faculty of color. For me, that was what helped me to stay in school -- having a person of color
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who was a professor to mentor me and to walk me through the process. And I don't think Millersville has enough
of those kinds of individuals because reality is that there are professors of color at Millersville but not all are the
type to mentor students.
2. LATINO
We should provide some kind of internships for Latino students who are in college to prepare them to enter
corporate America. The corporate sector could set up a program where they actually connect students with slots
in their businesses to teach them about that business and about the options they have for jobs. We could have a
Lancaster Corp program. Where businesses provide slots for internships for Latino students
[So you're saying we need some kind of support systems for students to provide them the support that may not
come from their backgrounds) When I was in high school my high school counselor was Juan Galarza. I did know
what I was going to major in but he found me an internship at a major insurance company -- Educators Mutual.
There actually wasn't an internship program but there was an HR person who agreed to set up an internship
program for one student but they have to major in business and so I decided to major in business and I worked
there every summer I worked in every department. I learned the whole business. That's how you can make a
difference in someone's life. One internship for one student can make a difference. All this later prepared me to
be able to run for office and become the President of a premier economic development organization. This is what
can result from that kind of investment in one student.
You see my collar. I button my collar and that is one example of one of the norms I learned about corporate
America. Unbuttoning that top button is frowned upon. I learned a whole set of norms and I was acculturated to
the world of corporate merit to and what is expected of you. If you graduate from college and you don't know
those norms it affects the kind of job you can get. And just being acculturated into corporate America is a huge
thing. They don't teach that the high school. They don't teach that in college. And it's something you don't learn
at home. So that's an intangible but I can't even tell you how valuable it is. This is more than just a mentorship.
You need the opportunity to be able to go and work in a company and learn organically what it's like to work in
the corporate world. If you don't get that how are we going to build a leadership for the future?
We have to develop those fundamental relationships otherwise we come out of high school without learning those
traditions that some families are able to pass on to their kids. I am talking now about those mainstream values
and norms that I might not necessarily subscribe to but need to know to be able to function in corporate America
and get ahead. I have to be able to work and function in two worlds. And I know I need to know and I need to
learn the norms of the mainstream culture. Students who have parents who are professional can be exposed to
some of those values.
It is those intangibles that make a difference that can be achieved through internships. There is a difference
between a mentorship and an internship. In an internship you may develop a natural mentorship relationship but
simply having a mentor without that internship does not provide the same result. I could have been mentored
forever and still not have achieved or learned what I learned that internship. I actually had both I had my
counselor who actually functioned as my mentor and the internship which helped me develop the skills I got. This
can be applied across the board for example, and in the police department and the legal system or why not take
a criminal justice student and let them learn in a direct and practical way law what it takes to be on that job. You
need to recruit them and they learn and the norms and the skills and the values that they need to be better
equipped to succeed in that field.
My parents had eighth and sixth grade educations. They were highly intelligent people but not educated. The
issue that I dealt with was in the realm of lack of confidence and lack of self esteem but not from a personal
perspective rather from a career and academic perspective. There was no roadmap in my family or even in
Lancaster for that matter and I have been here since second grade. WhenI got to college I had the feeling that I
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wasn't good enough and that I was going to flunk out because I wasn't smart enough. I also saw a that there
was no one in corporate America that looked like me. That is a real barrier. To say I haven't seen anyone that
looks like me in the workforce.
There are Latino children here that see no role models in the upper echelon such as doctors and dentists and
lawyers and business people, etcetera. Many of the companies here have few to no employees who are Latino. I
know that when I was coming up I wasn't exposed to those folks and that had an impact.
You should speak to a guy named Ariel Rivera who also had Juan as a counselor and he ended up in Princeton
from McCaskey. He’s living in Texas now. His parents were not educated and he lived on South Plum Street. I
think the link you will find with many successful Latinos in the school district is Juan Galarza. Actually Juan was
not my formal counselor. I had a White counselor who did not help me and Juan would informally identify 20 or
30 Latinos that he would help and push toward college. He drove me to Ohio to check out a private school where
I ended up going. Can you imagine a counselor driving you up to Ohio? He took a bunch of us to a college visit.
He helped me fill up my financial aid because my parents couldn’t. This was one guy and it wasn’t really his job.
It was almost like an informal upward bound. He had no responsibility or obligation to do that, but this is what he
did for Latinos at McCaskey. Because my counselor was incompetent and because this was the person who
stepped in, I can tell you today that I would not be where I am today if he had not helped us and led us to
college. I was actually expelled from school in ninth grade and I was actually out of school for three out of four
semesters. I did it all. I used pot and drank and so you find a way to get back, if you can find a person who's
willing to give you a chance, find an internship and you go from there.
3. LATINA
I attended Washington Elementary, Higbee, Edward hand and then McCaskey. There weren't many Hispanics in
the school at the time. I had mostly Caucasian classmates at McCaskey. I didn't have any problems regarding
race until I went to Millersville. In high school I was given a minimal amount of guidance regarding going to
college. I always wanted to be a teacher but financially I didn't think I was able to go. When I was at McCaskey I
was enrolled in Vo-Tech for one half day. Rumor was that only the smart kids went to Vo-Tech because you got
two diplomas at the end. One from McCaskey and one from the Vo-Tech. I did get a full academic diploma from
McCaskey and graduated from Vo-Tech as a cosmetologist. I worked at it for a year and didn't think it was for
me. I also worked for the school district as a classroom aide. I wanted to attend secretarial school in Reading but
I wasn't allowed to because my mother didn't want me to live in the YWCA. My parents never talked to me about
going to college. No one mentioned my getting a college education. I worked as a teacher's aide for 3 1/2 years
and the teachers at the Higbee Elementary encouraged me to go to college, because I was doing a lot of their
work and working really well with them. So they said, "Go get your degree. You can do this." Becoming a teacher
wasn't a burning desire. I always like kids and I liked books. I thought I would have liked being a librarian
because I thought they sat around reading books all day.
I thought that once you graduated from high school, you got a job. So that's what I did. In high school I didn't
know any of my Hispanic friends who went straight to college. My best friend was number one in the class. She
was very bright and she didn't go to college. No one talked to her about going to college. As a matter of fact, on
the way home from school one day when she was 18, I signed as a witness so she could get married. She was
number one of 550 students and Puerto Rican -- quite an accomplishment, but no one advised her to go to
college.
I still lived at home while I was a teacher's aide and I met my husband. We eventually dated and he talked me
through the process of applying for school, financial aid, etc... So I went to college because I was encouraged by
the teachers I worked with and they would give me increasing responsibility that I saw I could handle; and was
helped by my future husband, who guided me through the process.
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At Millersville I was older than most of the students because I was already 21 and they were 17 or 18. At that
time most of the students at Millersville had never been around minorities. So they didn't want to sit at the same
table with me and I could make out the negative vibe and that it was just a racial thing. In class, when you were
required to work in groups, they were reluctant to participate with mine. I would have to make the initial move
to sit with certain people. But being an older student, I didn't live on campus, so I didn't really socialize, which
was another issue. I worked at Donnelley Printing three evenings a week and I lived at home so I didn't have to
worry about rent or board. My parents separated around that time and we owned a grocery store that my mom
would work during the day. When I wasn't at Donnelley I would help out at the store and at home with chores.
So I felt a little out of place at Millersville because they weren't used to seeing minorities, the age difference, and
I was used to more responsibility at home and at work. There were a few other minority girls there, but they
were younger. This was around 1979.
I went to school year-round so I graduated in 3 1/2 years. I graduated on a Friday and started my grad program
the next Monday because I got a graduate assistantship. I got my degree in a year and a half. After I finished my
master's, I came back to work at the school district as an elementary school teacher at Washington. I taught for
eight years and then I became a bilingual guidance counselor at Edward Hand and McCaskey. When I was a
counselor at McCaskey, I talked to students about attending college and my own experiences. I helped them with
their applications.
4. LATINA
I dropped out of school in the 11th grade from McCaskey. I had gone to McCaskey for half a year, when I
originally came to Lancaster. I was a rebel I didn't get along with my mother. My mother didn't understand me.
My sister served as a surrogate mother. I couldn't adjust to Lancaster, so I went back to Brooklyn to live with
another sister. I then came back, went to McCaskey and then dropped out. However, I actually got my GED
before my class graduated, because after dropping out. I found I had nowhere to go and couldn't get a good job.
So I vowed that I would get my GED before my class graduated and that is what I did. I then was offered a
position at McCaskey working in the business department. I worked there for a year and a half then got a job at
Wyeth Labs making pretty good money as a laboratory inspector of the influenza vaccine. I then got a job in
Millersville University working for the assistant to the President for Affirmative Action.
It was after I had a child, moved to the Bronx for eight years and then came back to Lancaster that I decided to
pursue an associate degree majoring in paralegal studies at Harrisburg Area Community College. I was working
at the Lancaster Bar Association and was informed there would be tuition reimbursement if I considered that so I
did. After obtaining the associate degree, I received a promotion. I took a little break and then participated in
some leadership programs in Lancaster County, and jumped around a little bit in terms of jobs, and finally ended
up attending the Lincoln University Masters program.
How I got to go to Lincoln was that one evening, while attending an event in Philadelphia with a friend and
mentor, I shared with her my frustration with my career and where I was going. I was in a dead-end to job with
a law firm as a business manager. And she told me that to move forward I needed to further my education and
of the Human Services Masters Program at Lincoln University of which she was an alumni. She even offered to be
my preceptor. When she said "This is something you should consider. I know that you can do this. I know that
you can." She planted a seed in me that night, and I took off after that. I'm glad I actually took her up on it. It
was like a challenge. She challenged to me to actually consider doing something different. Because of the
circumstances, I was in and being forced to come to this county -- not having an advocate parent or guardian or
teacher to help guide me or give me direction -- my attitude was I'm here because I have to be to make them
happy so let's just get it over and done with. Right. It was more about survival. I looked at it like I have to do
something. Number one to get out of my mother's house. So let me get this GED. I had just met a young man
and had fallen in love. So I needed to get a job. It was just a question of survival. I had no concept of going on
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to school -- higher education -- as an option for me. No one in high school had ever talked to me about going to
college.
Because of what I have learned things can be different for my daughter. She constantly goes online to look at the
different SAT requirements in the different campuses from different colleges, including places like Harvard and
Princeton. She can't wait to do that kind of thing. I think what motivates her is a combination of what she sees
that I'm doing, the different things that I've exposed her to, and the circle of kids that she is involved with, most
of whom aspire to go to college.
5. LATINA
In Brooklyn, when I went from the elementary school to the junior high school, they put me in a classroom for
the mentally retarded because they saw a Latino last name and this was a predominantly Italian neighborhood.
This was a time when our neighborhood was like something out of West Side Story. You had the Latino against
the Italian gangs and the Polish. Those boys were terrible to us [Latina girls] they were very insulting and very
demeaning. We didn't feel safe there. In the elementary school I was translating for the principal. We learned
English quickly. And yet they put me in a class where all the kids were learning stuff that I had learned in the
third grade.
I was a monitor for a teacher, Mrs. Bolstad, I'll never forget her. I told her I'm in this class and I don't think I
belong there. I know all that stuff that they're teaching. And so she told me "have your mom write a letter.”
How could my mom write a letter? My mom has barely a first grade education and my father maybe fifth grade.
So I went home and I wrote a letter and signed it and said "my daughter is in the wrong class." I put all the stuff
down. She took it. She happened to be one of the deans and put me in another class. I was in a classroom
studying language and typing and I was with my peers.
When I was in high school I didn't know anyone who had gone to college and the teachers were not talking about
how you should go to college. They didn't talk about any of that. But I had a guidance counselor, bless her heart,
who although I didn't spend a lot of time with her, instead of giving me just a commercial diploma which was
what I had asked for so that I can work to support myself and help the family, she also gave me academic
courses and I ended up being in school much later. I went to school early in the morning and wouldn't get back
home until after six because I was working towards a double diploma. I'm glad that I was accepting of that. She
was very farsighted. She always said. "you never know." She wasn't Latina. She was just a very goodhearted
person. I tracked her down because I wanted to say thank you to her and it turned out that she retired here in
Lancaster. She was living in Lancashire Terrace. I have always been fortunate in having teachers that listened to
me.
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LATINO ADULTS ON LATINO YOUTH IN LANCASTER

º [Do you think that there are enough activities here locally for youth?] No. There's nothing. I also think that
we need to teach our children more about their culture because much of our youth is losing that and it's
important for them to know about their culture because that is who they are. Some parents are trying to
make sure that the children fit in here and so don't teach them the Latino cultural traditions.
º When my kids were young, I remember I smacked my boy on the leg and left a black and blue mark. The
school, right away, tried to have me arrested saying that I abused my kid. When the police came I told
them, "You better not be here to arrest me, because I am only trying to teach my kids the way my father
taught me. That is why today I am not a drug addict or
a criminal because they taught me the right way." I have good kids. They are good
They said they only wanted to talk. I told him that the kids, because I taught them to be
way my kid was going I had to discipline him. that way. The fathers today are
Otherwise, they would end up having to hit him with a
afraid to discipline their kids,
stick or do something worse when he got in trouble. I
because they're afraid they might
have good kids. They are good kids, because I taught
get arrested. Some kids threaten
them to be that way. The fathers today are afraid to
their parents and say if they hit them
discipline their kids, because they're afraid they might
get arrested. Some kids threaten their parents and say
they will call the police.
if they hit them they will call the police. My daughter
said that to me, and I smacked her and gave her the phone and told her go ahead and call them.
º The kids know the system. They know it better than you do. Some will try to bully you and get away with
things. If you're a strong parent, they can't bully you. I didn't use physical discipline with my two boys. My
youngest boy gave us a hard time, but he was a good kid. And, by being there and staying on top of them,
my husband and I kept them in line. I don't believe you have to use physical discipline. It's a matter of
whether it's one parent or two parents, being there constantly, staying on top of them and not letting them
quit.
º The law says that they believe juveniles should not be punished for what they do, rather that they should be
counseled and educated. That's the way it is. I had a personal experience as a cop, where I responded to a
call of a juvenile breaking into a car. When I brought him in, I asked him, aren't you worried, I just brought
you in for breaking into a car. He said "No, last time I was before the judge he said that if I got in trouble
again they would send me to Camp Snyder and, in Camp Snyder, they take you camping and to Hershey
Park and I can't afford to do those things."
º We're having a problem with the Boys Club right now because the gangs are trying to recruit kids that are
there. All the problems that you hear now, of people getting robbed, it's all because of the Bloods. You have
the Bloods and the Latin Kings recruiting here. These kids are promised money. You arrest them and they're
wearing $200 sneakers and $100 jeans—things that parents can't afford to buy for them. It's a fact of life.
It's economics. Most of these kids are followers and wannabes. There are very few that lead. Here in the
city, if I'm not mistaken, there are over 20 gangs active right now. Well, who encourages kids to do this
thing? Videos, TV, the Internet... you have fingers signs, rappers in their videos give gang signals and
everyone knows what they mean.
º You should see in my neighborhood there is the White T-shirt gang—little kids, 10 years old. It's called the
T-gang and they are part of the Bloods. In attempting to involve the kids, we had a teen dance recently, and
there were 50 girls there and only three guys showed up, which means that we are losing our boys to the
street.
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º You can't lay all the blame on the school system;

parents and the school system have to work together.
The issue of gangs is a parent,
We have to get parents more involved. The issue of school and community issue. We
gangs is a parent, school and community issue. We have to come together to provide
have to come together to provide our youth our youth alternatives.
alternatives. One day I was returning home about 3am
and I turn down Coral Street and I had to stop the car. There were about 30 T-shirts crossing the street and
some of them jumped on my hood. These are 10, 12, 13 years olds and I thought to myself, “Where the hell
are the parents?” How could your ten year old be out of bed at three in the morning?
º I think academic failure is partly the responsibility of parents and the emphasis, motivation and
encouragement they instill in their kids. The lack of that home support, at times, but even in homes where
that support exists, I think the peer pressure in teen culture to fit in is tremendous. If you excel in
academics sometime you can be ridiculed for "acting White" or for trying to move beyond, or that you're a
snob for trying to engage in certain activities in sports or other extracurricular things. I feel there needs to
be sort of a tipping point where it's ok to be smart. Not only is it okay, but it's celebrated, and I don't know
if we see enough of that.
…even in homes where…support
º We live in the United States and there are many
exists, I think the peer pressure in
serious problems for young people of all races.
teen culture to fit in is tremendous. If But it's intensified for poor kids and when you're
you excel in academics sometime you poor, Hispanic, Black you deal with racism, low
can be ridiculed for "acting White" or expectations in some cases, and you deal with a
for trying to move beyond, or that culture that tells you you're supposed to be a
you're a snob…I feel there needs to be thug, a gangster or have lots of babies and work
sort of a tipping point where it's ok to in a factory. That's the expectation that's easier
be smart. Not only is it okay, but it's for these kids to fall into because the mold is set
celebrated… and the box is ready for you to just fall down
into. If you say, "I don't want to do that. I don't
want to work in the local factory, I have other ambitions, it's sometimes difficult to find people who will
support and encourage that.
º My kids went to public school in Lancaster… McCaskey… middle schools here. I think, partly because of who
their parents were and the kind of conversations we had with them, they had a pretty good experience in
school. But I remember my son, in particular, having a lot of peer pressure, being told "you're acting White"
if he spoke a certain way or if he wasn't interested in certain things, he was accused of acting like a White
boy. I remember he came home one time on the verge of tears once during middle school, telling me that.
He was like "Dad, I know you want me to do certain things but it's hard and I get made fun of. I want to
have fun in school and I want to have friends. I don't want to be on the outs.”
Latino Youth and Culture

The Puerto Rican Committee who for several decades has sponsored the annual Puerto Rican Parade and Puerto
Rican festival, in 2007 opened the Cultural Center. In the following members of the group talk about being raised
here and needing to learn about their own culture. For many members of the group the focus is bringing the
culture to the youth.
º I was born and raised here of Puerto Rican parents. When we were younger, we only had the Boys and Girls
Club. We have to provide more for our youth. A lot of our youth is not going to college. We have to inspire
our youth and give them something to look forward to and give them something to do in the future. They
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are not going to college, they grow up in the streets and end up working at McDonald's and we need to be a
positive influence for them. I believe a lot of the members here have that mission and that is why I joined.
º I was born and raised in Lancaster. My parents are from

Puerto Rico. I join the Puerto Rican Committee because I We have to inspire our youth and
thought that this would give me an opportunity to help
give them something to look forward
and also to find myself with in my culture and learn more
to and give them something to do in
about by culture. Living in the United States you don't
the future. They are not going to
learn the history of your own country. I feel this is a good
college, they grow up in the streets
opportunity for me to learn and to keep that going with
my daughter. I know part of the plan for the Cultural
and end up working at McDonald's
Center is to have a place where young Latinos can learn
and we need to be a positive
about their culture.
influence for them.
º I joined the committee because I wanted to learn more

about my culture. I became a full Puerto Rican here—learning from others on the committee. I was raised
here and have been in Puerto Rico just once in my life. I was born in Puerto Rico but I came here when I
was a year and a half and I got married here and have my kids here.
º I have been on this committee for at least eight years. I am Puerto Rican but I was born and raised here in
Lancaster I join the committee to learn more about my own culture.
º I was born and raised in New York City and I have been here for 2 1/2 years. One of the reasons I wanted
to get involved the community was because I wanted to learn more about the community. I have two
children and I really want them to know their culture so I get them involved. I have been on the committee
little over year.
º I was born and raised in New York. My parents were born and raised in Puerto Rico. I came here when I met
my husband 33 years ago. I started with the committee helping out as a volunteer 20 years ago...I love
doing this and I have two sons and I want them to be able to carry on the Puerto Rican culture. I want our
youth to carry on our culture because once we’re gone it's up to them. If we don't teach our youth this is
where it stops.
º I was born in New York and raised here in Lancaster my parents are from Puerto Rico. My dad is on the
committee and he inspired me to join the committee about two years ago. I have three children and I want
them to learn about their culture.
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APPENDIX B: EDUCATOR INTERVIEWS
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TWO PIONEER BILINGUAL EDUCATORS

Their lives and views on education, Latino students and their families
Lourdes Vazquez
Her opinions on bilingual education, NCLB and parental involvement; and a view of King School as a
microcosm of the issues confronting the School District of Lancaster’s Latino students and their
parents.
“I knew I was going to be someone because my father told me so.”
(This interview was conducted with Lourdes Vazquez in August 2006 prior to her retirement from SDOL at the
end of the 2006-07 school year. Her last position with the district was as principal of King Elementary School.
Lourdes served SDOL for over three decades.)
I knew I was going to be someone because my father told me so. I owe the success I’ve enjoyed to my father.
He was the eldest of 10 children. His mother died and his father was left to raise his 10 children on his own with no
money. As soon as he could, my father joined the Army without his father's permission as a way out and a means
to help his father and siblings. He felt an obligation to help get his father out of poverty. For seven years he sent
half of his Army pay home to his father to help raise the other nine children. That's what kind of a man he was.
When he finally got back to Puerto Rico, his father was out of poverty, had a house in the Pueblo and had been able
to raise the other children at the same time. He had put aside some of the money my father sent home, so my
father would have some money when he left the Army to start his own life and family.
My father never realized his own dream of going to college. He met my mother, got married and raised his
family. When I was five, he decided to move to the United States. He worked as a dishwasher. Later, my mother
went to work at a factory that made doll clothes. I had one brother who was younger. My father was very strict
about school and good grades.
When we first came from Puerto Rico, my father put me in a Catholic school. I didn't know a word of English and
there was no one there who spoke the language. I felt completely lost. I watched the other kids and did what they
did. I felt so small—like a tiny ant in that room—because I knew nothing.
I just followed along. Luckily there was a nun who had been to Puerto
I didn't know a word of
Rico and she spoke some Spanish. With her guidance in school and my English and there was no
parents, who would sit with me at home and help me with my homework, one there who spoke the
I was able to make it. My report cards in first grade started with Cs and language. I felt completely
improved to Bs. This was as a result of my parents and this nun who saw lost. I watched the other kids
something in me. and did what they did. I felt
so small—like a tiny ant in
Although I graduated high school with a 96 average, I was not
accepted into the Catholic high school in our area. My father was
that room—because I knew
devastated because he wanted me to go to a Catholic high school. Kids
nothing.
with lower averages were getting in so my father went to complain. They
asked him "Can you pay?" He said that he wouldn't be there if he couldn't. Finally, disgusted, he told them to
forget it and I went to a public high school. On the first day, apparently because my name was Ortiz, they assigned
me to all general courses, no academic courses. The next day my father went to school and in his broken English
told the guidance counselor to change my courses—"Because she is going to college."
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In high school I was in the honor society. In my last year my father made sure I took all the tests I needed to go
to college. He accompanied me to Columbia University, where I had to take the exams. I took the SATs in Spanish
and English, because at this point, he was thinking of going back to Puerto Rico. I was accepted both at Hunter
College and the University of Puerto Rico, and I chose to go to Hunter College in 1968. I was the only Hispanic in
the classroom. I graduated and became an elementary schoolteacher. After graduation I started working in New
York City as a kindergarten teacher. Six months later, I started studying for my Masters at NYU.
At that time bilingual education was big, and they were offering a lot of grants in that field. That was where I met
other people who were in the same boat. Later, I started working with Carmen Perez, who was a pioneer and we
started bilingual education in New York. I was the first bilingual education teacher in Brooklyn at PS 133. We
started this whole process. I found myself teaching all those children who couldn't speak English, but we didn’t
have any materials. We were teaching them in Spanish, their natural language, and later on they would learn
English and get ESL at the same time. Since there were no materials available, we spent countless hours making
our own materials. I worked with the pioneers in bilingual education and they guided us.
Do you believe in bilingual education? Do you believe it works?
Absolutely! Absolutely! In 1996, they got rid of it here in the School District of Lancaster. We had a good
bilingual education program going with Dr. McCrae. They claimed that research showed it didn't work. They said
there were studies done but I never saw them. They said the kids were not moving fast enough—but putting them
in regular classrooms without someone there who knew their language wasn’t working either.
I worked in New York for some eight years until I moved to Lancaster. When I got here, while trying to get a job
in the School District of Lancaster, I went to work in the migrant
education program as a tutor to children who couldn't speak English. In 1996, they got rid of it here
Around that time, Iris MacRae interviewed me and told me she was in the School District of
planning to open a bilingual kindergarten and she hired me as the first Lancaster. We had a good
bilingual kindergarten teacher in Lancaster. I worked closely with Mrs. bilingual education program
MacRae, and we had a good, viable bilingual education program. I going with Dr. McCrae.
worked part-time at both King and Washington Elementary schools.
When Carter MacRae Elementary opened, they transferred the bilingual
program there for a while. I was there for a year and then they opened it again at King Elementary and I returned
to King. I always believed that was where I belonged—working with children who couldn't speak the language
because I was that child too.
I have three children—two girls and one boy. Both of my daughters are teachers. Both are special education
teachers—one works at Washington Elementary and the other works in the middle school. They both love it and are
natural teachers.
Views on Whether SDOL Latino Parents Value Education
What I’ve experienced is that for many of our parents their focus is on survival—being able to dress and feed
their child, making sure he or she is healthy. That is number one with them. Education is secondary. "I bring him or
her to school. Teach him everything he or she needs to know." They believe they do their part, which is to make
sure their children are well fed and taken care of, that they have a safe home and that education is the teacher's
responsibility. They hand them over to us and it is an awesome responsibility they give us. However, we are trying
to teach these parents that they are the first teachers. Parental involvement is one of our biggest challenges. If I
asked them to come for a meeting they might come for one meeting but the issue is consistency.
I find that when the children are little the parents are very much involved; whatever the teacher wants they’re
there. It's when the children get older that they step away. They don't feel they need to be at the school. I try to
tell them. "That is when your children need you most.” especially when they are in middle school, because that is
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where we are losing many of our children. I tell parents the children need to know we are partners. One of the key
issues is the education of parents. It is not an easy chore. It is one of the hardest things we have to do.
It's not that the parents don't care. The parents do care but they feel intimidated, especially when they don't
have a command of English. They're intimidated saying "these teachers are telling me to do these things. I can't do
them but I’m too embarrassed to let them know that I can't do it.” We
tell them if they can’t read English to go ahead and read to their It's not that the parents don't
children in Spanish. Don't be afraid. I tell the parents to tell those care. The parents do care but
stories about the experiences they've had in their lives. Those things they feel intimidated, especially
will help their children grow. If they have a book and it's in Spanish, when they don't have a
read it to them in Spanish. It's okay. Their children are learning. They command of English.
know that reading is teaching you something but parents are afraid.
Parent education is a critical piece of parental involvement when it
comes to Latino parents, because they bring these fears, a sense of helplessness of not being enough for their
children, of lacking in knowledge. Many of our parents have not finished high school.
We are able to deal with that here because of myself and the other staff here who know the language and
understand the culture. So I haven't had too much of a problem with that but I know what happens in many of the
other schools. Parents won't go into schools because they are intimidated especially if there is no one there who is
Latino. None of the four middle schools has a Latino administrator and this is where parental involvement is most
critical to help guide their children.
Do you think Latino parents; especially those who are not well educated become more and more
disconnected with the school as the child gets older?
Yes, absolutely. In the elementary school in the lower grades is when they're most connected. When the kids
enter middle school I tell the parents, “This is when you really need to stay connected. This is when they need you
the most.” especially at this age which is when we begin to lose many of our children. I think in today's society,
kids grow up so fast that many parents, not just Latino parents, feel their children are much more mature today
than they were 30 years ago.
The disproportionate failure of Latino children
I think part of it is that they don't feel connected to the schools they are in. For example, McCaskey is huge— it's
a little better now that there are two schools— but when it was one large school there was really no personal
contact. Here at King we nurture our children. We know our children, and they know us. Many of the children in the
higher grades feel disconnected. They feel all alone, and think "Why should I
stay? Nobody cares." I believe the school district has begun to address it
Lancaster is not very
with East and West, the two buildings, and they now have the learning
attractive to young people
groups. So it's better now than it was. That's one part of it.
coming out of college. So we
Another obstacle is the lack of Latino employees in the school district. don't get an influx of Latino
Lancaster is not very attractive to young people coming out of college. So we educators to work with us.
don't get an influx of Latino educators to work with us. It is so difficult for
me to find ELL teachers who should be bilingual and bicultural—mine are not. I have two. The rest are Anglos who
have learned the language and some who try to live in this neighborhood to learn more about the culture and learn
about our children. I am the only Hispanic school administrator at the elementary school level.
My school is 75% Hispanic. I have 230 ELL children that are coming to me with no English. There is a
concentration of beginners here—meaning no English language skills at all. Washington Elementary has a high
Latino population, but they are usually dependent—meaning they have been here a few years. They are still labeled
ELL, but they don't have as many beginners. However, 75% to 80% of our ELL are English language beginners.
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This affects us in that we are not going to meet AYP because they keep raising the benchmarks while I keep getting
more and more beginners. When I started here in 1999, I had 100, and today in 2007 I have 230.
Would a bilingual education program help?
When I took on this school in 1999, the ELL children were scattered in classrooms throughout the building. I had
an ELL teacher that would take them and give them 30 to 40 minutes of instruction and then put them back in the
classroom. The rest of the day the children sat in the classroom, not knowing what was being said—losing content
as well as language. Even if they picked up some language they were
still losing the content. I said, "This is not going to work." …they offered me the option
Also in 1999, 60% of the children at King were in the bottom
of being a principal at
quartile. It was a school that was being looked at to be taken over.
Burrowes or at this school. I
Before coming to King, they offered me the option of being a principal said I wanted King, and they
at Burrowes or at this school. I said I wanted King, and they told me I told me I was out of my mind.
was out of my mind. I was told that King was a failing school. "Why
would you want to take something on where you are going to fail?" I said, "I am not going to fail because I have to
be there for these kids."
I took on this school and within the year I changed the whole format in every grade level except kindergarten. I
clustered the ELL kids in one classroom and I took my most bilingual teacher and put her in that classroom. I had
an ELL teacher work with her to team teach those children.
I did that in every grade except kindergarten because I have no control over how to put the kids together in
kindergarten—that comes from the district. In only a year, we made significant progress in our AYP scores. They
were so thrilled that they gave me a standing ovation and sent me balloons and flowers. I had staff that had been
working hard but had not been working smart. The following year, the number of children in the bottom quartile
dropped from 34% to 16% in math and from 42% to 34% in reading.
Were you in fact running a de facto bilingual teacher program?
Yes, but I didn't call it bilingual I called it “content acquisition” classes because Title III came in and said that it
was my responsibility to provide two to three hours of direct ESL. I don't have the personnel to do that except to
put them together and have them team teach. The ELL teacher concentrated on doing the language development
that they needed to do the content area. The progress showed more in the math
scores because what was keeping the reading scores down was the language
In most schools it's a
issue. Now I'm at a point where it's reached a plateau because No Child Left
pullout program whereas
Behind keeps raising the benchmarks and I keep getting new kids.
mine is in the classroom
I am the only one that has this setup in the entire school district. That's with the teachers.
because I did it myself. They allowed me that, because we don't have, per se, a
bilingual education program. We just have an ESL program, which is called an ELL program. In most schools it's a
pullout program whereas mine is in the classroom with the teachers. The teachers take the time to do more
language development with them individually.
The Challenges and Obstacles of No Child Left Behind (NCLB)
This year alone in fifth grade I had 36 ELL children and nineteen Special Education children—children I had
gotten from other schools, such as from New York and Philadelphia, that came in with a Special Ed label. This is
difficult because if I have them from first grade on I know who I'm teaching. I know what I'd make my teachers
responsible for. I had 36 of them in that 5th grade, nineteen Special Ed, and seven labeled Emotional Support (ES)
that were not in my building but they count in my AYP numbers because they live in this neighborhood. Even
though they don't go to my school because I don't have an ES class here, their scores count in my AYP.
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In addition, every child that’s been here 366 days has to take the PSSA test. They are allowed one year to learn
the language and learn the content before taking the same test given to all regular fifth grade students. That is my
struggle. That is a fight that I will probably continue even after I retire
because it is so unfair. You're making a child that's been here one year You're making a child that's
take a test developed for students whose native language is English. Is been here one year take a test
that fair? How about a special education child? He has that label because developed for students whose
he has a special disability. How are you going to give him that same test native language is English. Is
that every other child in fifth grade takes? If he could do this work he that fair?
wouldn't have an IEP and he wouldn't be labeled Special Education.
Special Ed means that we have to use special strategies with those students and they are usually a year or two
behind. So why are you going to give them a fifth grade test if you know they’re going to fail? So I have 90 fifth-
graders, of which thirty-six are ELL, nineteen are Special Ed and seven are Emotional Support. What are my
chances of making AYP at proficient and advanced levels? I went to the superintendent and asked, “What do you
want me to do?” Then I asked for more ELL teachers and there are none. I was told, “You can't have any more.”
I have the same number of ELL teachers I had in 1999 and I have 100 more kids today than I had then. The
resources are not there so I try to do the best I can here. The children are making tremendous progress,
sometimes two or three years growth in a year but that doesn't show up in an AYP exam. Nobody looks at from
where they started when we got them or at the mobility—or that I got this kid in January and he’s taking the test in
March, meaning I've only had him for about three months but he counts in our scores.
It looks like we are not making AYP in reading but we are always making it in math. In fact I have won the
highest scores in the district in math but that’s because math is universal and because we drill these kids. They do
the computation on one side and they have to explain it on the other side in English. So we have them memorize
how, if you're going to do something like this in math, this is how you explain it in English. We make them write it
over and over again until they get it. They're given the vocabulary: “I will add. I will subtract.” The only
accommodation they allow me to do is to read the prompt and translate it for them. That is all we can do. In
reading there's nothing we can do for them. So it is really an unfair test that we are giving and using to judge our
kids.
It breaks my heart because you have to see these kids, how when
It breaks my heart they're taking the test sometimes they just start crying. It breaks my
because you have to see heart because it shouldn't be. I had a group that took seven hours to take
these kids, how when this test and I had to call some of the mothers in to sit with them because
I am allowed to give them time. The children would ask to be given more
they're taking the test
time and would start crying. "Missy, dame tiempo. Dame un poquito mas
sometimes they just start
de tiempo" [Missy, give me time. Give me a little more time.] They start
crying--"Yo no entiendo lo que dice." [I don’t understand what this says.] And, I can't translate for them. Is it fair?
I just tell them to do the best that they can.
I don't know what else to tell them. I know that they're trying. I know how hard they are trying because they
know the urgency. They don't want to be seen as failing. And if you look at their report cards you can see that they
are doing well in school and that growth is there. You have to give those children more time than one year.
Government doesn't see it and they don't understand it. All I ask is come and see my kids and see the progress
that they are making—individual progress.
I got to the point where I felt I can't worry about AYP. If I don't make AYP, I don't make AYP. I have to keep my
kids sane and I know that what I'm doing in the school is benefiting those children. I know they're growing and
they're learning. AYP is not fair to language limited students. When I first started teaching, children were given
three years to develop the skills to handle the language, and now it's one. In New York they may give them more
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time to learn the language. The PSSA is a Pennsylvania test. Different states have different tests to meet the No
Child Left Behind criteria. I may have kids coming from Puerto Rico or Santo Domingo and if they leave and come
back the same year they have to take the exam. I have kids that will start the year, leave and then come back,
but it still counts as if they've been here throughout the year.
If I have a child that comes in and is reading on a first grade level and within a year’s time, I get him to read at a
third-grade level—that's progress. What I've done is move that child two grade
levels in only one year. I consider that a success. I can also assume that child If I have a child that
will continue to move along at a good pace. Now if that child is a fifth-grader, comes in and is reading on
he will not do well on the fifth grade assessment test, and the progress that he a first grade level and
is making is not acknowledged. The state doesn't care about that. All they want
within a year’s time, I get
to know is, did they hit the bar or didn't they. There is an assumption that once
him to read at a third-
a fifth-grader moves into our district wherever they've been before they've had
grade level—that's
kindergarten, first, second, third, and fourth grades—just in a different
progress…All they want to
language. So, when they get to fifth grade, they should be ready for our fifth
grade curriculum, and that's not the case. This is especially true of children
know is, did they hit the
from rural areas. Many of these children come from communities where they
bar or didn't they.
have not had an opportunity to go to school on a consistent basis. Even if they
did, many didn’t have the books they needed. Depending on the school and the area, they might have had teachers
who didn't have the credentials they should have. Some kids come to us without the ability to read even in their
native language.
The child should be allowed the time to learn the language in order to take the test. Give me at least three years
with that child before he has to take the test. Give them a fair amount of time so they can excel. I need the time to
be able to teach them what they need to know and some kids can do very well. I think some kids are capable of
doing the test in Spanish but it's not allowed. I know that a child can respond to the question in Spanish, answer it
correctly—write a beautiful response, but because it's in Spanish it will be a zero, completely discounted. What we
are measuring is content. Do they know the content? We're measuring knowledge but we're penalizing them for
language.
You have to judge progress, not a benchmark. The state needs to recognize that not all children fit into that nice
little box of no Child Left Behind. We have to take children where they are and work with them from that point. So,
for that child who makes significant progress in a year but doesn't meet the benchmarks, his or her progress
should still be acknowledged as success, not failure.
The Need for Culturally Competent Educators
In working with ELL, the district must have professionals who understand the culture. That's a big part of it. You
need to understand the culture in order to design a program to help our children. It's not just teaching them the
language, it's also understanding the culture and where they're coming from. You need to understand the mentality
of the parents, how they're treated at home and what the expectations are of them. My daughter who teaches in
one of the middle schools understands this and is advocating for these kids.
We don't have enough Latino educators in our school district. The Latino population is not represented in the
teaching staff. Putting a child in a mainstream classroom who doesn't speak English is a recipe for failure unless
you have a teacher that can handle it – who knows the language and culture.
As far as the teaching staff here is concerned, the face is changing. When I became principal eight years ago, I
had mostly veteran teachers—teachers who had been educators for 30 to 35 years. Most of these teachers have
since retired. I have only three left from that group and all of their replacements, new teachers coming in, are
primarily English speaking. These are brand new teachers that I am trying to mold. Of all the new teachers there is
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one Hispanic. There is an absolute need for more Latino teachers and for them to be offered a salary that would
make it attractive for them to come here. The district needs to put together some kind of an incentive package that
will attract Latinos teachers.
Transience and the Changing Latino Population
The big issue that we face is mobility. We don't have the same kids all the time. We’re constantly getting new
kids all year. From November to March 2006 I had about 253 kids that moved to this school. I’m not given any
more teachers for all of those kids. Last year our kindergarten class did very well on their scores. I had 75 in the
kindergarten class and so I figured our first grade class this year would do very well. So in first grade, we tested
the kids but they did not do well. I couldn't understand it. So I
checked the names of our first grade children and more than half
of our kindergarten class had left our school. We had kept only 35
The big issue that we face is
of our 75 kindergarten students. They typically move to another
mobility. We don't have the same
school in the school district so someone else will benefit from the
kids all the time. We’re constantly
fruits of our labor. getting new kids all year. From
November to March 2006 I had
I know that the different Latino groups are increasing every
about 253 kids that moved to this
year. I would say that 70% of my kids are Puerto Rican. I think
school.
that Dominicans are the second-highest group, and then I have
Mexicans. I have just a few from El Salvador. The most noticeable
change is the increase in my Dominican population, which is very mobile. They think nothing of sending the
children to Santo Domingo to live with the grandmother. One problem that we have is that Dominican children in
Santo Domingo are placed in kindergarten at the age of three. I had a child who came here who was six years old,
who was going to the third grade in the Dominican Republic. There was no way I could put her in third grade here.
In addition to her young age, she didn't have the knowledge that she supposed to have for placement in third
grade. Her mother was really upset so I told her that if I put her in one of my third grade classes we'd be setting
her up for failure.
I had a similar problem in one my first grades. I had eight kids who were five years old who were going into the
first grade. In terms of ability, they had no letters, no sounds, couldn't read even in their native language. I don't
know if their first grade over there is more like our kindergarten here. These kids really needed to be in
kindergarten. The school district has a policy that a child shouldn't be retained. I didn't see it as retention. I saw it
as placing a child in their appropriate grade. When my kindergarten kids leave they are all writing—at least two or
three sentences, some can write a whole page. We have a program called kid writing, and we start them writing
from their first day. Even my slowest child in kindergarten can write a sentence by the end of the year.
Grade levels are different in the Dominican Republic. I went to a conference once where I asked if other
educators had experienced this and many indicated that they had. Other educators found that children would come
in, supposedly going to third when in actuality they should be in first grade. What happens is, when they go to
Carter McRae to enroll, they are evaluated by their report cards. If the report card says the child is going into third
grade then they are enrolled in third grade. My question was, did anybody stop to look at their age, because
they're six years old? There could be an issue of how they label their grades. I really don't know what the problem
is.
Yet another problem is that the population here is so transient because of the cold weather, or maybe the mother
is having problems and she doesn't have a babysitter, so she may ship the kids off to Santo Domingo and five
months later, brings them back.
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Do you consider the Dominican population to be more transient than the Puerto Rican population?
I believe it may be about the same. It depends on the time of year. I also have the same issues with the Mexican
population who think nothing of taking a month's vacation during the school year. They see nothing wrong with it.
That's another of my battles. Because Mexico is so far away, when they take a vacation they want to take a month.
I tell the parents that I will give them a week. And that's it. After that, I will withdraw the child and they have to
take their chances trying to get them back in, because it's not fair to the child, it's not fair to my school and it's not
fair to the teacher who has to play catch-up when they get back. With one teacher, 25 kids and no assistant in our
classrooms, there's no time for catch up. They basically try to plan their vacations around the time they can get off
work. It's based on their schedule, not the child's. Sometimes they say it's an emergency and they want to take a
month, but I tell them that going for a month isn't an emergency. If they take a week or few days we can give the
child school work to take to keep them current.
I assumed that most of these homes don't have computers so that even virtual schooling isn't a possibility.
Most of our parents have no exposure to computers, no computers in the home. I have a computer lab, and that
is how many of these children learn about computers. They can use the computers here at school to write reports.
We start our kids using computers in kindergarten. We are trying to make our computer lab as high-tech as we
possibly can. The school district is now really pushing the technology, so that's not a problem. In my after-school
program I have computers. I also have computer classes here for
parents so they can learn how to use them. We have a homework
club, an after-school program that we’re hoping to expand. Even if a
In my first year as principal
child doesn't have homework, has finished it or whatever, they can
not only did I hear a lot of
come here and use the computer lab. I do, however, require my
blaming the kids here, I heard
teachers to give their students homework every night. it in other schools as well…it
was about making excuses for
King School—the Challenges the kids and why they were
We take a team approach in the work that we do. I have my team. failing. My attitude was, it's
It consists of my literacy coach, my assistant principal and my not the kids. It's us and how we
support teacher and we have meetings. We discuss what's going on are teaching.
and we go through the data. It is a team effort. When I first came
back to King School as principal—a school where I had been a teacher, I told the staff here, “Many of you know me
and you know how I am. I'm not here to prove anything. I believe we have to work hand-in-hand to tackle this big
task we have. I know that we can do what we have to do if we just work together.”
I had many dedicated teachers working countless hours. We tried to maximize their efforts by working smarter
and we became very data driven. When we got our scores we broke it down child by child and teacher by teacher
so each teacher knew what they had done the year before. This would reveal what areas they would need to put
more emphasis on. They could say in what areas their students were particularly weak in which meant they may
not have been strong enough in teaching that area. We established weekly meetings—what we called grade level
meetings. We looked at the data and every time we had an assessment we examined those areas needing
improvement. We looked at which kids could do the work, which kids needed improvement and which kids didn't
have a clue. Teachers would volunteer for which group they wanted to work with and we would move kids around.
It was also teachers looking at their own proficiency and in what areas they had strengths and weaknesses. In
my first year as principal not only did I hear a lot of blaming the kids here, I heard it in other schools as well.
Things like, "This is the way we get these kids." "They don't speak English." "They don't come with the basic
knowledge they need to succeed in school." "They’re poor, they are disadvantaged." it was about making excuses
for the kids and why they were failing. My attitude was, it's not the kids. It's us and how we are teaching. What
changed here was we went from making excuses for the kids to where we asked the question "What didn't you
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teach these children to get them to where they need to be… where have you failed that child?” It wasn’t a negative
thing. The teachers may have missed it because they didn't have that background or they might not have been
aware of it. It wasn't a matter of being negligent. We never before had a measure of our own personal strengths
and weaknesses. Thank god I had a staff that wasn't taking it personally.
We opened the school on Saturdays to give these children an

opportunity to do extra things. It really doesn't matter what race or When I was a teacher, I had
ethnicity the child is because they all need us. Every child needs us. I a full-time assistant in the
don't make distinctions among my children. Every child needs to know classroom. That was 15 years
that we care about them as an individual. ago. That made such a
Many urban schools are operating with fewer resources. We are a
difference…Now teachers are
very large school district operating with the same amount of resources alone with 25 kids, working
that smaller school districts in the county are receiving. To make with kids that are coming in at
matters worse, not only do we have the disadvantage of working with different levels.
fewer resources but because we’re not meeting AYP we have a huge
amount of additional paperwork to contend with. Look at our literacy coach. She spent hours and hours upon hours
entering data and doing required paperwork. She used to spend that time working with children to deal with their
literacy issues. She used to take groups of kids and teach them. Now, she spends that time in front of the
computer entering data. Sometimes I have to pull her away from what she needs to be doing with the children to
meet the paperwork deadlines that have to get done. We’re not given an extra person to deal with this. On the
contrary, we’ve had 17 positions cut. So now I actually don't have a literacy coach. What I do have is an
instructional support person. I was able to put my literacy coach in that position because the person who was
instructional support retired.
This has especially affected the our kindergarten and first grades which used to have that kind of intensive
support—a teacher who used to come in and take groups of kids and do intensive work with them. They no longer
have this. This used to account for a lot of the success we were having with many of our struggling children. We’re
desperate. We get volunteers and we get retired teachers to come in to take groups. They help us out because they
know what we're going through—they don't have to do this.
When I came to the school I had seven assistants. Now we are down to two. These are people who were an extra
pair of hands who could walk into a classroom and work with students to reinforce something that she had taught so
the teacher could work with the other students. When I was a teacher, I had a full-time assistant in the classroom.
That was 15 years ago. That made such a difference. I could teach something and have my assistant work with the
students to reinforce things for the students who needed it. My aide Carmen and I worked together for 10 years. Now
teachers are alone with 25 kids, working with kids that are coming in at different levels. We try to do what we can to
stay on top of those areas needing support and try to provide whatever instructional support we can to those
teachers. Our instructional support person stays on top of models she can use to help develop the instructional skills
of our teachers. The challenge we face is addressing the different levels of the children and not providing the same
book to every child which is typically what we receive. We have to provide materials that are appropriate to the skill
level of the child, such as that of an ELL kid, so that we can bring them up to the current text.
The bottom line is city school districts all across the country are being asked to do more with less. Our ELL
population is 240 out of 700. We're looking at about 25 to 30% of our population that are beginner ELL students.
We are owed two ELL teachers and have been owed them for years and they won't give them to us. And the state
says that I have to provide three hours of intensive ESL and there's no way I can do it. That's why if I don't group
them, forget it. They would be lucky to get 45 minutes. While other school districts don't have to worry about
hiring ELL teachers, in our school we need six. Actually, I had six but I had to reassign one to a classroom. We not
only have more kids, we have more needs.
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Dr. Iris S. MacRae-Arzola

Historical Perspective of Latinos and Bilingual Education in the School District of Lancaster
Dr. MacRae is the one of the two educators after whom the Carter-MacRae school is named. She was a pioneer in
the development of a bilingual education program for Latinos in the SDOL. This interview was conducted prior to
Dr. Bishop’s announcement that she was resigning to accept a position in Roanoke, Virginia.
I came from a very small town in the southern coast of Puerto Rico—right next to Ponce. Ponce is a big city
around there. Mine is what I would call a one horse town with nothing going on, surrounded by sugarcane fields.
There wasn't much to do but it was a very unique community. There were a lot of intelligent people in that
community. I was the youngest of 11 children. I was educated in Puerto Rico up to fourth year of high school. I had
excellent teachers. I came here to attend Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia. All the girls in the family went there.
I had two sisters already at Chestnut Hill when I went there—one was a senior and one was a junior. My father was
a sugar plantation owner and his friends were also plantation owners. Some had children at Chestnut Hill. My
family was also Catholic and they thought I would be protected at a Catholic school. Chestnut Hill was a Catholic
school, a private school and a girls school. I graduated from college in 1942. I had told my father I wanted to go to
pre-med and be a baby doctor because I loved children. My father said "you're going take home economics and be
a good wife." I believe my mother attended school as far as ninth grade and my father probably graduated from
high school. I really don't know—I'm not too sure. They both could read and write very well. My mother sat down
with all of us and told us all that we were all going to college and that we were all going to marry college men; in
that order. I graduated with a BS in home economics and a minor in English. Eventually I would end up attending
Columbia University and Millersville and getting my Masters and finally my Ph.D. from Penn State.
After I graduated from Chestnut Hill, I took some courses in education at the University of Puerto Rico to get my
teaching certification. I went to teach in a rural district. In the rural part of Puerto Rico, they had what were called
Unidades Rurales. They were schools set up from first to eighth grades. I taught home economics, but it was
mostly home and school visiting and music and art. Later I got a job teaching English in my hometown. During this
time I received a letter from the fellow I used to date while I was at Chestnut Hill—his sister went to Chestnut Hill.
My father met him when he came to graduation and liked him very much. His name was Duncan MacRae and we
went together for four years. One day he said “Come on over and let’s get married.” So I got married and my
father died about four months later. I had my first son a year after we married and Duncan had gotten his Masters
degree by then from Rutgers University in agricultural engineering. Lancaster was an agricultural area and he got a
job working for Wyeth Laboratories. We came to Lancaster in 1952 and we lived for three years in Ephrata before
moving here—to this house. We built this house and I've lived in it for 47 years. In all we had three sons. The
oldest was five years older than the second and ten years older than the third.
I had a friend in Ephrata who was a teacher who asked me to substitute for her and I told her I didn't think I
could because I had a little boy in kindergarten and another two in elementary school. She was a bridge player and
we played bridge for many years. She pleaded with me to do it because her mother was very ill. I finally agreed
because I had a good babysitter, but I told her that if it didn't work out I would let her know. So I took the
substitute teaching job which was working with a special education class. The very next year, I got a call from
Conestoga Valley to come and develop a Spanish-language curriculum to teach Spanish. Their language classes
started in third grade. I taught third, fourth and fifth grades. I had about six or eight sessions. At that time, they
knew what they were doing when teaching languages. This was around 1956. So I developed the curriculum and I
taught it too. From there I started to study for my Masters degree and when I finished, Dr. Glass, the
superintendent of the Lancaster City school district called and asked if I would take a position in the district. I told
him I would love to but that I was happy where I was. At the time they were having problems. Some community
members had planned to walk into the school board meeting with placards and there was a feeling that something
bad could happen. To avoid that Dr. Glass called to see if I would take this job and he explained some of the issues
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that were there. The main issue was that kids were not being taught properly. And they weren't. In many of the
city classrooms they gave the children who spoke only Spanish paper, a box of crayons and a coloring book to keep
them occupied and make them feel comfortable. I often heard about the artistic ability of the Puerto Rican children.
So I left Conestoga Valley and came to the School District of Lancaster in 1971. I had taught at Conestoga Valley
for close to 13 years. The teachers in Conestoga Valley who were my friends told me that I was jumping from the
frying pan into the fire and they were right.
The first thing I asked for was a list of kids who were enrolled in special education and they were all Puerto Rican
or Black kids. A newspaper reporter came to interview me and I told him my first goal was to get those kids out of
there.
[So Latino kids would come in to the school district and they didn't know what to do with them so they put them
in special education?] They were placed anywhere. It was my office that developed a test, an orientation system
and a placement system for these kids. All of that was developed out of my office. I got in touch with the person
who was in charge of special education and she was very willing to cooperate. We called the parents and we tested
the kids. We took a whole bunch of Puerto Rican kids out of Special Ed. Every time I would visit a classroom I
would look around to see if there was a kid with a box of crayons and paper and I would talk to the teacher. This
was primarily done to the Puerto Rican kids who couldn't speak English.
So, after testing them and having their parents come in for meetings, I took a lot of the kids out of the special
education program. Each parent came to my office. With the help of the Special Education administrator and the
Guidance Department we managed to get a whole bunch of kids out of there who didn’t belong there and we
started to place them properly. We gave them an entrance test and we had two people that were in the guidance
department assigned to my office. I requested them and I got most everything I asked for at that time. I was
pushy but I got what I wanted. I must say that the school district’s administration was very understanding in those
days because in no uncertain terms, and with a little diplomacy, I let them know if I could not get what I needed
for those kids I would leave and they gave it to me. There weren't too many professional level Latinos here at the
time. Then I started to hire bilingual teachers. All of the teachers I hired were bilingual—people like Lourdes
Vazquez, Lydia Mellinger, and Aida Graupera. They were Latina.
When I came to the District Barbara Valvanes and Esther Shaeffer were teaching ESL under the supervision of
the Language Department. I introduced to the system a Hispanic aide in every classroom. I put a Hispanic aide in
every classroom and explained that "It was needed because it's a great help to the teachers." The aides were
placed where there was the greatest concentration of Spanish-speaking children throughout the district such as
Higbee (now Martin Luther King), Washington, Price and now Carter McRae. Those schools generally have higher
percentages of Spanish-speaking students. However, we did not have bilingual education at the very beginning.
By 1973 we started bilingual education. When we started there was a very specific sequence we followed that
began with a test I developed. The child would come to my office and either I or Naomi Joseph would give them the
test. The child’s hearing and vision was also tested at that time. Then the guidance counselor would interview the
child and I would interview the parents. Finally, based on our findings we would place the child. I don't know if
they'll ever have that again. It was the cream of the crop.
I'll tell you one thing, the idea of writing a placement test for these kids with attention to culture, which I was
conscientious about, of course, and having a sequence of events – of being interviewed by the psychologist, given
a placement test, orienting the parents, orienting the kids, testing their vision and hearing; this was a complete
assessment which resulted in a world of good for those kids. Many of the tests I did I developed and others I
developed in conjunction with the girl who was the bilingual teacher in Allentown, Sergia Montz. Sergia and I
developed some other tests that were done at my office; placement tests to test how much they knew.
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How did you develop the bilingual education program?
Well we were always thinking about it but then there was a nationwide movement. It was a political movement
and in many ways they let it become a political football.
I established what I called transitional bilingual education because in my heart I believed that was what they
needed. They needed to understand enough English to be promoted into the regular classroom and follow
instruction in English. The child goes into a bilingual teacher classroom and is taught in Spanish until he or she
acquires enough English to begin to be taught in English in that classroom. In the meantime, in another spot, they
are being taught English as a second language. That way their knowledge of English is expedited until they can
return to a regular classroom, but, if they still need the support of ESL, they can still have it. That is transitional
bilingual education and that's what I believe works for these children.
I ran it from 1973 until 1984 when I left. After I left I put together a document of recommendations. I gave a
copy to the person who followed me in that job and I also sent one to each principal of each school in the district. If
they would have implemented them, we would still have transitional bilingual education today.
One of the reasons I truly, with all my heart, believe in transitional bilingual education is exactly what we are
discussing. To me transitional bilingual education will let a child get into the second language and into the first
language better. Transitional bilingual education to me is really the answer to everything.
What do you think of what is going on with the district today?
I had lunch with Dr. Bishop and I shared some things that haven’t gone right in the district and I believe are
wrong from the point of view of a good educator who really cares about the kids. I told her, “You've been talking
about home and school participation. Parents participating and knowing what's going on in school and you want
that more than anything else. I heard you say the other day that you were going to work on keeping kids in high
school and for the dropout rate to really go down to a minimum and also for the Spanish parents to participate.
Well, when it came time to nominate a person to interact with the Spanish parents you nominate someone who
does not speak a word of Spanish!” Now, many of the Spanish parents are not at home anymore. Both are working
because they have to work. They can’t manage without two jobs. Consequently, it’s the grandparents that are
home and most of them don't know a word of English. How do you expect cooperation from them especially if you
have a home-school liaison who doesn’t speak Spanish whose job it is to help elicit participation from someone who
doesn't know a word of English?” I said to her that I didn't know much she’s going accomplish with the Spanish-
language grandparents or parents. She said, "I intend to send someone who speaks Spanish along with her." Well
that could have been eliminated. Why have two people when you only need one that is bilingual.
I do believe that Dr. Bishop tried her best to provide a good education to the Spanish-speaking children but
where she failed was in not consulting with Latino community leaders and professionals who could have
enlightened her and advised her on more effective approaches with Latino students. It is my personal opinion that
she could not grasp the kind of district that we are.
I also told her that one of the most frequent complaints I hear is that there is a lack of communication in this
district to the point of being almost abusive, for example, the reading series. I told her, “You came into the district
and imposed upon the teachers, without seeking their opinion, a reading series out of your own knowledge or
whatever you thought was best and evidently they are very disillusioned about that.”
I'll tell you what I think. I think Latinos in this community value education even more than non-Latinos but they
just don't know how to go about it. That is the big problem and they don't know how to encourage the kids to go
about it. All in all, as far as their goals are concerned, they want a college education for their kids. They will tell
you.
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BILINGUAL EDUCATION: THE VOICES OF BILINGUAL, ESL AND

OTHER EDUCATORS
I do agree with the concept of bilingual education. As a matter of fact, my girls
experienced that. When I moved back to the United States, my daughter was 9 years-old and
she went to Martin Luther King. She was one of Lourdes Vazquez’s students. When I think
back, it’s probably one the reasons -- if not the reason why she was so successful. She
learned and it didn’t take her long to grasp the English language, but I’m sure it was helpful.
She was a very good student when she came, but had she experienced the same thing that I
experienced – the immersion – I’m sure it would’ve taken her longer, and she probably
would’ve been more frustrated. — Latino Parent
µ They got rid of bilingual education here in the School District of Lancaster. We had a good bilingual
education program going with Dr. McCrae. They claimed that research showed it didn't work. They said
there were studies done but I never saw the studies. They said the kids weren’t’ moving fast enough—
but putting them in regular classrooms without someone who knew their language was working either
because that is what I found when I came back to Lancaster in 1999.
µ I worked in New York for seven to eight years until I moved to Lancaster. When I got here, I went to
work for the migrant education program tutoring children who couldn't speak English, while I tried to
get a job in the School District of Lancaster. At that time, Iris McCrae interviewed me and told me she
was planning to open a bilingual kindergarten. She hired me as the first bilingual kindergarten teacher
here in Lancaster. I worked closely with Mrs. MacRae, and we had a good viable bilingual education
program. I worked at King elementary in Washington elementary—part-time at each school. When
Carter MacRae opened, they transferred the program there. I was there for one year and then they
opened it back at King elementary, and I returned to King. I always believed that was where I
belonged—working with children who couldn't speak the language because I was that child too.
µ Putting a child in a mainstream classroom who doesn't speak English is a recipe for failure unless you
have a teacher that can handle it -- (knows the language and culture).
µ I don't really believe that the way that the school district in doing the ELL program is the most efficient
way to do it. I still believe that teaching in the native language at beginning so that the children are not
lost. What's happening in many other schools is because they're sitting in a classroom not
understanding what's going on; they're not learning the content until they learn the language. Well it
could take two to three years for them to learn enough English to understand the content and that's
where we lose them. They get disillusioned and frustrated. They don't want to go to school. Especially
our high schoolers.
µ The school district now has a Title III ELL coordinator who is not a Latina and does not understand the
culture. She doesn't understand what makes up our child. I know because I was that child. I don't know
what would have happened to me if I hadn't had the support that I did. I probably would have been
one of those children that didn't make it. I think you need to understand the culture. That's a big part
of it. You need to understand the culture in order to design a program to help our children. It's not just
teaching them the language, it's also the culture and where they're coming from.
µ I came here when I was nine years old. I was fascinated by English. I was in an English speaking
classroom because there were few Latinos kids. There was one kid named Ivan and they sat me next to
him so he could help me out. My sister and I wanted to learn English and we would play at speaking
English—making the sounds. We learned English right away but I think that was because just before
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coming to the states we had moved to Santurce. We were near the hotels and a lot of the Americans
passed by and we would hear them speaking English. We started to become familiar with the sounds
and started to imitate them. I could read and write in Spanish and that's what really helped me because
in spelling I would say the words to myself phonetically and soon I could spell them. You build on that.
Not only will that kid keep that language but the transition to English will be much faster. I always had
hundreds on my spelling. For math, I didn't need English. I could do math. And for some things in the
beginning Ivan helped me. The crucial thing is being grounded in your own language and culture.
That's the crucial thing. Which I think makes it very bad for kids who come from home knowing the
language but they can't read or write it. It would be better if they retain the Spanish. Why destroy the
possibility of being bilingual? At home it was all Spanish and at church it was all Spanish. We only
spoke English at school.
µ I'm all for bilingual education if it's done right, and in our district it was never done right. It was never
done right because the emphasis was on English. It was never on creating bilingual children. It was to
get rid of the Spanish and learn English. It's like taking a five-year-old and reducing him to a one-year-
old and teaching him to speak. Instead you could build on the Spanish and then go to the English. It
takes a long time. They say it takes about six years. In third grade the minute that the kids are able to
communicate like at a third-grade level, they were kicked out of the program. And sometimes they
didn't even want to continue giving English as a second language. So those kids, a lot of them didn't do
well. There are some differences. Some kids are quicker than others. But those are the exception
rather than the rule.
µ I don't know too much about how things are set up but to me it just makes sense that for kids coming
in speaking Spanish to develop that language. Give them more vocabulary help them communicate
doing the grammar and all of that and then building on the cognates that you have. I have students
coming from Mennonite schools in Puerto Rico who are completely bilingual and when I found out how
the schools did it, it made sense to me. They would start in the first grade with Spanish and they would
at a little English. In second grade a little bit more English but still most of it in Spanish. Gradually,
until by sixth grade, most of the instruction was in English. So I said to myself “the researchers are
right, it takes about six years.” They were completely bilingual and that's what I would like to see.
µ I think we need to do more about accepting bilingual as the preference. It becomes more important to
be bilingual in this country and to have Latinos that don't speak Spanish is just as bad. I do applaud
Manheim Township that has in immersion program, not for Latinos, but oddly enough for non-Latinos for
immersion in Spanish. They did have it, where students were starting in kindergarten and first-grade
learning Spanish. We do know it's better to learn languages earlier than later. I have no idea why
American school districts continue to wait until people are in middle school to try to teach them a
language. Every place else starts languages early on. We need to do that in be educational system and
that's an important kind of thing.
µ It's criminal, especially in the junior high school. Any kid who comes from school in Puerto Rico, he's
given no help whatsoever. It can't be done. You need a little help. I don't know how it's being done
now. There seems to be a lot of prejudice against bilingual education but I think it's only when it relates
to Hispanic. In New York wealthy people will pay thousands of dollars to send their kids to French
school. My son was going to go to a magnet school in Queens, Benjamin Cardoza, where they had
every language. If people have the money they want the kids to learn other languages but it seems
Spanish has a bad name for some reason.
µ The elimination of the bilingual education program had to do with politics people complaining about the
money that was being spent on that, the taxes. It was very political and they use California with all their
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problems as a measure. I was working in Carter McRae in 1985 and we still had bilingual classes. They
didn't do away with it until around 88 or 89.
µ What they were doing for a while when I was there was that some of the children would learn enough
English that they can communicate with another child, and they picked that up right away, but not an
academic level English. They would be dropped from the program because it was already a movement
to do away with it. It would be dropped from the program and I remember that one of the biggest
problems I had with the principal, was that I argued for ESL continuing after the children left the
bilingual program because they still needed English as a second language and the intent was not to
continue it. The movement had already started to get rid of it and shortly after that they did.
µ If child is very strong in his own language, he's going to do well in English and everything else. The
district's aim was never to keep those ties very strong. If they had looked at the research which
indicates a minimum of six years for a child to be completely bilingual, we would have had, I think, a
greater amount of success. But because of the political stigma attached to this, it's two to three years
and that's it. If kids that came from Puerto Rico who could read and write were able to keep their
language and their language was strengthened--that strength would transfer very easily into English.
But the district was against that.
µ Because the district didn't know anything about bilingual education.
µ There's a lot of research to back that up.
µ Yes, but the district never bothered to read any of that research. They never bother doing anything
about it. When I was in charge I always pointed out that fact all the time. Kids that are good in their
native language have a tendency to excel. I have all that research.
µ I can't imagine what would have happened to me if I had sat there and the third grade without knowing
anything. But I knew how to read and write in Spanish. In my church everything was in Spanish. So
that we still have the culture. We still had the background. I had something to bring to learning
English.
µ You developed the cognitive skills.
µ Exactly.
µ The IQ tests also -- a lot of times they would just translate the IQ test to get to the kids. first of all it
was illegal and those results are not valid because it was not normed for those kids. Culture wise it was
not normed for them. So of course they were going to come out lower. That's why they were in special
education.
[They did away with a bilingual education program, then what did they do?]
µ I was out of there by then. They dumped them.
µ I know that now at Martin Luther King they do have a very active ESL program and now the state is
requiring that you be certified in ESL so kids are pulled out for that. But when they did away with
bilingual education, they just dismantled the program.
µ In Puerto Rico there’s Academia Menonita in Aibonito, where those kids come out fully bilingual. I asked
one of my students how do they do it and he told me everything. At the beginning it's in Spanish with a
little bit of English then in second grade we get a little bit more English by sixth grade everything was in
English, which proves that the researchers write,.
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µ Another thing you need to realize, and you only see that when you're in the capacity that I was, I saw a
lot of discrimination against these kids as soon as I put them in a regular classroom.
µ That was the way the school district worked. I took parents at board meetings. They said they wanted
the parents to be involved, instead of having somebody to translate right there, they would say
“whoever here doesn't understand English raise your hand.”
µ They hired a bilingual psychologist, and you know we have a lot of non-English speaking students in the
district. She was supposed to cover two of the schools of regular kids on top of the kids that couldn't
speak English. She went to another district. She hung in there for a few years and then she had to
leave.
µ I think if it’s done correctly where it's actually bilingual and they're learning both languages maintaining
their native language and learning another, I think it really works. There are several reasons why I
support bilingual education. With bilingual education at least they can still be on level in the academic
area while they're learning the language and culture. I know that some say the research says that they
learn English in two to three years where they can understand it and in three to four years they can
read and write it. What about science, social studies, and math?
µ When I taught bilingual fifth and sixth grade, I wrote notes on the board in both in English and Spanish
because I wanted the children to continue reading and writing in their language because it helps them.
If they're learning to read and write in Spanish as well, they take those skills and apply them to English.
We all know that depending on how good they are in reading and writing in their own language when
they shift that to another language learning becomes easier. I'm a big supporter of bilingual education.
Given that it is truly bilingual.
µ Where I was, students went out for English as a Second Language and I believe skilled teachers are
needed for that and we have some. Unfortunately, the program was run by someone who wasn't skilled.
She had never taught ESL in her life. I couldn’t work under her because her ideas about how it should
be taught went against every belief I had.
µ We know that a lot of schools have bilingual education programs but define it differently. My classroom
was all Spanish-speaking children and at the beginning of the year I taught mostly in Spanish. I was
teaching fifth and sixth graders I did all the academics with them in Spanish. We had reading groups in
English but for the academic we had we actually had both in Spanish. In September I mostly spoke
Spanish and as the year progressed we used more and more English. After two years, most of them
spoke nicely in English but not all of them were fluent. I started to transition a lot of them out as soon
as I thought they were ready to go to a neighbor teacher for science or from at the history. With some,
after two years we might transfer them into the regular classrooms but still with support. Some kids
need more than two years, sometimes the three sometimes four. I just wanted them to be successful.
µ With immersion, using the sink or swim theory, they might pick up some of the language but they miss
all the other stuff. Yes, they’ll pick up the language, kids do. But while they’re sitting there waiting to
learn English, they're falling behind in everything else. Have you ever tried watching a TV program in a
language you weren't familiar with? By watching it you might pick up the gist of the story you might be
able to somewhat make out what's going on but you're missing a lot of what's going on. And when
people say to me "I know they understand more than speaking" I say, “You’re right, you might
understand a few words. You might understand “Hola, Como Esta? But that doesn’t mean you can
answer. They may pick up and understand some phrases but they may not be able to respond in
English.
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µ I also think that bilingual education is a very political issue. Bilingual education for Hispanics is always
been looked at with suspicion. Every year there were questions about whether taxes were going to go
up and they found this was a big waste of money. I believe a lot of the controversy in the country led to
lead a lot of non-Hispanics to focus in on this idea that they should be fluent in two years or that they
should be learning English faster. The research shows that it takes a lot longer than two years for them
to be competent in two languages because one language helps the other and they will be much more
successful in the long run.
µ The research having to do with the learning of another language and of another culture that should be
required reading for any administrator. Americans are very judgmental about people speaking another
language, but we are the only country where people don't speak more than one language. My husband
is from Ecuador. I went there and in the schools half the day is in English and half the day is in Spanish.
You read and write in English all morning and you read and write in Spanish all afternoon. And here
you're talking poverty. You're talking about schools that don't even have books. But that's important to
them and that goes on all around the world.
µ Traditionally in Hispanic culture the learning of another language was considered an ideal. You are
considered very intelligent and a very accomplished person if you know more than one language. It was
only here that we learned this concept of ENGLISH only. Do you have people in Afghanistan and Iraq
speaking English and look at how difficult those languages are but yet they're learning them and a lot of
them speak several dialects within their own country.
µ I work with kindergarten and first-grade that pull out my kids for half an hour each day. I would love to
see us test children in a bilingual program and compare them to the children in our ELL programs and
see the difference. Yes they might acquire the language and speak it but that's no guarantee that later
on they won’t have problems. Many of them end up dropping out because later on they are so far
behind academically.
µ I have a real problem with people teaching ESL that don't speak Spanish. I can see where you don't
need to speak of the persons language to teach ESL because I had some Bosnian kids and I didn't speak
their language. But if you had a taste of bilingualism and you know another language, you understood.
It's a real problem with someone who's monolingual and has really never learned another language.
Someone who has no idea what it's like to learn a second language.
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RITA BISHOP, SDOL SUPERINTENDENT: PART 1

(Interviewed on August 25, 2006 at the beginning her third year with the school district.)
My general impression of the School District of Lancaster was that there had not been the consolidated push
that there needed to be to work together with community agencies and to appreciate some of the issues around
language and culture; but, most particularly, to reach out to our Latino parent population. Two years ago, I had
the general impression that Latino students were not going to college in the same numbers as either Caucasian
or African-Americans.
My first impression was that we had to do really concerted counseling efforts, and to coordinate services, and to
provide genuine hope to our students so they knew exactly where they were going. Many times children didn't
have a sense of their opportunities and we needed to expand things like the Future Planning Center at
McCaskey high school so that it would be more inclusive and more directed towards our Latino students. The
entire high school is divided into smaller learning communities. The Future Planning Center is just what it says.
It's a place where you go get SAT prep, and it has some huge Workforce Investment Board funding. My feeling
was that it was understaffed. Thanks to the Workforce Investment Board and Project 720 from the state and,
hopefully, another counseling grant we will be quadrupling the size of the staff.
The Future Planning Center doesn't just work with high school students. The person who directs the center
works with much younger students. They just finished a camping experience. They've done that for long time.
My sense of it is, not just the Future Planning Center that there were fragmented efforts that need to be driven
to a central focus, which of course is our mission -- to educate -- not just in the Future Planning Center, but
throughout the community... that is to say "Hey this is 53% of our population here in the school district". How
are our students doing? One of the things I've insisted on in the past two years is that we have an accurate
database and we have that now.
No Child Left Behind requires that subgroups, I hate that term, test as well as their Caucasian counterparts. We
are seeing some pretty significant improvement on the PSSA and other measures of our Latino population, but
we're seeing some improvement in our overall population in terms of testing. It's a matter of being very
vigilant, connecting to college, connecting to workforce. But making absolutely certain that the most
fundamental thing is that you’ve got to get a high school diploma.
The learning communities started four years ago and we are now seeing our first graduating group. They've
had problems such as the ceiling falling in. The first year was very rocky, because the building had a problem,
and as a result they had farmed the kids out. The building needed repair. That's what corrupted the first year,
but this last year was the first graduating class of students that had four years of small learning communities.
Now, if your next question is going to be, "has it made a difference?" The answer to your question is, I don't
know, because our graduation rate is down. Would it have been further down without the learning
communities? I don't know.
[What do the learning communities hope to achieve?] A number of years ago there was a study called
Breaking Ranks, and also Breaking Ranks 2, about the American high school. One of the chief tenets of it and
probably one of the reasons why the Gates Foundation got so engaged, was that kids found high school to be
impersonal. They were big. They came in, they got lost. Now all across the country, the year with the greatest
number of dropouts occur is ninth grade. So the idea was to capture kids and put them in a smaller
environment with truly caring teachers. Let them form a team of their peer groups. I believe to some extent
that has worked here. I think there are some SLCs that are extraordinarily cohesive. One of the most cohesive
is our Healthcare Learning Center, and I have a wonderful liaison with General Hospital -- real career paths
there and college because they have their own two-year college. We have an Honors small learning community
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that is for kids who want to get into advanced AP courses, and there is a baccalaureate and an arts and
humanities and a vocational and so on. I think they have varying degrees of effectiveness.
[Do students of different ethnic backgrounds tend to gravitate more to one learning center rather than
the other or is the participation equitable?] Pretty much. The number of Latino students in the honors
program is increasing. A good thing. But just because they're bigger, you see more Latino kids in the vocational
SLC. There are two of those vocational--A and B. I'm seeing increasing numbers of Latino students in dual
enrollment. That means they are getting college credits while they're in high school. They're going up to
Thaddeus Stevens, those numbers increase yearly. I'm basically seeing some improvement in that area.
Year 2006 is what I refer to as the intentional year, where a lot of things we have been building to will actually
happen. Not that they haven't been happening. I just received notification of students that are going up to
Harrisburg to their technology place. They'll be riding the train every day. There are Latino kids in that group.
There are Latino kids at Thaddeus Stevens. There are increasing numbers of Latino kids in the Honors SLC. I
went to the Health Careers SLC luncheon, and I could not help but notice that there were more Latino kids
there than there were the year before.
[We often have to look beyond the data, which is something I talked to Lourdes about. The fact that
there are always variables, how can you compare an elementary school in Manheim Township to
let's say King School with a different populations and the issue of circular migration. And those
kinds of issues taken place in terms of affecting the scores]
Well, first of all, children that arrive after October 1, we test them but their scores don't count. So they have
from October to March to do something. As much as I appreciate what you just said I don't agree with it at all.
The reason why I don't agree with it is because there are schools all over the country with demographics just
like ours that are making AYP on standardized tests, and they're just doing some things that I think we have to
do around here.
[Like what?] Well people are tired of me saying this but it's about focus and fidelity. You have to absolutely know
what you need to accomplish. You have to know pretty much that this test is going to expect that you will have
covered this much material. It's relatively easy. The second thing you have to do is you have to choose the best
materials, programs and curriculum that you can find. And you have to buy stuff that has been tried and tested,
because it is unethical to experiment on people's children. Unless you tell them that their children are in an
experiment. I do not speak about predecessors, but one of the issues around here is that we tried everything
and we tried to see what would stick. We made a fundamentally wonderful decision and that was that we were
going to use every day math, this was long before me, for K5. Our schools are making AYP in math. That's the
fidelity—you get something and you stick to it. We bought in October a reading series for our students—it took
us that long to get the money together. The first in-service day was in December, and I do believe that our
improved reading scores are relevant to that. That is very good for all our students, but it's essential for those
students that may not be proficient in English. It is a mistake to think that Latino students are not proficient in
English. Sometimes they are and sometimes they aren't. That's the fidelity part. You pick it, you stick with it
and the kids will learn it. Well, we have to crawl down off of it around here. I am so sick to death of hearing all
the excuses of why they can't do it. When I know they can and they have just done it. Our children made it in
mathematics. If we give them the same opportunities in reading, they will make it there too.
[What about children that are coming in and don't have English language skills?] Well first of all, they
learn fast. Children learn very rapidly. And they are essentially in immersion, for the most part. They are
fortunate or unfortunate that they have friends that speak Spanish. Remember what I said, there are schools all
over the country are doing it in Texas and California, in Virginia and the formulas are the same. Get the
materials, stay faithful to them and your kids will learn it. And some might say, sure they do better in math
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because it's numbers and not language that's not true you have to be able to read on the math test. I don't
know how to say this well but it's just not true. We shouldn't accept excuses. Our kids can do it.
[What do you think of bilingual education?] Well, I think we need to define the term. You're speaking to
someone who spent a long time in California -- with the California definition.
[Did you work with the Latino population?] Sure did.
[Tell me some of your experiences with those populations and their achievement] Given materials, given
teachers with high expectations and administrators. They did well. They did very well. When I was teaching in
Salinas California, I had a kid that was cleaning up the circuit in oratory in speech and debate had learned
English as a middle school seventh grader. That requires a great deal of language facility to be able to do that
level of public speaking. And Jesse Sanchez is a great kid and went on to do very well. I just wasn't going to
accept the fact that he couldn’t do well. It is that expectation thing that is really important.
If your first conversation is about the “can't” instead of the “how” – we’re in trouble. The how is what I told
you. It's rich tutoring. I use something called the Davenport Eight Step Series around here. It starts out with
understanding where the kid is and then enrichment tutoring, monitoring. We started that at the beginning of
the last school year. I think that with the success we've had this year that our teachers are buying into they
can. I had one teacher tell me point blank, "I know we can. I just wish other people would stop talking about
where the kid came from rather than where the kid is going." That was incredibly insightful.
[Are you speaking specifically about Latino children in terms of achievement?] Absolutely!
[You believe that if Latino children are put in a classroom in immersion that within a year they can
become fluent?] Depends on lots of things.
[Defining the bilingual education, where the child is taught content along with the in the language
skills and the increasing the English language skills up to the point where they can be
mainstreamed] The studies that I’ve looked at don't bear out that students do better in that environment.
They just don't. The studies are just all over the place in terms of bilingual education. I believe that it's very
important to have teachers who speak Spanish. I think that's critical but I think that's critical for a couple of
reasons. One of the things that disturbs me, not so much now, but I used to go crazy a few years ago is that
kids would come in and they would speaks wonderful Spanish or let's say Vietnamese and by the end of the
third year they've lost their native language speaking English. I am very big on languages. My son is fluently
bilingual and I value that. I made that happen for him, which is pretty easy in California. It's very important. I
think that the bilingual teacher who has good teaching techniques is invaluable in our system but on Bilingual
Ed the jury is still out on that.
[Do you have views as to why Latino students and African-American students, especially Latino
students, are underachieving?] Well, yeah I do. But I have to say this that gap is being closed around here,
that gap is being closed rapidly. I looked at the reading scores and they are up 10% and for Latino students
20%. We were cited by Standard and Poor two years ago for closing the gap. I think the reason for it centers
around expectations.
[Request of 2005 2006 data that show the closing of the gap] You could probably get with Larry
Warmingham on that. The gap is obviously there. The question is how fast can we close it? The Davenport
model I alluded to deals exclusively with that issue.
[To what do you attribute the closing of the gap—what do you think is being done, what do you think
still needs to be done?] I have got to convince—I'm going to give it a constant try, even if it takes 10, 20,
30, 50, a hundred presentations around that people are doing it. We can do. It's about what you expect.
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[Do you have the name of some of those best practices and models that you're talking about?] Let me
refer you to the Education Trust in Washington. What you will find is that it's about focus and fidelity and
expectations. When I talk to our principals and we get into a “yes, but” I say something like “no, here's how.”
You asked what it's about -- it's so simple. It's about focus and fidelity, eight steps, providing tutoring,
differentiating to meet the kids needs, getting parents involved whenever possible.
[It had been suggested that aides who had been in the school district many years, sometimes decades,
be given the opportunity to become teachers] It is very difficult. I have no money.
[Is that a concept that you support] Thoroughly, in fact, I had it in Roanoke, where we would get our
paraprofessionals into school. We had agreements with a couple of colleges in Virginia, I had more money. Here
I have a grant for advanced training for our teachers and for our administrators. Would I entertain that? Yes!
The other issue we face is that the credentialing requirements in Pennsylvania are crazy. I'm going to tell you a
little story. My little old, bilingual kid works in Puerto Rico, about two days a month, maybe more. He's in Puerto
Rico right now. He calls me up and he says, "Hey mom, have you ever talked to a math teacher from Puerto
Rico?" So I said "yes, actually, I have." The University of Puerto Rico is the chief supplier of a specific kind of
engineer that his company hires. He said "I was interviewing teachers for you, mom, and there are some great
math teachers down here. "I have six people, all of whom are graduating, who you could probably get. They’re
all bilingual, and they're great mathematicians." So he said, "My suggestion to you is that you get that
credentialing thing fixed that we've been talking about." I tell you how bad the state is. It's not just about
Latino teachers. My husband's roommate’s kid is the Ohio Teacher of the Year in Mathematics, and he wanted to
come here but he was not going to jump the Pennsylvania credentialing hoops. They're rude. They're slow. We
need absolute reciprocity with other states -- absolute reciprocity. Now, if you're from Puerto Rico and you don't
speak English that could be a problem, but these college guys all speak English. When I speak about the
territories, I think of them as states.
[And other states have absolute reciprocity?] Yeah! I would have no trouble -- I could hire all six of those
guys in Roanoke like that. (Snaps finger) What is our problem here? Last time I checked the University of
Virginia was about as credible as any place around.
[What are the other obstacles to confront with recruitment issues with Latino teachers and other
staff?] There aren't enough in the colleges. It's a population issue.
Very few gringos or gringas understand or have ever been to a Latino country. If nothing else, the one thing I
do have is that I've done a little travel to Central and South America and Puerto Rico, a lot. My son's godmother
is from El Salvador and she took care of him every single day, while I worked. I have a rather deep
appreciation, I think, for Latino culture. I'll tell you how bilingual my child is if you say Bolivia he can speak
Spanish like a Bolivian, you can say Puerto Rico, and he's on board. He knows the idioms of the different
countries that are Spanish-speaking. There is something so special about the culture and the people and it's
hard to express. There's a genteelness, a gentleness and a wisdom that is just amazing. The really important
thing for me is that we respect the Spanish-language. One of things that you may find interesting around here
for the purpose of your study is that we just began -- I wish I hadn't started calling it this but now it stuck --
peewee Spanish. Elementary school Spanish that I think it's important that our kids who don't know the
language learn the language, because we have a perfect language laboratory here, don't we?
[As a result, you give a wealth of opportunities to non-Latinos students.] Yes, and we honor our Latino
students, because all of a sudden they become experts. It's important for everybody, because I believe to be
educated, you should speak at least two languages. I believe that will be a great opportunity for all of our kids.
When it comes right down to everyone body grows and gains.
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Now, I don't know the legacy of the HR department, but I'll take my hit too. We haven't been as good as we
should have been. My excuse is that we have been dealing with so much junk in this district. We've been dealing
with the cleanup, the mop up and the sweep up. I think we've done a good job of keeping our eye on the prize,
too. Moving forward all the time. One of things about moving forward is we've been so careful to reinvent ourselves
and spend all of our money on our children. Now of course our taxes are too high, but the point is. The money is
being spent on kids, not on people. Everything is to the minimum where it involves the adults, and to the
maximum where involves the children. I mean not to have the reading series is embarrassing. I feel like I scrubbed
floors with the Director of Finance to get 1.8 million to buy those. But we did it. Now we're turning the ship, but
part of turning the ship is that if you or any member of the Latino community knows of someone who comes here
and is not well treated, that I need to know. And I'll do something about it. Of course, they have to be credentialed
and we know the problems there, and they have to be a viable candidate for our kids. But given both of those I will
do anything I can. I'm probably going to take a few political hits around here. I've already taken a few. My
commitment is very strong towards our Latino population as well as to all the other of our kids. It's time that we
made a very serious commitment to over half of our children, who are Latino.
[Regarding a news article from 2002 that Latinos and Latino parents don’t care about education.] I
don't believe that for a single second. It makes me mad as heck. I think that we deal with all parents. All
parents may be confused by the educational system, unless they're in it. I have to tell you I was a guidance
counselor and when my kid got ready to go to college I had to go out of learn a whole new bunch of stuff in
order to help him. Well, that's our job. I believe that there are parents who don't believe that their kid can go to
college that that's a prize that they could never get because they can't afford it. I also think that there are some
broken promises from educators and society in general that may have discouraged parents. But I do not
believe, and it makes me furious that someone would write that Latino parents don't care about education. Oh,
please! There are parents who have businesses and that’s how they’ve made their living and education is not
high on their chart, because that's not how they got to be middle class. I see a lot of hopelessness, especially in
our poorer population that we have to do something about.
[There is lots of evidence that educational levels and poverty have been linked] There is an article in the
Orlando Sentinel that points out that there are certain kids who get to school and they land on third base and
they think they hit a triple. They’ve landed on third base by virtue of parenting and money and their families
and what ever—being a kid of advantages. By the same token there are schools that are doing very well that
are in high poverty areas. It’s about expectations and knowing what to do. Our buildings may be old but they
sure are clean. They're going to be as good as I can make them for kids. Paint and care. They’re older
buildings. Get the graffiti off the joint. Let the kids know you value them. Have great materials. We are going to
engage in some pretty expensive remodels around here. I hate it that King School still has those 20-year-old
modulars in front. How unpleasant. How embarrassing. Modulars are supposed to be temporary. One of the
things in our building plan is to get rid of the modulars. I'll do what we need to do. Sure it's easier if a kid
comes to school from an advantaged family. But, it's a lot more fun, if you’re an educator, if you can help a kid
who didn't land on third base get to third base.
[Where would you hope to be in five years? Where would you hope to see the school district] I can see
all the schools having made AYP by the number. What I mean by that is that we have some schools that make
AYP that do it based on progress and competence levels. I would like to see them all making AYP by the
numbers. I would like to see that achievement gap if not closed very close to it. And, we would have to
because we won't make the AYP by the numbers if we don't close the achievement gap. I would like to see us
hiring teachers in better ways so that I don’t look at 118 new faces every year, which is expensive for the
school district we have to retrain them all. I would like to see 50 or 60, which would account for pregnancies,
transfers, promotions and that kind of thing. I would like to see the diversity of our kids reflected in our
teachers. But, much as I would like to see that I would like to see the very best people in the classrooms for
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our kids, regardless, but certainly with an eye for diversity. I would like to not read so much about us in the
newspapers I would like to see our press be more positive. Although I don't think our press has been
particularly negative recently. I am going to hold my ground and I'm going to do what I think is right. I don't
care what anybody wants me to do. I'm just not going to do something that's not right. I’m very stubborn and
I don't talk very loudly but I'm really tenacious about it.
I would love to see us be utterly financially stable and I’d like to see our students have—continue what I’ve
started and that is the best materials. I should tell you that all of our students will have wonderful science
materials this year and frankly that does speak to the world of bilingualism. Because the science materials
we’ve chosen were here before but we've chosen to upgrade them and keep them. It’s from Lawrence Hall of
Science in Berkeley and those are very hands-on science materials and wonderful for ELL kids. I would like to
see us involved in an aggressive well-thought-out campaign to improve our facilities. And I would like to see
McCaskey in the top 100 high schools in the country. I'm real clear about where I want it to be and something I
told Carlos Graupera the other day is that I would like to see the next superintendent be Hispanic.
[In speaking to Latino professionals and what got them to their position, they typically discussed the
intervention of a person in their life who made a difference] That sounds like a topic I dealt with in my
doctoral dissertation. It was about children that persist in school to graduation and they persist in school
because there was one person who really cared about them. The research is parallel. As a person who taught
guidance for a long time, I couldn't agree with you more. Just could not agree with you more.
When you do AYP for the high school, the test scores count but there is a second variable that is the high school
graduation rate. Our graduation rate stinks. It's the worst I've seen in my whole career. One of the issues is
that in Pennsylvania is that they tell kids that they can get out of school at 16 if they have a job and at 17 if
they don't. I have never worked in a place where they didn’t say that you have to stay in school until you're 18
or you’re delinquent. Our kids are needier and a low paying job is attractive to many of our kids that may not
be attractive to other kids in other districts. And we have exploitive employers many times.
About the dropout rate…It came to my attention that the dropout rate was probably going to kill the high
school, so I said to Jack Blackman, "…I wonder how many kids didn't graduate because they were one or two
credits short. kids who were not savvy enough to go to summer school or who could not afford to go to summer
school because it costs money? So we checked and I went back and did a quick data search and, long story
short, instead of having 21 graduates this summer like all the summers before, we had 57.
[So what did you do?] I bought a very sophisticated system when I first got here called Plato. Plato diagnoses
where you are in a course. It’s course specific. It gives a pretest. Diagnoses what you need. It puts you
through paces. It tests you. You have to have a teacher there guiding you. At the end it can generate a high
school credit. Back in the dark ages when I was teaching I would have given my eye teeth for that.
Now there's another thing for which that will be very useful. Think of our kids that take off and go to Puerto
Rico for a month and then return. It's a real catch-up tool. And it's perfectly keyed to our curriculum. That's
why I bought it. Somebody's actually said “Aren’t you going to charge these kids the same rate for summer
school?” And I said “Look, I'm so grateful to have this graduation rate go up any way I can that I'm going to
pay the teacher and be grateful. The first time I've had fun in the graduation was this month at the August
graduation. It was all fun again. Because I knew there were 25 kids that wouldn’t be there except for a saint
named Jack Blackman and most of those kids were Latino.
[Now will those graduation rates count for the school year 05-06?] No they count for 06-07. It’s always a
year behind. We actually had resistance from people. Fortunately, Jack and I have a good sense of humor. I
had one kid who needed two credits to graduate and I called him and told him “look you have to come to
school.” And he said “you know that I have to work.” So I asked him “when can you come? And he said at 4
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pm. So I told him be there at 4 pm and a teacher will meet you. You have to meet them on their terms. Not if
they’re gaming. But if they're working until 3:30 in the afternoon, I believe we have to do something for them.
We have to review our attitudes, don't we? How many kids don't go to summer school because they can't
afford it? We've been asking that question in other states for 25 to 30 years. Not here.
[How much a summer school?] A couple hundred dollars, but I think that a kid who screws up during the year
and doesn't do what he supposed to do should very well pay for it. But I think kids who are in the reduced lunch
program should certainly be cut a break. I simply have to budget for Plato teachers in the summer and I’m
going to do it for next year. Our finances are so bad. I walked into a $3.5 million dollar deficit. Do you know
what it is today? It’s $700,000 and we have better materials and we have more teachers. But there are some
things that drive me nuts and that was just one of them. The thing that hit me hardest year last year was that
the bar went up on AYP.
[Is it possible that there could ever be 100% AYP considering that you have a special population with
special needs?] That's not going to happen. Maybe 90% but I don't think we can make 100. A lot of places
are already in the 90s.
[Is there anything else you'd like to say there or any comments you want to make on what should like
to see come out of this study.] I'm just big on the truth and I think that from the study can come direction
for us. I think you did very fine work on Allentown. I like reading and looking at things like that. This is a lot
larger than just us. I will tell you that we have a lot of money through “Safe and Drug-Free Schools” and by
using SACA and other Latino counseling groups we do provide services for our students. We’re not talking about
getting them to higher education and graduation but what SACA is doing with some of our students is just
keeping them alive and in school. We have a contract with Carlos to provide services to some of our more
troubled students.
[What do you think of La Academia] I like Dr. Robert a lot. I think she is doing a good job. I try very hard to
support her and the school. I think that she has a very difficult time and I think her school is doing a good job.
[Do you think that there will be a time when there won't be a need for a school like La Academia or do
you think there will always be a need for the school?] I think it's a matter of choice for parents on where
they want their children to go. Maritza is a solid educator. I like her. We’re friends. She's been very
supportive of me personally and I hope I've returned the favor. I think that she knows what she's doing.
Personally if I was rich I would love to control some of the damage that we've done historically. Personally I
find your idea of the paraprofessionals very appealing. I think one of the most difficult things for me out of this
conversation is the thought that we might have had great Hispanic teachers that out there we didn't capture.
Did I mention to you that we are enjoying a nice mix of students with a lot of Hispanic kids that are in dual
enrollment? They're getting college credits while they're in high school. We have articulated agreements with
several universities Millersville, Harrisburg Area Community College, in Harrisburg the School of Science and
Technology, Thaddeus Stevens, and another I think. The kids get credit. In fact, there are 20 some odd kids in
the Harrisburg program who will get 23 units of college credit while they're still in high school. I am pleased
that it represents our diversity. My thing is if I can get a kid into a class where they can get college credits while
attending high school, and if mom and dad can see that their child can be successful in college, then to the best
of their ability I sincerely believe they will help their kid get to college. At least they will support what we’re
trying to do. That's free to our students. I would like to see that dual enrollment kicked way up and that future
planning centers not to be toyed with. This is a passion of mine. It's a really neat thing. There were 150 of our
elementary school students who were over in the camp called Careers in Five Days. Kids just love it. It
exposes them to think that they can do.
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RITA BISHOP, SDOL SUPERINTENDENT: PART 2

A few days before leaving for her new position as Superintendent of the Roanoke School District—July 10, 2007
[As the outgoing superintendent of the School District of Lancaster what perspectives can you provide
on the current state of the school district?] I think we have made some test score improvements which is
the first thing out of a superintendent’s mouth these days which I think is very unfortunate. I’m going to be
looking, and I’ve got some preliminary data for this year, and I’m going to be looking at it very critically, but I
think that my chief concern is the lack of attention that’s been paid, as a community, to Latino students.
It is very painful to me and it was number three on my list of “to go or not to go” and I’m sure that this
community, and I’m going to be writing an open letter to the newspaper after the board meeting on Tuesday,
and part of what I will more than likely speak about is we have to face something. This community, I mean this
school district is more than 50% Latino and loosely speaking, the next largest diverse group is African-American
followed by Caucasians and some Asians; just approximately. But if you just want to think of it generally it’s
50/25/25. And I’m delighted to tell you that I was very intentional this year. I placed an African American in the
HR department and a Puerto Rican in the HR department and I charged them with creating a more diverse
workforce, which they have done. But honestly, for years, for years, very little attention was paid to that. I
know the school board asked, and I know that we replied, and essentially, this year, things have started to
happen. So I’m very proud of that.
I’ve been doing the interviews with the community and the teachers about what they want in their principal at
King Elementary School and I was incredibly disappointed that a community member would come to that
meeting and suggest that we did not need to have either the principal or assistant principal be bilingual, in a
school where over 80% of its students have real language issues.
It was a very important member of the community that will remain nameless, but we ought to be ashamed of
that. I'm so tired of hearing people give the Theodore Roosevelt quotation about "everyone should speak
English". Yes, we'll teach our kids to speak English but their moms and dads deserve to have the ear of an
administrator. Shame on us. So I said, and it's going to happen before I leave that either the principal or
assistant principal (of King Elementary) must be bilingual. It's not good enough to have some secretary
translating a mother's heart in that school.
[Or sometimes the children themselves.] Oh yes, the kid translating the discipline to his mom... I don't think
so. But it's not just about that but it’s about the respect for the people that live here. And these are not just
sour grapes but just plain old facts. I love the culture that is Latino. I spent my first years teaching in Salinas,
California where we dealt with a lot of migrant workers, and children who do not speak English have special
needs whether they're from; Mexico, the Dominican Republic or Puerto Rico, they have special needs. And they
WILL learn English. Our kids are smart. Now, do these tests help them? They're probably not even fair in terms
of who has to take them and when, in Pennsylvania. Candidly it's not that way in Virginia. They cut them a
break for three years and that's neat.
[How does that fit the requirements of No Child Left Behind?] It's fine. The states establish some rules and
the Feds approve them. We've established some rules (here in PA) that speaks to English-speaking populations.
But our kids are doing well... even on those tests... considering. I mean I'm not too interested in taking a high
stakes test in Spanish anytime soon. The other thing that's difficult in this community is Latino leadership. Now,
I'm sure that you've read in the newspaper that the one Latino board member has to resign because of this
Hatch Act thing. It is what it is. If she's in violation she's in violation and I can accept that. But you tell me how
I explain to kids who ask me about Dr. Urdaneta and what she does for a living and what I do about the role
model these kids won't have? Now you tell me that one.
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[It's going to be tough. I think there are going to be four vacancies.] Five. But the point is... and the
candidates running for the board are wonderful for the most part, and the people who aren't... those people
who have an axe to grind who are candidates know who they are and they know THAT I KNOW who they are! I
am very passionate about my Latino students.
How do you look at No Child Left Behind? I tell a story. I was driving back on a dark and stormy night from
Marion, Virginia to Roanoke in the very beginning days of this. I had my director of Secondary Ed with me. I
said "Ok Dick, what do you think?” He said, "I think the teaching is better today than it was before No Child
Left Behind." And that was many, several years ago. I think the teaching is better today than it was before No
Child Left Behind because of accountability. Do I think it's completely fair? Of course I don't. Do I think it's
completely objective, well thought out and well funded? No I don't. But I think children are exposed to more
rigor than before NCLB. Certainly we all know that our children need to have a more rigorous education to
survive in this century, I mean it's almost terrifying.
[You think they're getting a better education?] I do. All of our kids. Not just some of our kids.
[You mentioned in this recent news article here that there were some forces that tend to shackle the
superintendent. What were you talking about there? That was somewhat cryptic.] I kid around with
my friends that if one wanted to write a doctoral dissertation that every superintendent would read this would
be the topic. “How the contract of the incoming superintendent is affected by the behaviors of the outgoing
superintendent.” I will give you a wonderful "for example". There were some materials that I really wanted to
buy for review for PSSA. I knew they were good. My background is in instruction. I just didn't think I could get
them through the committee structure in time. Now if I had gone through the board and said "Please make an
exception." They probably would have. No, I'm sure they would have. But because of some of the stuff that
happened here prior to this administration everything is very suspect. Some people have their own conspiracy
theories. I just felt I couldn't move forward as fast as I needed to. My vision always was to have this be just
absolutely world class in terms of an urban district. But, I have the same opportunity in Roanoke; it's just that I
lose my Latino kids. The only thing is I've got a growing Latino population (in Roanoke) so just maybe I can do
something on the front end. But I'm really about ALL kids.
I have to tell you. In two days; now granted I spent a decade of my life in Roanoke, but in two days of working
down there last week I felt more trust and more support than I could have possibly have imagined or even
hoped for. Here I have enjoyed, for the most part, and I won't say completely because there have been board
members that have been difficult, every superintendent has them, but I wonder about their motives, and I can
tell you, I love disagreements, I love fights, I was a debate coach. I'm okay with them as long as I believe
everybody is chugging along in the best interests of kids, but that's not true.
[So the shackles that you were talking about were the baggage.] Yes, the baggage. In fact I would look at
the finance guy and he would look at me, and he was good, and he would say, "Oh my God. It's not worth it to
fight it." There were times when we probably could have even saved money. I mean we saved at lot of money,
but this kind of baggage... and I believe for the most part the board did trust me, I really do. And I believe that
for the most part the board wants nothing but the best for kids. I think there are some stars on that school
board. But I guess deep in my heart it was that Veronica had been my partner. She understood the Latino kids.
She understood instruction. She cared deeply. She asked a lot of hard questions that I respected. She
demanded the best and I guess when I figured out what had happened to her and why it had happened; again,
not that if it was wrong it was wrong... but you know... somebody reported her to a governmental agency.
Once I did a little delving I figured that whole scene out, and the why. And I'm not suggesting... I think if that
person had gone to Veronica and had said "We think you're in violation of the Hatch Act." I know her. She's one
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of the finest women I have ever known. She would have just left quietly. But we don't need to have that
happen. Think of the slap in the face that is for our children.
[How would you assess the academic achievement, in the time that you've been here, of Latino
students?] Well, they didn't have any reading books. I'm going to do some checking. They've got a long way
to go, sir. But they’re coming. Give them a little time. I think they needed excellent materials and I think we've
got them now. I think they needed a wonderful ELL coordinator and just as I hire one I leave. That I have
delivered. And we've got a woman who's on leave from Millersville, and I draw a blank on her last name, but
anyway she's wonderful. I have to tell you that I have a Parent Advisory Council, a PAC, and Mrs. Sandy
Rosario is the president of our PAC. She's a champ. But what our kids need; they need to have us get their
parents involved. That involves people who speak Spanish, who can translate; we need to be very welcoming of
parents. It's not our job to teach their parents English but it is our job to make them welcome in Spanish. So I
think the parent involvement piece is critical I think our young Latino children, all of our children, you're talking
75% poverty and it's grown 3% a year every year that I've been here. I'm not going to look at this year before
I go but I wouldn't be surprised to find another 3% this year. They need effective pre-schools. That's for all of
our kids. So I would say that the parent involvement movement, excellent curriculum for our kids and effective
pre-schools are what all kids and it may be more critical for kids who do not have English as their first language.
[Now the drop-out rate for Latino students has grown, hasn't it?] Well I think we've done a very good job of
recapturing some of that. There were over 100 students graduating from Phoenix Academy, most of who were
Latino and if we're intentional, if we care that a kid doesn’t have a high school diploma, we're going out now
and getting them back in. I've got teens that do that.
[You say over 100 kids graduated this year..?] Yes, 106 graduates, and you can see that most of the faces
are Latino. And that is in addition to McCaskey grads.
[Other than Phoenix Academy what changes need to take place to address the underachievement of
Latino students?] Well, the academic underachievement. We need to have rigor everywhere. I believe if we
set up a very high bar for our Latino kids they'll meet it. They're doing it at Phoenix. Phoenix, it's harder to get
a diploma over there. Go figure.
[Is Phoenix operating at capacity?] Oh yeah. It's overflowing because we keep finding new kids and bringing
them back. But I think absolutely, rigor, rigor. But the most important thing to stem the tide is to improve the
graduation rate—to find the kid when they first start cutting school, fail their first classes, and re-attach them.
[When do the warning signs come for these kids? You can leave school at 16, is that when you can drop
out?] Don't even get me started on that. Isn't that pitiful? This is one of the few states where that's true. The
warning signs are that you cut school; you have health issues that may or may not be real. You think you have
them or pretend to have them. But the biggest drop out is at 9th grade. That's true across the country. Do you
know I wrote my dissertation on this? Yes, and then you flunk a few classes and you're on your third tour of 9th
grade and you're getting older and you're not going to graduate and all that...
[So at 9th grade you can't make a decision to leave school but you can basically drop out while you're
in school.] Yes they're called "in-school dropouts".
[Why do you think that happens?] The adults just don't care. You're teaching 30 kids and one's missing... so
one's missing. You teach 29. But we have to care about kids. So I've got people now who go get them. Just go
get them. I hear things like, "Man, you care if I go to school or not?" Of course we care. Or do we?
[In so many cases these kids end up working to help supplement the family income which is borderline
because, often, the kinds of jobs that are available to their parents are at minimum wage and often
with no benefits.] But we can respond to that. This is how good these kids are. There are kids working who
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are at Phoenix. Going before they go to work in the morning and when they get off at night. They want an
education, which is cool, and we can make that happen.
[So it's the environment that's changed for them?] Right. Exactly. And we believe in them.
[So the environment there is different for them than it is here?] It's different and we’re going to find a way
to help you make it. That's the philosophy. And we don't have discipline problems over there. These are not kids
with discipline issues. These are kids who just got jammed on their luck sometimes, who got behind and didn't
know how to catch up or how to get out of the ditch they dug for themselves.
[Obstacles you've faced as superintendent?] Nothing big. It wasn't wonderful with the FBI and all the junk,
but that's all behind us now. When I first came we had a big mess here. So with the FBI and the auditors here I
essentially lost my whole first year just dealing with the mess.
[So when will you be leaving?] My first day at Roanoke will be August 1.
[ Looking forward to it... going home?] Not really. I love Roanoke. I love Lancaster. I'm going to a district that
needs me. I'm going to a situation where I feel I can make a quicker difference. But I hope to heaven, that this
community doesn't get rid of its Phoenix Academies and that people will support the Latino community. What
I'm really hoping for is that it will be just one community.
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LA ACADEMIA
COMMUNITY EFFORTS TO ADDRESS LATINO ACADEMIC CONCERNS THROUGH A CHARTER SCHOOL
Interview with former CEO, Dr. Maritza Robert
Dr. Maritza Robert is an educator who was born, raised and educated in Puerto Rico. Prior to coming to La
Academia she worked at the PA Department of Education. At the end of the 2006-07 school year, she accepted a
position with the School District of Allentown and is no longer with La Academia.
Is this part of the Spanish American Civic Association or what is the relationship? According to the
Charter School laws and regulations, charter schools are independent public schools. They have founders. They
also have a board of directors similar to public schools. The Spanish American Civic Association was one of the
community organizations that founded La Academia. Carlos Graupera represents SACA in the board and he is
very much involved with everything we do. We rent from SACA Development and we contract their fiscal
services. They also assist the charter school in fund raising. I also have other organizations on the board that
are actively involve in the decision making process.
What is your relationship to the School District? I have a really good relationship with the school district. La
Academia was chartered by the Lancaster School District with the support of the founding organizations. Our
responsibility with the school district is to maintain the board informed about the annual yearly progress of the
school regarding academic achievement, attendance, graduation rates, discipline report, and policy changes. We
also have to provide an annual report as required by the Pennsylvania Department of Education. This report
described the school progress, the needs, and the kind of initiatives we are looking to implement the following
year. In addition, it is included the School Improvement Plan. The annual report is a summary of the vision and
mission of the school and the strategies we are using to accomplish the vision. The presentation to the board is
basically statistical data. In the presentation we compare data from 2003 because it demonstrates the
improvement in all aspects – like in graduation and attendance. Every five years, the school board has to re-
charter us, so every year it is important to let the school district know about the school progress. In 2008 they
have to re-charter to approve the school again.
Who are you directly responsible to, the Department of Education? Charter Schools have to complete all
the required reports that the public schools have to submit to the Pennsylvania Department of Education. We
submit reports directly to the Pennsylvania Department of Education. We have to submit graduation rates,
attendance rates, PSSA data, child accounting information and many other data related to the school. Basically,
we report to the Pennsylvania Department of Education and they provide necessary feedback related to the data.
We also complete and submit the annual report to the Department and we send a copy of the annual report to
the school district. The school district takes the report to the superintendent and if the school district personnel
or board have questions about the report they will contact me. I have requested to make a presentation to the
board and general public about the school progress. We have a positive relationship with the school district and
some board members and the superintendent have visited the school. They may have an interest in the data.
Why do you think the charter school was formed to begin with? When you look at the history, basically it
was developed because of the high drop-out rate of minorities in the city, but especially of Latinos. The founders
were interested in reducing the drop out rate by providing an alternative education to those students that were
at risk of dropping out of the school. The idea was to provide individualize instruction in a small learning
environment. Classrooms have from 10 to 15 students.
What grades do you have here? We have grades six to twelve.
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Do you mostly get at-risk students or do you get all kinds of students? The majority of our students are at-
risk – I will say about 95%.
How do your students decide to come here? It is their choice. It is their parents’ choice. Some are referred
by community based organizations or the School District of Lancaster – but I would say the majority of our
students come to La Academia because they want to. They like the small size of the environment and that
students who are failing or students that are ELL, or have English limitations get individualize instruction. The
emphasis is in reading and writing across the content areas.
What’s your student body size? We only get paid for 82 students – usually our size is about 90. Our classroom
size ranges from 10 to 14 students. Students feel that they are treated like family.
Is it primarily Latino students that come here? Yes. We have about 95% Latino and about 5% African
American students. In the past, we had White students too – about 2%.
So this is primarily seen as an alternative for Latino students because of the services you provide? I
wouldn’t say that. That may be a perception, but we are open to all students.
What percentage of you r Latino students would you say are language minority students? Right now I
have 76% that are ELL students.
Do you provide bilingual education? What structure do you provide here for students in terms of
dealing with the language issue? As I said before, 76% of the school is composed of ELL students. We have
ELL educational materials and resources in all subject areas. We have students that are in basic English,
intermediate and advance level. The majority of the students received assistance from AmeriCorps members in
the classroom. I’ve been in PA for the last 22 years and I came as an adult and learned English as an adult. It
can take up to 8 years to really become fully bilingual. It can also take more time. Some students speak English
socially but they don’t have the academic vocabulary.
When a child comes to La Academia, let’s say a child arrives from Puerto Rico and doesn’t know any
English and he comes into the classroom. Do you teach him the content in the native language until
he acquires enough of the English language skills to then be taught in English or do you teach him in
English from the beginning? Because we have different levels such as the English basic, the lower
intermediate and the advance – we use different strategies. The students that are in basic English (the student
that just arrive from Puerto Rico, Cuba, or Dominican Republic) have an AmeriCorps member in the classroom
helping him/her, in addition to two hours of English as a Second language with the ESL teacher.
What about math, biology and history. Is that being taught in Spanish or in English? All of the classes
are taught in English but we have about 12 AmeriCorps members tutoring those students. A tutor sits beside the
student during the class and works with the student in the completion of the assignment. I have seen very good
results of the strategies and the resources we are using in the classrooms. I have an excellent teacher who has
25 years as an ESL teacher. What she does with those kids is fantastic, but the extra help in the classroom
makes the difference.
So they sit with the students that don’t understand any English and they help them individually through
the content. We have the same book in Spanish and English.
So they can read the material in Spanish? Yes, they can – but we want them to be exposed to English. The
tutors that work with the students translate the tests in Spanish.
In essence, you’re doing a modified version of bilingual education? It’s not bilingual education as the
textbooks define bilingual education.
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Here you have a very small class size and you’re able to provide very specialized attention to the
students that don’t have English language skills, and you’re also providing a Spanish language book
so that they can have some reference point. I’ve been dealing with this issue for three years – what I
decided to do was to purchase resources and materials addressing the three reading levels in the classroom. The
books reflect the three different levels in the classroom.
We are currently in a transition to become an early college program. We received a grant right before I came to La
Academia through the National Council of La Raza. They selected twelve schools and we’re one of them, so I’m
part of this network. A lot of the strategies we are using in the school are ideas used by other schools in the
network. I have taken many strategies from my visits to other schools and by reading about the best practices
in the nation. From what I have seen, one strategy may work in one school and may not work here. Every
school has to consider their student population and their needs. Because the majority of our students come to
La Academia with many years of deficit in reading, writing and math they may need multiple strategies. As soon
as they come in, they have a very extensive application that they have to complete.
When I came to la Academia I conducted a comprehensive study called Effective School Research in which I studied
the school policies and procedures, the curriculum, the after-school program, leadership, vision and mission and
every aspect of the school. The whole idea was to identify areas of opportunities and look at the characteristics
that make a school effective. I asked the school community to identified areas of priorities. The teachers,
parents, students, the board and others helped in the development of a new mission and vision. We developed a
three year plan with the purpose of developing an early college high school model. It was a very comprehensive
approach and, so far, we have been successful in what we have wanted to do. In a school there is so much to
do.
You’re saying that you get a lot of students with big academic deficits coming here, and then you do a
lot of remedial work? It’s complicated, because we have to align what we do to the school district because
some students go back and forth. The curriculum is adapted because we are in this transition to become an early
college program. Everything has to be rigorous and relevant to their life. We are trying to take these kids with a
lot of deficits and bring them up to a point that they can actually go to college. We have a very extensive,
comprehensive after school program. Parents must sign an agreement that if the student is behind they must
participate in certain programs.
What’s your staffing? We have a staff of twelve – of these, nine teachers are fulltime.
How many of them are bilingual? It’s the ESL teacher, the math and science teachers – I have two that are
bilingual. Some are learning, but they are not bilingual.
Do you have any Latino teachers? The technology teacher is Latino. The ESL teacher is not Latina, but she
spent 20 years in Ecuador, so she understands the culture. The math teacher is not Latina but she is bilingual. I
do have one teacher that is bilingual from Puerto Rico. The Assistant Principal is also bilingual, but he is not
Latino. My counselor is Latino. My coordinator of volunteers is Latina. My assistant here is Latina from Puerto
Rico. I have some people working in the building that are Latinos.
So you have 75% of your Latino student body that is not English-speaking, but most of the teachers are
all English speakers, so they teach in English? Yes.
You have bilingual aides that help in the classroom to help with the students who have language
issues? All of them are bilingual.
If you can provide me with data on the graduation rates. It’s 100% and attendance is 95%.
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So you’re saying 100% based on students that come in and stay with the school and then graduate?
Yes.
And you say some students go back and forth? Some students go and then come back. The reason they
come back is because this is like a family. Some people don’t understand that, but it is. I know everybody’s
brother and sisters, their parents and uncles. It wasn’t like that before – it wasn’t very safe when I came in – it
was pretty rough. Last year we only had 8 fights throughout the whole school year. This year we haven’t had
any. They feel safe. Even though the majority of the teachers are not bilingual, they are here not because of
their salaries. They are here because of some commitment and they love these kids. Our salaries and benefits
are not competitive. If they decide to stay here, it is because there is something else that attracts them. Some
like to work with at-risk students and feel like they are making a difference in some way. That’s what I have
noticed.
You have to understand the school has limited resources. We are limited. I have to raise 60% of the money every
year – between grant writing and foundations. People don’t know how difficult it is – this type of work. The kids
have so many different issues between the social and the economic.
The school started in what year? That was in 1998.
And you came into the school in what year? In 2002, in the middle of the year.
So it’s been five years since you came in. They were considering closing the school, when I was interviewed,
because of a lack of enrollment. The enrollment was very low. I came in and said I think I can help them, but I
was out of being in a school setting for 19 years. One thing that helped me was the Department of Education,
going to a number of trainings. When I was in Penn State, it also helped that I was part of the curriculum
coordinators group for 4-1/2 years, so I had all this information and I was listening to what was going on in the
classroom. Another thing that helped me was my perseverance. If I take something and I say that I’m going to
do it, I do it and I don’t give up.
So you came into the school and saw that many things were needed. They wanted somebody that could
relate to the parents and that probably could understand more issues in the community. They were trying
different strategies. When I came in, I said to forget about everything that happened before; let’s start
developing new policies, a structure, a new curriculum, new books, and to even work on the physical
environment, to do a lot of cosmetic work to make it a more appealing facility, including plastering, painting, and
furnishing. To tell you the truth, it has been such a task – when you look at the data, you’ll see a big, big
difference. Now the parents come here, and there is a waiting list. This year, we were unable to take about 40+
students because I can’t accommodate them. We have very good articles in the newspaper.
What did you do – have you improved the condition of the building? Well, much has been on a volunteer
basis. So we have been fixing and painting. Now our emphasis now is on the new building. That is going to be
the library, physical education area – so our emphasis this year has been in that other building.
So you’re expanding – you’re keeping this building and you’re expanding? Right, we’re expanding.
What about the funding? I only got some of the funding in terms of what is going inside, but that was Carlos
talking to banks and different foundations. The first year was just to paint, to deal with safety – we now have
cameras, we have intercom systems in the classrooms, we have technology now – it has been progressing. I
have been doing all the grant writing. As I explained to you, I have to raise 60% of the funds that come here
every year.
And 40% comes from the school district? I was talking to Rita Bishop about this because it’s not easy and
now that they’re cutting all the funding – the competition is even harder this year. Last year I raised a million to
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pay for character development, and we also have service learning. We want the kids not only to learn how to
read and write, but we also want them to be part of the community and understand the issues in the community.
You say you’re trying to make this more of a pre-college institution so that the students are in sort of a
college-prep school. It’s going to be the same type of students with a twist; that we want the students to
want to go to college.
Is the Millersville University Partnership program open to Academia students? Yes. We have six
partnerships just like the School District of Lancaster. This year the students elected HACC and Stevens. Next
year, our 11th graders can be a part of the dual enrollment program. They will choose depending on their SATs.
Since starting here, my goal was to get them excited about going to post-secondary education college if they
can. The students attend and participate in career day trips at some of the partnership schools. They have
attended Penn State, HACC, Millersville University and Thaddeus Stevens. Depending on how much money we
have for transportation, we offer those opportunities. Our budget is very limited.
How many of your students have been going on to college? Last year was my first graduating class, and
they were all going to college. The thing is we are developing a culture here – if you see my classrooms, each
one has a college name. It is a culture that you develop since the 6th grade.
So these students are being told about college, being encouraged to go to college? Yes we talked to the
parents when they complete the school application. We ask for their level of education. The majority of the
parents don’t have a high school diploma. They don’t see college as an opportunity for their children. When they
come here, during the application process I have my counselor talking about college, and the students have to
answer essay questions relating what their strengths are, what they want to do when they go to college. It’s
developing a culture of success. When they do something positive – it doesn’t matter if it’s in math or science –
the whole idea is to let them know, “you see, if you really work hard, you can actually go to college.” That’s the
message. Not all of the students want to go to college, so we redirect those students to do whatever they want
to do, but the majority wants to go to college. We talk about that.
Where do you see La Academia in five years? What types of programs would you put into place? “La
Academia is at a turning point. When I started here, there was so much drama. We had 1,047 fighting incidents
the first year. This year, we’ve only had five. Every year the school has improved significantly. I think there’s a
great opportunity now for whoever comes here to develop a model school because the structure is in place. If
the new CEO continues the mission and vision of the Early College Program that we have put in place, this can
become the school to attend in Lancaster. Students here want to go to college. Classrooms here have college
names instead of a number. Last year all of our graduating students were the first in their family to finish high
school. This year, we have the same situation and all of them are going to college. We are very proud of
making a difference in students’ life and the direction that the school has been taking in the last years.
What about Parental Involvement? Parents participate but not to the extend they should. They attend parent-
teacher conferences and some volunteer at our school. I have a good relationship with the parents, but parental
involvement is one of the areas that we need to develop. A lot of our parents work all day and can’t get here. I
think the motivating factor is when they see the results of hard work. All of our graduates this year are going to
college. Their parents are really excited because these may be the first student actually going to college in that
house hold. The students are the motivating factor because most of our parents feel hopeless and would say
their children can’t go on to college because they don’t have the money.
I am a role model for these students. I came from a poor family, and my parents instilled in me the desire to go to
college. My mother only went to fourth grade. Because my father went to the Army, he went to a career
technology school and he became a businessman. Growing up, we didn’t have furniture – we were poor. I lived
in a barrio in Puerto Rico.
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Were you the first one in your family to get a college degree? From my mother side, I was the first one. I
always say to the students at La Academia, “If I was able to go to college you can also attend college. I worked
and paid for my tuition.” After completing my Ph.D., I came to La Academia and I started taking the Educational
Leadership Program in Millersville University because I wanted to do this job well. I wanted to get new ideas. I
also wanted the students to understand that you never stop learning. That is the type of culture that we are
developing here.
What were the elements that led you to succeed? For me it was the support of my parents. My parents used
to tell me that education is the only thing that nobody can take away from you. “They can take away your
house, but they cannot take away your education.” That was always the message. I was also raised with strong
values. I am committed, dedicated and persistent in terms of my beliefs and goals. I am very passionate and do
not stop until I finish the task.
When you went to high school in Puerto Rico, did they encourage you to go to college at your high
school? Not really. My parents always told me to select a career that I can do well and that I like, but try to
finish a bachelor’s degree. They were very much supportive in that respect.
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APPENDIX C – NCLB & SDOL SURVEY
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NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND
SDOL Survey Open-Ended Responses

The following are responses by SDOL Staff to the open-ended question on No Child Left Behind (NCLB) on the
SDOL Survey: Please provide any additional opinions you have, if any, on the impact of No Child Left Behind
Act and its AYP goals and state/district testing. (Teachers: How has the NCLB and state/district testing had an
effect, if any, on your instructional practices?) What changes would you like to see made to NCLB?”
D The basic idea might be good, but the goals are unrealistic and increase too quickly. Not enough funding
or support is given. For the whole month of March (and on many other days during the year), all we think
about is PSSAs because we know there is pressure to do well. I don't feel that this pressure is beneficial to
the students. It puts too much pressure on one test instead of the whole school experience. Very little
time is spent on things like social studies and science because we are so focused on reading/writing and
math for the tests. Also, in an urban school district where we have less money for materials, programs,
etc., and a lot of kids come to us without the academic and emotional support that many suburban kids
get from their parents, it feels silly to compare us to those other schools and say we are a bad school.
Instead of criticizing schools where the population is poorer and less educated, more support should be
given in the form of pre-kindergarten classes, parenting classes, and community organizations/services
that help break the cycle of poverty, gang membership, dropping out of school, etc. that kids inherit from
their parents.
D Mandates without the necessary funding, are useless. Some of the essential and obvious changes in
education that demand more funds, and which would really "make a difference" in students and teachers,
are some of the following: smaller class sizes; necessary supplies and updated school buildings and
facilities; early childhood programs with mandatory parent education/involvement components in every
school; adequate coordinated social and health services available.
D I believe it is absolutely unfair the way schools are penalized for not making AYP. There is not one teacher
I can think of, who wants to leave a child behind, but teachers can only help, not replace family support
etc. The NCLB act will have to be adjusted, tweaked in cooperation with teachers/teacher organizations
throughout the country, and schools have to be supported…students have to be supported even more
through community services etc.(with lots of federal and state funding). This whole act should not be
punitive but supportive, just as the original IQ tests (designed in France) were created to help rather than
stigmatize kids. There is no way (maybe an exception or two) that non-English speakers will be able to
take such a test in 2 years. Politicians should start learning other languages so they can understand the
problem! Politicians should also listen to the experts. That would be the TEACHERS and their
organizations!
D I think that NCLB is only helpful in providing some standards and consistency to the curriculum delivered
in all schools; however it is a law that punishes the educational system rather then helps us to become
better educators. To base a child's academic success on one measure is inappropriate and inadequate. I
particularly am upset that Special Education Students and ELL students are required to be at proficient in
order to make AYP when many of them are not able to do grade level work and have an Individualized
Educational Plan to address their needs. The law shouldn't be thrown out completely but it needs a lot of
change to it and the maximum amount of government funding promised should be used to help support it.
D I have redesigned what I teach in the curriculum so that I teach to the test. The changes that I would like
to see would be that the test actually measures the progress of my students in a given year. Many of my
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students are not on a 6th grade reading level but come to me at levels below and progress to one or two
levels above where they started out in the beginning of the year. The PSSA tests do not show this
progress. The PSSA tests are geared toward a student who is reading at a 6th grade level, therefore, my
students have difficulty reading and successfully completing the test and look like they haven't made
progress. The test should not work like "One size fits all." For the test to truly measure academic growth,
it should be at the level at which the student is capable of reading. We are taught as teachers to
differentiate our instruction, [but] then our students are all expected to take the same test.
D Although I am at the kindergarten level and my students do not take the PSSA's, the pressure has made it
to the kindergarten level to have the students ready for 3rd grade. Also, there are MANY other factors
affecting students'/school's performance than just the effectiveness of the teachers. I feel insulted by this
idea that all of the educational woes in this country are the result of the teaching profession, especially
when I know that myself and my colleagues work so hard to help our students achieve!!!! Changes? Take
away the punishment of schools that are trying hard, but still don't make it.
D NCLB has encouraged teachers to lower the standard in order for students to pass an exam. Teachers
aren't afforded the opportunity to really teach and do an in depth instruction of areas where students are
having a difficult time understanding due to the fact that there is a time constraint in order to cover
certain basic principles. Also, students are constantly being moved up without learning their material
because if too many students fail then the school goes into corrective action because they have a low
success rate, but at the same time, the students aren't prepared adequately which lends to their poor
performance on the PSSA's. It’s a never ending cycle of no one actually teaching or learning anything of
consequence.
D As a teacher, this situation has been negative for the Hispanic or Latino students because they have been
measured with the same system as the Anglos and this is a disadvantage to these students because of
their language. It should be a system of measurements of progress. Some skills should be measured
based in what they know independently of their language. Our instruction has changed because it is
restricting our teaching to the test instead of to the students needs according to their language and social
economic status.
D NCLB has made us teach to tests and making students "test crazy," causing student and teacher burnout.
We have not been able to give the students courses that prepare them for life--Family Consumer Sciences,
Technology Education, Art and Music. We are forgetting students need to be prepared to live in this world
and be good citizens, good parents, and productive employees.
D I think that as professionals we should have the right to choose our curriculum materials. A program like
"Everyday Mathematics" SHOULD NOT be imposed on us. Education is NOT a business. This is not an
assembly line job. We are teaching real human beings. It is my opinion that the NCLB should be revised
only by educators. Only people that have had more than 10 years of teaching experience in the classroom
should have an input in the NCLB policies.
D NCLB does not take into account any realities that exist within an impoverished family or community. It is
laughable, but unfortunately, we end up crying. Instead of helping, it is hurting. An underfunded
mandate with unrealistic expectations that has turned schools into negative, pressured, joyless places to
be for students, staff and parents.
D Children who have made progress, but still aren't on level, are discouraged and disheartened by their
inability to succeed, even though they've been trying hard.
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D Foreign students, special education students should not be included in testing. Help struggling schools not
punish them. Realize that the students are coming from families where they don't know if they will have a
home or food tonight so education is not a high priority.
D I agree with the goals and intentions of NCLB, however, in my opinion, the problem currently most
impacting the achievement of students is class size and the time constraints placed on teachers. The
traditional school schedule does not allow teachers the amount of time necessary to make the gains
required to meet NCLB.
D NCLB and AYP goals lacks consideration of the whole child. [The School] District’s decision-making is
focused on avoiding financial repercussions for not making AYP therefore the time and dedication needed
to meet the needs of the individual child is sacrificed.
D NCLB and AYP have added stress. They have made teachers more accountable, which is not a bad thing.
BUT they do not allow for authentic assessment.
D I feel like I have lost so much creativity in my lessons. They are much drier and definitely "to the test".
Secondly, with the stress, my creativity doesn't come to me anyway! I cannot attribute all my stress to
NCLB, but most of it. Especially when they have ELLs as a subgroup and we have beginners of English
here who are counted on the test scores of our school.... ELLs should have separate tests, if any, in the
first three years they are in the country. They could just use the state ESL tests to assess the students'
improvement each year rather than torturing them with PSSAs and stressing them (and us) out. If we
have to meet AYP we need resources for things like in-school suspension, hall monitors, etc. We also need
the Latino community to understand the seriousness of our need for success in areas of academics,
attendance, etc.
D I feel that the intentions of the NCLB are good and sound, providing schools the opportunity to improve
their curriculum and teaching practices in an effort to increase student performance. There are many
problems that need to be addressed in order to make an even bigger impact with students though. 1)
TOO MUCH emphasis is put on teaching to the test, and teaching schedules are disrupted constantly in an
effort to fit all the testing requirements into them. 2) Funding is unequal and unfair to urban schools who
have the toughest time trying to meet their AYP goals each year. There needs to be a lot more financial
support of programs for inner city students so that they have an equal chance to perform well. 3) ELL
students should have more time in the country and immersion in the English language before they are
expected to perform well on such a test. Also, they must not be penalized for not meeting such high
expectations with the English language. 4) Special Education students should not have such high demands
placed on them, and schools that have large populations of special education [students] should receive
more help from the government and not be kept back from meeting AYP goals as a result. They should be
commended for making gains, rather than penalized for not meeting standards that are too high. 5) Other
tests that are more specific, whatever the content areas, should also be accepted as evidence of meeting
standards that are acceptable to the state and federal governments. For instance, vocational students who
perform well on the NOCTI tests should be recognized for that achievement, AP and IB students should be
acknowledged for scoring well on their demanding tests, etc. There are more ways to measure student
achievement than one test set up by the government. 6) Schools who show improvement should not be
penalized for subgroups who prevent their goals of meeting AYP. There should be credit for making gains
for everyone.
D I just feel like our students are being tested entirely too much. There just isn't enough time to teach all
that we need to teach in an effective and interesting way and accommodate all the tests given [unless]
you want us to just present the information in a straight lecture format, but that won't help the students
learn.
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D I wish that the testing was genuinely focused on the child's improvement from year to year, and not a
measure of the teacher's ability. When I was a kid, standardized testing was simply a means to measure
yearly progress.
D I'm not sure if they had the PSSA prior to NCLB or not. It seems the educational programs change so
constantly, that I am surprised that teachers can maintain their sanity. When I first started in the district,
the students were being taught how to read through one program. That lasted for a few years, then
another one was introduced. Last year, we "threw out" virtually brand new textbooks and instructional
workbooks because the district was again using another program to teach children. Hopefully, they will
continue to use this new program for some time to come. I have seen education go from being fun for the
child to being just horrible. There is much pressure placed on the students to do well in the PSSA. Last
week, we had students in tears because they were overwhelmed with the test. Is this really what we want
to do to our children. They are being asked to read in K-5. Why? It has been proven that developmentally,
a five-year-old's brain is not wired to read. Our students need to learn how to play together and get along
socially. K-5 is no longer the place for this.
D I have not learned about NCLB sufficiently to speak to changes as being the speech therapist for the
school, I am not really involved as much as I should be in the program. I do know that most teachers are
trying their best, but it doesn't seem to be good enough. As for the Spanish students - those students
who have a background in Spanish and have only been immersed in English since starting school are at a
definite disadvantage when taking the standardized tests. The other students being penalized are those
students who are learning disabled. They are asked to take a test that is far beyond their cognitive
abilities. They have IEPs, why can't tests be developed to test these students at their academic levels? You
don't make the students who wear glasses take the tests without their glasses, why make these students
read a test that they have no chance of understanding? It is frustrating to say the least.
D If it is not going to be funded, it should be dropped. We need to help, not hinder teachers' teaching
abilities.
D If standardized testing is going to be used to test the academic progress of all students, I would like to see
standardized testing which provides a fair playing field for ELL students and students with learning
disabilities.
D In a building with a 100% turnover rate, a more accurate way of assessing student achievement would be
to determine if every child in the school moved one year in all areas of study.
D It has had an impact on our ELL, ESL, and Learning Support students. We are teaching for the test.
There is little time for the extras that make teaching and learning fun. Family Consumer Sciences, Music,
Art and Technology Education are not included, but are good experience and reinforce the core subjects.
D It has taken the fun out of teaching. Changes to NCLB: a test in the fall that gives grade equivalency in
reading and math; again in the spring which shows growth by months or years? Example: say a student
comes into fifth grade at 4.2 and at the end of the year [a] test [score] at 5.2 shows or demonstrates
growth of a year. This is a benchmark for us to celebrate. STOP making a watered-down educational
system in the SDOL. Look at primary grades if a child can not do the required work in kindergarten does it
benefit us to pass them on for more failure in the years to come...retain when needed. Is our after school
tutoring really helping our students?
D IT IS ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS!!!!
D It shouldn't have been passed and put into practice without funding. No special education or ELL student,
who doesn't speak English, should have to have taken the test from the first year it was put into practice.
D Let's not forget, this [NCLB] was put forth by a man who is not qualified to teach in our state.
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D NCLB affects the programs purchased at the district level (include test prep components) as well as
content of daily instructional plans. Teachers feel pressure to be sure children master 'eligible content',
which is typically taught in kill and drill style. [“Kill and drill” is the technique of utilizing any repetitive
exercise to help children to learn important facts or skills.] Teachers have lost their freedom and
motivation to be creative in how they engage students and in development of curriculum. The
accountability piece is about the only thing I can support. No longer can systems say "Those kids (enter
race, socioeconomic group, Learning disability here) just can't" ...and then give up on them.
D NCLB and AYP do not take into consideration the needs and abilities of Special Education students. They
are forced to test at grade level even though they are not on grade level or being instructed at their grade
level. We also have a very high rate of students coming into the district a few years into elementary who
have received sub-par educations. Our district is constantly playing catch up to compensate for the lacking
education they come to us with.
D NCLB assumes that all children are capable of learning the same thing at the same pace. Unfortunately
students are identified as special education children because they are not capable of learning at the
expected rate yet we test them as if they were. Our test scores will always be deflated unless a special
test is made for the special education children.
D NCLB does not take into consideration students who are not performing academically on grade level. It
does not provide reading content that "motivates" the children to read or respond to the questions. It also
fails to recognize that today's students are ill prepared for educational success due to a multitude of
factors that begin at home. Most families fail to emphasize the value of education because they're too
focused on survival. Today's students seem to connect more with materialism and superficial issues
(fashion, relationships, physical altercations, parties, sex, etc) rather than preparing for an international
competitive world.
D NCLB has brought attention to the needs of language minority students
D NCLB has made us all focus more on our instruction than ever before in our careers. That has been the
benefit. My issue is with what Pennsylvania has decided to test. Everyone needs to know how to balance
their checkbook, determine how many gallons of paint to purchase to completely paint a large room, or
how many feet of fencing to surround their yard. The average person will never have to interpret a box
and whisker graph, or determine the area under a curve. Don't trash the idea of NCLB. I ought to be
accountable. Make the test and goals realistic.
D NCLB is a product of the "Texas Miracle." Although the achievement gap was narrowed, evidence suggests
that many students were left behind to do it, especially low socio-economic groups. Evidence also
suggests that AYP mandates increase the dropout rate and schools actually encourage students to dropout
or are held back before they take the assessment (1995 article from "Descent"). Schools with high
numbers of ELL and IEP students are at an extreme disadvantage for obvious reasons. These schools have
virtually no chance of making AYP even if they may make a gain here and there. Being 100% proficient by
2014 is an impossibility for 90% of all high schools. More importantly, I have many students that are
considered 11th graders but are in my 10th grade math class. These individuals are forced to take the
PSSA because they are listed as an 11th grader but mathematically, they've never been exposed to 11th
grade material. I would like to see new rules created that place students in the next grade level based
upon their math, communication arts and science achievement. I would also like to see the alternative
assessments in use for ELL and IEP students.
D NCLB is does not consider the research in regards to length of time needed for ELL students to acquire the
English language. These students need 5-7 years minimum to become proficient and are expected to pass
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the PSSA after one year in this country. These students should be tested on their proficiency level not on
a grade level assessment.
D NCLB is not adequate for ESL students who have been in the United States for under 7 years. Language
can simply not be learned that fast. There needs to be a different way to assess.
D NCLB tests all students at grade level. For some students, especially ELL and IEP students this [test] does
not accurately measure their growth. Below grade level students may make a whole year worth of growth
but it will not show if they are still below grade level.
D One good thing to say about NCLB is that we have broken our data apart to look at small groups of
students and thought about ways to teach those specific groups. However, we end up focusing only on the
things we think will be tested.
D Pure Politics
D One of the biggest faults of NCLB is that it is not backed by funding. I also have strong opinions about the
ineffectiveness of testing Special Education and ELL students. I have strong reservations about NCLB data
based on race. They are assuming that the child’s race/ethnicity directly correlates to test scores. I can
go on and on but bottom line… NCLB has done more harm than good to the field of Education.
D Schools are so concerned with academic scores that they have drained the joy out of school. We no longer
offer dozens of elective classes that students looked forward to every day. Such as: cooking, sewing, tech
ed., wood shop, metal shop, automotives, specialty literary classes.... When I was in school, the electives
were what I woke up for. Our students come to school for math and CA. If they don't succeed, they get
more of it.
D Since science and social studies are not tested, those subjects have pretty much been dropped at the
elementary level so that there is more time devoted to reading/writing/math. NCLB does not allow for
student individual growth recognition, only large group.
D State and district testing which is required by the NCLB is unfair for English Language Learners. The
majority of ELL students have not attained proficient language skills after two years of ESL study when
they are required to compete with native English speakers on the state PSSA tests. Latino students are
given the advantage of being able to take the Math PSSA test in Spanish yet this test is not available in
other native languages to accommodate non-Spanish speaking ELL students. State/district testing
requirements need to be eliminated for ELL students until they score proficient on the state ACCESS
English test. It is unfair for all involved…the school, the district, the teacher, and MOST importantly for the
students who are under pressure to perform at the level of a native speaker. State test administrators
should be required to show reading and writing proficiency in a foreign language after only one year of
study and have their scores matched against native speakers.
D State testing exhausts all of us. It has taken some of the joy out of teaching, in favor of teaching to the
test. While I believe that some of the skills we teach are necessary, the beauty of integrating materials
across content area and teaching kids to love learning for the sake of learning....those are lost.
D Students are very test weary.
D Test scores alone do not adequately reflect the effectiveness of a school.
D The educational gap experienced by some of our children is widening as a result of a lack of resources.
The state school funding system is not equitable. How can we all be held to the same standards with
different resources?
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D The funding hasn't been there to support the law. Outside programs that help reduce dropouts are
counted against the schools. Not enough ELL teachers to reduce class size which is needed if you want to
improve scores and improve schools.
D The impact of NCLB on my teaching is disappointing. Teaching has changed immensely and is no longer
fun. I feel like we are only teaching our children to pass a test and not teaching them the things they will
need as they become productive citizens of a community they wish to reside in. I really think we are so
test driven that it hurts the fact that the progress students make is forgotten.
D The joy-of-teaching is banished because there are time blocks to teach very specific content and we
cannot diverge. Consequently, there is no spontaneity or teaching the moment. The teachers are easily
burned out, so are the kids. There is far less humor and smiles all around. It's dog-eat-dog now. How
different things were when I first arrived in teaching! I remember one fourth grade teacher was teaching
the class about electricity. They wondered what was inside that clock radio she had in her hand. She took
out tools and found various broken appliances around her room and for the rest of the day, the students
disassembled machines! What an eye opener! What a joy of the moment! That is how teaching should go
but with the pressure of THE BIG TEST, such moments are long gone. It's all business now. Serious
business. Are we right to make school so formidable for 6 year olds? What about learning about the world?
What about discovery?
D The premise of the Act in itself was a novel idea, however it did not take into account the special education
student. We have students with 50 IQ's who read on a second grade level, who are required by law to take
the testing.
D The students should be allowed to test in the language they know best.
D The teachers I hear feel they are not able to teach as they would like. Everything has to be test focused.
Consideration is not being taken that some children need other ways of learning. We need vocational
schools at the middle school level to keep some children interested in school. We have too many children
carrying extra luggage (mental health issues, economics, parental lack of involvement, Language barriers,
etc.).
D There are crucial issues of adequate funding and equity. In addition, the composition of the tests, their
evaluation, and the timing of the administration is increasingly problematic. It is very clear that significant
content within the PSSA classes has been compromised or eliminated with the state and federal emphasis
on standardized test preparation. In the state of Pennsylvania, the administration of the 4Sight test 4
times a year is a tremendous detriment to the curriculum, yet its use as a diagnostic tool to allow teachers
and schools to differentiate instruction is extremely valuable.
D There should not be punishments associated with not reaching the "benchmarks" set by the legislators.
The schools that are not reaching goals should be given incentives to meet the goals, guidance/instruction
and most importantly money to reduce class sizes and provide the extra support for lower income
students to meet the goals. The idea of NCLB is good but the law is poorly funded and the numbers for
AYP grouping are arbitrary.
D Too much time is taken away from subject matters during the testing and during the test preparation
stages. Students who are not fluent in English must take the test in English, therefore testing not only
their grasp of the content materials but also their grasp of the materials in English, which is not their
native language.
D Traditional math has been done away with in the SDOL; however the PSSA tests are all traditional math
questions. We are encouraged to review for several weeks using traditional methods.
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D Unfortunately, NCLB has taken control of the curriculum I teach leaving me with no flexibility. I no longer
have time for building relationships with students, hands-on learning, or cooperative group learning.
There is no time to fit Science and Social Studies anymore. Frankly, teaching isn't fun anymore. I teach
according to a script and teach my students test-taking skills rather than real world skills. I would like to
see less formal assessments, less emphasis on a school's quality based on a test given once a year, and
funding to support schools and teachers.
D We teach to the test. We give most help to students who are "almost there" and the ones who most need
help are left further and further behind
Only one comment endorsed NCLB as is:
D The problem is not NCLB: the problem is parents who don't prepare their children to be students. It
doesn't matter what the government does. Nothing will work until parents take ownership of parenting
their own children instead of assuming the government will do it for them.
Two Reports by the Civil Rights Project at Harvard University on

NCLB
Listening to Teachers: Classroom Realities and 'No Child Left Behind'

The follow is an excerpt from the Executive Summary:
The No Child Left Behind: The Teachers’ Voice survey grew out of our national study on the No Child Left Behind
Act of 2001 (NCLB), which is examining many aspects of NCLB implementation in six states and eleven school
districts. Since there is much in NCLB that is aimed at teachers, we wanted to know what teachers think about the
law and how they, and their schools, are responding to its strategies for change.
Thanks to the cooperation of two urban school districts in Fresno, California and Richmond, Virginia, we obtained
survey responses from two groups of teachers on opposite ends of the country. These two school districts serve
many low-income and minority students, with one serving mostly Latino students and the other mostly African-
American students, and each operates within a very different state policy and reform context. The response rate of
the teachers to our survey was 77.4%. The survey was administered in May-June 2004.
Key Findings
Teachers have a thoughtful and nuanced view of reform that is quite consistent across districts and across
teachers in both schools that are doing well and those that have been identified as in need of improvement under
NCLB.
Teachers believed their schools have high standards and that the curriculum in their school was of high quality
and linked to academic standards. They believed teachers in their schools were working hard to provide quality
instruction, were dedicated to improving student achievement, and were accepting of accountability if it was based
on a system that fairly measured instructional performance. They think their schools can improve more.
They did not believe that identifying schools that had not made adequate yearly progress would lead to school
improvement. They viewed the transfer option quite negatively but were somewhat more positive about the
potential of supplemental educational services to improve schools. Teachers strongly believed that the NCLB
sanctions would unfairly reward and punish teachers.
Many of the teachers in schools that were identified as needing improvement do not plan to be teaching in them
five years in the future. Teachers also believed that the NCLB sanctions would cause teachers to transfer out of
schools not making adequate progress. These results suggest that there is a very serious problem in getting
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teachers to make a long-term commitment to teach in poorly performing schools and that designating schools as
"in need of improvement" under NCLB may make things worse.
Teachers confirm that the NCLB accountability system is influencing the instructional and curricular practices of
teachers, but it is producing unintended and possibly negative consequences. They reported that, in response to
NCLB accountability, they ignored important aspects of the curriculum, de-emphasized or neglected untested
topics, and focused instruction on the tested subjects, probably excessively. Teachers rejected the idea that the
NCLB testing requirements would focus teacher’s instruction or improve the curriculum.
Teachers reported that reform was underway prior to NCLB, and in some cases NCLB disrupted these reform
efforts. There is evidence from the survey to support the idea of "policy churn," that is, schools in high-poverty
districts, and particularly low-performing schools, are continually changing their educational programs in response
to calls for reform.
Teachers provide some insightful thoughts about what they need to meet high standards and improve student
performance:
They need more resources, and they had highly nuanced views of what resources matter. In particular, teachers
desired more money for curricular and instructional materials aligned with state standards.
Additional time to collaborate with other teachers was more important to them than more professional
development.
They expressed support for the importance of small classes.
They want experienced administrators in their schools, they want to work with experienced teachers, and they
want more involvement of parents. They were not opposed to removing ineffective teachers.
They believed public recognition and rewards for improving student performance were more effective than
sanctions for poor performance.
Tracking Achievement Gaps and Assessing the Impact of NCLB on the Gaps: An
In-depth Look into National and State Reading and Math Outcome
On June 14, 2006, the Civil Rights Project at Harvard University released a study reporting that NCLB hasn't
improved reading and mathematical achievement or reduced achievement gaps. The study also revealed that the
NCLB won't meet its goals of 100 percent student proficiency by 2014 if the trends of the first several years
continue. The Study shows that NCLB hasn't significantly impacted national achievement scores or narrowed the
racial gaps
The report, Tracking Achievement Gaps and Assessing the Impact of NCLB on the Gaps: An In-depth Look into
National and State Reading and Math Outcome, compares the findings from the National Assessment of Education
Progress (NAEP) to state assessment results and concludes that that high stakes testing and sanctions required by
NCLB are not working as planned. The findings contradicted the claims of the Bush Administration and some
previous studies that showed positive results under NCLB.
According to the report, since NCLB's inception, state assessment results show improvements in math and
reading, but students aren't showing similar gains on the NAEP—the only independent national test that randomly
samples students across the country. It has had little to no impact on racial and poverty gaps. The NCLB act ends
up leaving many minority and poor students, even with additional educational support, far behind with little
opportunity to meet the 2014 target.
The report finds:
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D NCLB did not have a significant impact on improving reading and math achievement across the nation and
states. Based on the NAEP results, the national average achievement remains flat in reading and grows at
the same pace in math after NCLB than before. Only 24 to 34 percent of students will meet the proficiency
target in reading and 29 to 64 percent meeting that math proficiency target by 2014.
D NCLB has not helped the nation and states significantly narrow the achievement gap. The racial and
socioeconomic achievement gap in the NAEP reading and math achievement persists after NCLB. The
study predicts that by 2014, less than 25 percent of poor and Black students will achieve NAEP proficiency
in reading, and less than 50 percent will achieve proficiency in math.
D NCLB's attempt to scale up the alleged success of states that adopted test-driven accountability policy
prior to NCLB (e.g., Florida, North Carolina, Texas) did not work. Neither did it enhance those that adopted
test-based accountability under NCLB. Both failed to narrow NAEP reading and math achievement gaps
after NCLB.
D NCLB's reliance on state assessment as the basis of school accountability is misleading since state-
administered tests tend to significantly inflate proficiency levels and proficiency gains as well as deflate
racial and social achievement gaps in the states. The higher the stakes of state assessments, the greater
the discrepancies between NAEP and state assessment results. These discrepancies were particularly large
for poor, Black and Hispanic students.
"This report is depressing given the tremendous amount of pressure schools have been under and the damage
that a lot of high poverty racial schools have undergone by being declared as failing schools…We have not focused
on the kinds of serious long-term reforms that can actually produce gains and narrow the huge gaps in opportunity
and achievement for minority students." -- Gary Orfield, director of the Civil Rights Project at Harvard University
and professor of education and social policy at Harvard Graduate School of Education.
The following is from the foreword by Gary Orfield to the above-mentioned study. I include it here because of its
direct relevance to the issues confronting the School District of Lancaster which were voiced by many of the staff
and faculty in the SDOL Survey:
The No Child Left Behind Act has hundreds of pages of complex provisions but simple and unambiguous goals. It
embodies President Bush’s promise to end the “soft racism of low expectations” by closing racial achievement gaps
and bringing all students to proficiency within the next eight years. It creates unprecedented measurement of
academic progress in two subjects (with science being added later) through mandated yearly tests in elementary
and middle school and requires that all children from all racial and ethnic groups attain 100% proficiency. Schools
are required, under threat of strict sanctions, to raise achievement each year in math and reading and to eliminate
the achievement gap by race, ethnicity, language, and special education status.
The bipartisan bargain that led to the enactment of the law was designed around hope of dramatic educational
progress spurred by large increases in federal aid and strict accountability. Many of the high poverty schools the
law aimed to change had limited resources, poorly trained teachers, and instability of both student enrollment and
staffing, making it very difficult to accomplish large educational breakthroughs without large increases in funds and
major reforms. Unfortunately, after the first year, the promised resources were not provided but the very
demanding standards remained in place. As it stands, the act can best be understood to represent the theory that
large gains in achievement and equity can be quickly coerced out of the existing public school system without
additional resources or long-term systemic reforms that take years to accomplish.
…This report concludes that neither a significant rise in achievement, nor closure of the racial achievement gap is
being achieved. Small early gains in math have reverted to the preexisting pattern. If that is true, all the pressure
and sanctions have, so far, been in vain or even counterproductive. The federal government is providing $412
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million a year to help pay for part of the additional testing required by the law and many states claim that they are
being forced to divert state funds to testing and other provisions they believe are unnecessary.
…The study shows that virtually all states are reporting gains in achievement and many are reporting that the
achievement gap is closing under their state assessment and proficiency systems, but that those gains are not
related to gains independently measured by NAEP and are largest in those states with the least demanding
standards and the lowest thresholds for achievement.
On the issue of closing the gap for minority and poor children, a central goal of NCLB, there are also no
significant changes since NCLB was enacted …The Bush Administration and some of the policy’s most fervent
supporters, avoid this uncomfortable truth. Instead they have claimed that No Child Left Behind has produced a
major breakthrough both in terms of achievement and in terms of closing the gap. The White House hails a 52%
increase in spending on the key provision since 2001 and cites the research of the Education Trust, claiming that
achievement is rising in 23 of 24 states studied and that in most of them the racial achievement gap had narrowed.
As the leader of a research project concerned about issues of racial equity, I believe that if there were evidence
that these things were actually being accomplished it would be very important whatever one thought about some of
the means being used to attain them. Unfortunately, these claims rest on misleading interpretations of flawed data
as demonstrated in this new report.
…This report indicates that the basic trends in both achievement gains are almost exactly what they were before
the act became law—modest gains in math, flat achievement in reading. There are now modest gains on the NAEP
in math, but the growth pattern is the same as that which existed before NCLB. Achievement on reading tests is
basically unchanged. It shows that continuing the current trends will leave the nation very far from reaching the
100% proficiency goal. In Shakespearean terms, we’ve been experiencing a massive process “full of sound and
fury, signifying nothing.”
It is important to keep in mind that the NAEP does show substantial declines in racial achievement gaps in the
l970s and early 1980s, when more of the civil rights and anti-poverty efforts of earlier reforms were still in
operation. The strict standards-based reform effort that swept the county after the 1983 A Nation at Risk report
has not shown similar benefits on achievement gaps.
Since the policy is little more than a theory about how to force change without any grounding in specific
educational approaches or targeted resources to ensure that effective programs and supports are put into place
(except in the special early reading programs), then if it does not succeed in improving scores on the NAEP, it
certainly cannot be justified. This is after teachers and school leaders across the country have been put through
tremendous stress, and a vast amount of money has been expended in developing and implementing tests states
did not believe were necessary or well advised. Much more important, because of the high stakes attached to the
tests, many millions of hours of class time have been committed to preparation for these tests. Under the law
nothing about a school has counted in determining its success or failure except these math and reading tests.
Obviously, under those circumstances, this pressure tends to drive other things out of the school day. If the policy
fails to produce real gains even on those limited outcomes, it needs to be redesigned if the laudable goals are to be
attained. Much could be learned from earlier Congressional efforts to tie Title I funds to multiyear, full school
reform, to support the creation of magnet and other schools with less concentrated poverty, and to support school
reform with broader anti-poverty efforts.
A combination of intense pressure for gains and a narrow focus on measurement means schools at risk of being
branded as failures concentrate on moving those scores that will determine their fate. One way they do this is to
focus more time on preparing for those particular tests at the expense of all the other outcomes that are not
measured. For example, there is no accountability for whether or not students learn anything about American
history and our democratic institutions. There is significant evidence that the students receive even less instruction
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than previously in subjects not tested and that excessive pressure can actually undermine another goal of the law—
attracting highly qualified teachers to high poverty schools and holding them there. Our survey of teachers in
California and Virginia school districts show most of those teachers believe that this narrowing has happened and a
recent report from the Center for Education Policy shows that this pattern is widespread across the nation. An
Associated Press study shows a sharp reduction of recess in a society with children whose physical fitness is
declining. As schools are branded as failures, teachers in threatened schools narrow what they are teaching,
eliminate instruction on subjects not on the tests, and tend to transfer out of the schools more rapidly. Things that
help keep kids attached to the school experience like recess, arts and music, and career related training as well as
extracurricular activities are reduced in pursuit of goals that are not being achieved.
Particularly in low income schools judged as failures, there often is a tendency to move into highly formulaic and
rigidly programmed curriculum, boring to both students and teachers, and, worse yet, to spend time not on
teaching their subjects but on drilling on test-taking strategies. Teachers have long tended to transfer out of low-
income minority schools as they gain experience. Excessive test pressure tends to accelerate this process,
compounding the schools’ problems since experienced teachers are a precious resource for schools. We found this
pattern in our teacher surveys.
…there is an enormous incentive to invest in strategies such as teaching to the test, which creates the false
impression of educational progress since what has been learned is more about the test and what is included on it,
not deeper knowledge of the subject. In fact, there may be less in-depth understanding of the subject and less
preparation for the higher order skills that come later and require a broader kind of preparation. When the means
displace the end, when single measurements created by testing companies working with bureaucratic committees
are treated as more important than all the other ways teachers assess their students, then it should not be
surprising that we really have nothing that shows up on another measure of learning, even in those subjects where
intense test preparation takes place.
…The best research suggests that school reform takes time, that investments must be made in curriculum and
instruction, and that sustaining educational improvement in high poverty schools is difficult at best. It is much
easier to attract and hold teachers in schools where they are needed by rewards when they make a difference than
with constant threats…
…this research shows, at the minimum, that the theory of test-driven change underlying NCLB is too simple, that
the goals must be more realistic, and that the thought of accomplishing much without the promised resources is
probably unrealistic. Congress should be open to other ideas and should listen to educators who have actually
accomplished major breakthroughs, and to researchers outside the Washington advocacy networks who have
actually documented what kinds of reforms can work, how much they can accomplish, what is a reasonable theory
of change, and what kind of time and resources are needed to realize its potential. The goals of raising
achievement and lowering gaps are very good ones, and the data provided by NCLB is essential, but policy makers
must be ready to critically examine why so little has been accomplished, why officials are making misleading and
inaccurate claims, and what can be done to use the invaluable data and focus created by the Act to begin to
actually accelerate progress toward those objectives. If we take these results as showing the need for substantial
mid-course corrections, not as an attack on the goals of good teachers in poor schools and meaningful
accountability for real progress by all groups of students, I believe that we could begin to actually close the gaps
again, as we were doing a generation ago. I believe that educators across the country would be eager to work with
Congress and the Administration in making the needed changes so we could produce real gains that would show up
on whatever test the students took.
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SDOL STAFF SURVEY - OPEN-ENDED RESPONSES
Critical Issues Affecting the Academic Achievement of Latino

Students
Identify the top three critical issues that you believe affect the academic
achievement of Latino students in the School District of Lancaster?
N %
SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT—CURRICULUM--SOCIAL PROMOTION 63 61%
FAMILY: LANGUAGE/CULTURAL/EDUCATIONAL BARRIERS—

PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT 59 57%
LEP—ESL—ELL 35 34%
FAMILY ENVIRONMENT/DYSFUNCTION 22 21%
BEHAVIORAL/NEGATIVE INFLUENCES 19 18%
ECONOMIC DISADVANTAGE 13 13%
ABSENTEEISM (8) 8 8%
EXPECTATIONS (6) 6 6%
EDUCATION--NOT COOL TO BE SMART (5) 5%

5
School Environment—Curriculum
µ Curriculum relevant to their outside lives extra curricular activities, clubs, music programs etc
µ Curriculum tailored towards the "culture of µ It is also very important that students connect with
power." and know that there is a teacher who cares because
µ Cultural. (Teachers are predominantly White) that is the number one reason for ESL students
dropping out of school
µ Building Administration Effectiveness
µ Guidance counselors at the high school level are not
µ Boredom. All the "fun stuff" has been taken
doing enough for the students
out of middle school. The only world language
offered is Spanish! There are no computer µ Instructional programs and methods
classes, no home ec, no shop, etc etc like there µ Lack of Accessibility to Technology
was eight years ago. We used to offer FOUR µ Lack of Latino/Latina teachers as models
world languages, three computer classes to all
kids. There is no "down" time like recess. µ Auxiliary Personnel
There is nothing for many of them to connect µ Achievement testing is unfair because students
to cannot undertsanding problem-solving tests
µ SDL administrator are aware of the large Latino µ Lack of books and materials that reflect and
population but have done nothing to engage celebrate the culture of our Latino students
teachers in gaining professional knowledge on µ Lack of cultural diversity knowledge
helping Latino students. Teachers should be
µ Lack of respect that is shown to Latino students,
able to have access to literature and research
parents and staff by the "system"
that is out their that supply what is best
practices for working with Latino students µ More Latino teachers
µ Class size µ The entire school needs to better reach
µ Large class sizes do not allow for individualized µ more teachers are needed
instruction µ need for more highly qualified bilingual teachers and
µ Involving the students in the overall school counselors
environment when they get to high school ie. µ need for programs to empower female students in
furthering their education and provide career
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exploration activities in high demand, gold µ Student/Teacher ratio. Many teachers are weak in
collar jobs and/or college preparation the knowledge of the Latino culture
µ Some teachers do not understand the culture µ cause they did not bring one to class. What I am
of Latinos communicating is that if they are unprepared, it
µ Students need to have earlier exposure to really doesn't matter because I will just provide
vocational types of classes because not them with what they need. As for passing grades,
everyone is heading to college and those it's basically impossible for students to fail under our
students need to know there are other new grading system. What that says is, "We just
alternatives want students to pass on. We do not care if they
have met the criteria that merit a pass." This
µ Not enough qualified Latino role models in
attitude has trickled (or gushed) into our disciplinary
positions where children can interact with them system. Students are not required to tuck in their
µ There needs to be more teachers and staff that shirts, although it is mandated in the rule book.
are fluent in Spanish Students may wear jackets of any type, as long as
µ They also need more people that look like their teacher of the hour is okay with it -- despite
them. It's important for your students to see the fact that within the written rule book, wearing
more Latino Teachers coats in the building is prohibited. Now that would
be mean, except that there is a provision also
µ They need smaller classes to be able to explain
written -- students may wear long-sleeved shirts,
and help ESL students. Understand the work
cardigans, or buy District Sweatshirts. The problem
µ ESL students should have ESL classes in Math is, no one enforces those rules, and if you try to and
(2 years), Reading (3 years) and Writing (3 make a big stink, someone will eventually say to
years). An ESL teacher and a regular education you, "Aren't there bigger issues to worry about?" All
teacher teaching together in a multi-age in all, the District and its Administrators need to set
classroom. The their standards high, and stick to their guns.
µ Students would be a mix of ELL, special ed and µ Allowing students to pass on the principal of "social
regular ed underachievers. They would stay promotion." I know that the District thinks that this
together for 2 years will cut down on drop outs and improve graduation
µ Not enough racial representation of SDOL staff rates, but in the end we've done the students and
society a great disservice. These students acquire
µ Not enough resources for parents to be
increasingly large gaps in their education, especially
involved
in a curriculum that is set up as building blocks. If
µ Not enough staff to give more one on one you miss a piece of the foundation -- how can the
attention rest stand on top?
µ teachers are chained to NCLB and frequently µ Basic skills
are forced to make teaching decisions to teach
µ Lack of Study Skills
to the test
µ Lack of prior knowledge
µ Teachers need to understand how hard it is to
learn English µ Students reach middle school with very poor
vocabularies and a lack of the background
µ Teacher and student relationships
knowledge needed to comprehend what they read
µ Teacher bias
µ As for passing grades, it's basically impossible for
µ Teachers not having information on cultural students to fail under our new grading system. What
differences that says is, "We just want students to pass on. We
µ Teachers' ability to communicate with ESL/ELL do not care if they have met the criteria that merit a
students pass."
µ teachers' ability to communicate with Spanish µ Many Latino students enter the SDOL with poor
speaking parents educational backgrounds and are at a disadvantage
µ Poor student/teacher interactions from their entry into the SDOL. The gap in prior
knowledge correlates to the grade level
µ Placement of students at time of enrollment
based on grade in native country and not on µ Limited/interrupted formal schooling prior to
our age requirements or skill levels enrollment in SDOL
µ Professional development to understand the µ Reading and writing difficulties

learning process of a second language µ Reading at grade level with comprehension(related
µ Professional development to know how deal to the above problem)
with social-economic changes and how this
affect the student academic achievement
Family Language/Cultural/Educational Barriers—Parental involvement/Support

µ Lack of English in family and communication personel being hired who speak the language and
µ Communication with our Spanish-Speaking are able to go to the homes
parents needs to be improved with more µ Cultural and language differences often cause
communication difficulties and mis-perceptions
209
between school and home...as well as effecting µ Helping Spanish Speaking parents recognize that
the students' self concept and confidence they are part of a child's education. Often there is a
µ Cultural differences believe that the school is responsible for the
education of their child and that they have nothing
µ Cultural knowledge
to offer the child
µ Cultural traditions or mores that prevent many µ Home environment--encouragement to do
of them from pursuing higher education
homework and study
µ cultural-more must be provided for families so
µ Parental involvement, from either the fear of a
that they feel acceptance and connection to the language gap, or possibly a cultural inhibition to
school
challenge the school as an "authority"
µ Lack of teacher knowledge in the area of how
µ Parents are not able to help the students process the
to engage Latino parents material because of their limited English proficiency
µ Lack of parental support. Because of the
µ parents aren't as involved because not every parent
language barrier, most do not attend
memo or letter goes home in Spanish
parent/teacher conferences. I had a Hispanic
student who won an award. I arranged µ Parents do not realize they are the child's first
everything to get her and her family to the teacher and the need to help them establish
award presentation and had to call repeatedly education in child's first years of life
myself and have a Spanish speaking staff µ parents lack of education/ inability to help students
member call twice to encourage them to academically
attend. I know the mother felt uncomfortable µ parents not feeling welcome and able to effectively
going because she didn't speak English, but it communicate directly with the classroom teacher
was important for her daughter to receive the
µ Parents that don't require their children to attend
award in person
school or learn English
µ Ability of parent to help child with homework
µ Parents that don't speak English and therefore, can't
µ parents uncomfortable in the school setting help with homework
µ Educating Spanish speaking parents on how to µ Parents who are not sure about how to navigate the
help teach/learn English to/with their children system, whether it's academic, medical, or
µ educational level of the parents emotional care
µ Community based programs - Parents do not µ Parents who do not speak English or understand the
know the possibilities available to their children importance of education
through out the district µ Parents who don't communicate the importance of
µ Lack of parental connection/voice/awareness/ education to their children
motivation and student motivation µ Parents who don't recognize the value of school and
µ Lack of Parental Involvement homework, or are unable to set up a regular system
µ Lack of parental support in educational process of "checks and balances" for their children's
academic life
µ lack of parental support of academic
achievement µ Lack of available translators to call home to speak to
parents about student progress/concerns
µ Language barrier between teachers and
parents µ Need to support the family through their own work
experience outside of school
µ Language barrier--language nuances, culture
and cultural nuances and esp. the cultural µ Non-English speaking parents. Parents may not
expectations (and requirements) of education. know how to navigate the school system, the
Latinos seem to value family over education governmental system, where to gain access to
which is not the norm for Americans I don't services, etc…a myriad of obstacles
think. American middle class-bred teachers µ Opportunity in their own lives....often put parents in
have a hard time relating although they may be the position of not being at home enough with their
very caring. Some don't pronounce names children, to support their academic and emotional
properly, don't accept the ESL kids into their growth
classes if there is a testing time or emergency µ Parent involvement and parent comfort with school
where they cannot have regular ESL class, do to get involved, communications sent home in
not adequately differentiate even when ESL Spanish, personnel at school proficient in Spanish to
teachers give them materials....They need communicate with parents
more training in cross-cultural relations and
understanding µ Often the lack of education and/or English language
skills of the parents make it difficult for them to
µ families that do not understand the provide the appropriate support needed
process/importance of education beyond high
school (lack of parent involvement) µ Parent and family inclusion within the educational
community on all levels
µ Guiding teachers in effective means of
µ Many parents are not connected to the school and
communication with Latino students (including
cultural norms) are unaware of the services and programs available
to their children in addition to their children's
progress
210
µ Communication between teacher and parent.
LEP—ESL—ELL
µ Language barrier inhibits deep understanding of required to have a basic knowledge of English, which
concepts being taught they are not currently experiencing
µ Lack of English skills of student µ Students need to be able to speak in short sentences
µ Assimilation into the school setting for non in English prior to graduation
English speakers µ Support for ELL students from ESL professionals, and
µ Because LEP students are required to take tests getting enough to meet each individual need
and expected to perform like native English µ Testing Too Soon. (ELL children coming into the
speakers, the district is not able to provide system for the first time should have at least three
enough support for their Spanish skills years of ELL services before being tested in ANY
µ complex language acquistion necessary for subject.)
critical thinking in reading and writing for µ Tests not given in native language
students who are just learning English. For µ Language- if they do not speak the language they
students who know English, they have limited get a slow start. once behind it can be difficult to
vocabulary,write as they speak (using phonetic catch up-not for all, but for some
spelling or imitating pop culture)
µ Language/Cultural Barrier
µ Early support systems in language and basic
µ Not supportive of the development of skills in their
needs
native language
µ Failure to learn English. It is necessary to be
successful in both post-secondary education and µ The instructional material that is being taught in the
ELL classrooms does not prepare them for the English
the work force
only classrooms (mathematics especially)
µ Formal instruction in their native language.
Many Latino children never learn the µ Their transition from ELL to English only classrooms
grammatical constructs that govern their µ The expectation that they should be at proficient on
language and therefore struggle with acquisition a State Assessment when they have not been in the
of English. Learning to express abstract country for more then 3 to 5 years is a huge issue
concepts in a second language is a difficult µ transient population
process especially if formal instruction in
µ When the child does not speak English, but is still
primary language is non-existent
required to test in English and that is not taken into
µ Language - ESL program is not linear throughout account when the scores are reported
the district. Many of the students transfer from
µ Your Latino kids need more time to pick up the
one school to the next and receive different
english before moving on to the next grade. They
curriculum in each school
need more Esl Classes
µ Lack of support for students who are ELL as
µ Reading in English - students need to read in every
well as identified as having special needs
subject area. If they don't master that skill,
µ knowledge of the English language everything goes down hill
µ It takes 5-8 years for a student to become µ Not being proficient in English lowers their
fluent in English.....being an ELL puts Latino reading/writing ability
students at a huge disadvantage in achieving
µ learning English
academic proficiency in all subject areas
µ not enough intensive ESL instruction by highly
µ inequity of PSSA testing and timeline for ELL
qualified teachers
students
µ Understanding the nuances of the language and
µ It is also very important that the classroom
ability to read
teachers adapt their curriculum to meet the
needs of the Latino students µ Second Language Learning.
µ Students need to be able to read and write in
English prior to graduation. They must be
Family Environment/Dysfunction
µ Breakdown of family µ Disassociation from the parents to the kids
µ Basic needs at home are not met µ Family and Living Situations
µ Daily struggle of family due to mental health, µ Family and Social Issues
substance abuse problems, finances etc. µ Family instability
children may not have a stable home life and
not know where they will sleep tonight or if µ Lack of strong parental support
there will be food to eat. may not be a private µ Home support or lack thereof
quiet space to study
211
µ Parents who don't discipline their children, or µ The frequent change of addresses. Fortunately, the
teach them to respect authority district is now using a district-wide curriculum so
µ Single parent families and changing/blended that if they move from one of our schools to
families another, they curriculum will be the same
µ Some parents move the children frequently. µ Many families do not have stable/affordable homes
The multiple changes in schools cause big gaps and move often
in their education µ Transient, moving often from school to school and
µ Teenage pregnancy stops the young ladies city to city.
from succeeding
Behavioral/Negative Influences
µ Discipline policies in place are insufficient in µ Lack of work ethic
creating a positive learning environment µ Lack of motivation to engage in the educational
µ Behavior setting
µ Student and parent not being held accountable µ High pregnancy rate among Latino students
for the child's behavior in class µ Gangs and violence
µ Large numbers of students are extremely µ Influence of "thug" culture, illegal drugs and
disruptive, not only missing their own promiscuity
educational opportunities, but also taking them
away from the majority who behave µ Social influences.The number one problem is a lack
of motivation. These students are growing up in an
appropriately
environment where everything is handed to them --
µ Latino student who come here directly from from the welfare checks given by Government, to
the Islands are well disciplined. They are toys and clothes by their parents, to school uniforms
engrossed in the classes here at McCaskey and and free lunches, right down to pencils and paper
mixed with discipline problems which cause from their teachers. They know that if they do not
them to develop discipline problems. I'm not have what they need to succeed, someone will just
saying isolate them, they should be placed in a hand it to them -- they'll never have to struggle for
better environment anything and therefore they value nothing. They
µ Poor attitude have no vision of where they are going, or why they
µ Use of ISS/OSS for behavior control should be in school -- I've had way too many girls
tell me that they plan to get pregnant and start
µ Students frequently lack motivation and self- collecting welfare before they finish high school. Why
control
work when a baby can get it for you for free?
µ \Students understanding the purpose of school Unfortunately, this is issue is larger than the District,
and education as it is propagated by their parents, older siblings
µ Students' intrinsic and extrinsic motivation to and every rap star out there.
learn
Economic Disadvantage
µ A lot of are students have jobs µ The student is responsible for childcare needs in the
µ economically disadvantaged family while the parent(s) work the second shift
µ Socio-economic stressors (housing, jobs, µ parents working jobs that do not allow them to be
transportation, child care etc) and often a lack at home with their children
of educational Socioeconomic barrier µ Level of poverty resident within our Latino
µ Poverty community
Education Not Important

µ A culture that believes education is not that µ Their culture itself has a negative attitude toward
important education. Many students do no see the connection
µ Communicating the importance of education to between academic success and financial success
the Latino community. How education will µ School is not viewed as the top priority in many
improve their quality of life and opportunities households. As a result it is fit into the family
throughout their lives schedule as opposed to having the family schedule
µ Cultural differences-educational importance around it
µ Education is not seen as a priority in the home. µ It is not a priority. The streets and their friends call
The Latino students do not spend time at home them, they lie to their parents if asked about
processing homework homework, they do not want to carry anything home
to work on. Maybe some of this is because many do
µ Lack of regard for education within the Latino
have to WALK. We have no busses in our district.
Culture i.e. the family and the churches
Or maybe it is uncool to carry books home, esp. for
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a guy. They don't understand the long term stars. I think many parents spoil their kids so much
benefits of higher education and having jobs when they are young that the kids begin to do
with benefits since now "Uncle Sammy" will whatever they want later and the parents cannot get
give them checks, pay for their kids and their them to go to school or do anything they would like
doctor bills, so why need a job with benefits? them to do by the time they are in middle or high
They think a job that pays $12 an hour is school. Maybe this is because many parents had
awesome! Then again, they, in middle school, their kids at such a young age and are still like kids
most want to be professional sports or music themselves
Absenteeism
µ Absenteeism-it is a chronic problem µ Sometimes students are pulled out of school by
µ Poor attendance and tardiness families so that the students can translate for them
at Dr. appointments, agency appointments, etc.
µ Priority in parent's mind of need for attendance
Expectations
µ Low expectations of achievement µ Low expectations on mid-term and final exams (10%
µ expectations--post secondary education, goals, of their 2nd and 4th quarter grade). Low
self-esteem, extra curricular activities, expectations for doing homework (10% of overall
leadership skills grade)
µ Low academic expectation
Education--Not Cool to Be Smart

µ Not that cool to do well in school demonstrate that you are. This is even more a
µ A lack of a desire to look like a smart person factor for girls
amongst one's peers µ Cultural/peer pressure between the students
µ Cultural pressure on Latino students. It's not themselves, to be "cool" and not to succeed
cool to be smart, and even less cool to µ Many Latino students do not set high educational
goals for themselves for a variety of reasons.
Factors That Contribute To The High Dropout Rate of Latino Students

Name up to three factors that you believe contribute to the high
dropout rate of Latino students in the School District of Lancaster?
%
N
EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM 43 41%
FAILURE, FEEL INADEQUATE, FRUSTRATED, HOPELESS,
DISCONNECTED FROM SCHOOL 34 33%
ECONOMIC NEED 29 28%
PREGNANCY 23 22%
LACK PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT/SUPPORT 21 20%
GANGS, VIOLENCE, PEER INFLUENCE 9 9%
TRANSIENCY 8 8%
ATTENDANCE 8 8%
FAMILY ISSUES 7 7%
LACK ROLE MODELS 5 5%
LANGUAGE 5 5%
Educational System
µ Lack of resources and supportive services µ Lack of resources to provide flexibility once students
µ Lack of involvement in school activities fall behind grade level
µ Lack of respect shown to parents and students
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µ Lack of solid academic foundation upon elementary school. There is not enough in
entering middle school and high school (high elementary and middle school to allow students the
frustration level leading to behavorial issues) opportunity for other outlets when they are not
µ Lack of student accountability/discipline successful academically. students who are not
successful academically know it by 3rd grade. You
µ Lack of support by a multitude of parties have lost them by 6th or 7th. By that time, it may
µ Lack of teacher involvement not matter what you put in front of them, they are
µ Lack of afterschool programs not going to believe they can do it
µ I think the high school infastructure is µ More Teachers, Guidance Counselors and Deans
completely outdated in servicing our high encouraging students to go on to higher education.
school students (An educator should discourage our students on
taking the GED, not giving these students "a way
µ inadequate career exploration, goal setting and
out")
planning activities imbedded within core
content areas. Not enough explicit µ Teacher and student relationships
opportunities to continue to work hard µ The District officials need some sensitivity training
academically to reach goals for Latino issues
µ Limited/interrupted formal schooling prior to µ Teachers not having information on cultural
enrollment in SDoL differences
µ More support staff. Because alot of the µ Teachers should learn more about classroom
problems start are at home. The need for the manegement to know more about positive ways to
school to met the Parents is a must. We need make the students feel more welcome to school.
to work togother in Understanding that its not Specially inside the classroom. (High school needs )
easy for a student to make changes from one Helping their self esteem
school to another.and starting over µ too many suspensions too early
µ need more personalized attention (not enough
µ Too Much Testing!
staff)
µ When a student doesn't have a teacher they connect
µ Boredom. All the "fun stuff" has been taken with and know that the teacher cares about them
out of middle school. The only world language
and their education;. Discrimination
offered is Spanish! There are no computer
classes, no home ec, no shop, etc etc like there µ District needs to stop using internet translations
was eight years ago. We used to offer FOUR which butcher the Spanish language on papers sent
world languages, three computer classes to all to Latino households - they are doing them no favor
kids. There is no "down" time like recess. µ Not enough time for fun and motivating activities
They have nothing to connect to µ High-Stakes Testing
µ Not enough academic support, starting in µ parent frustration in not being able to communicate
elementary school in order for students to meet with classroom teachers
with academic success
µ Pressure to perform in school
µ Not enough guidance on financial assistance for
µ School/District discipline is very punitive rather than
college and trade schools
restorative
µ Not enough strong and caring individuals that
µ One on one is the way to go. And spending more
can get more involved with individual students
time with them helps. We set them up to fail. Not
µ students that do not show academic interest at able to meet expectations that the NCLB puts on
at early age must be identified and channeled them.
into alternative career opportunities in
Failure, Feel Inadequate, Frustrated, Hopeless, Disconnected from School

µ Frustration with cultural differences, academic µ lack of hope that the future can be different and lack
failure, lack of support to aid ELL students, of confidence in their abilities
(ESL staff is spread very thinly to provide µ Many students simply can not read, yet they
adequate support, which is not in their control continue to move on, without meaningful
to have adequate staff hired) interventions
µ feelings of inadequacy/failure µ thus they become increasingly frustrated, act out,
µ failing grades;failure to learn to read and are disciplined A vicious cycle!!!!
µ Hopelessness--no ability to see a positive µ Many students have such high educational gaps as a
future...our children don't have dreams result of lots of movement, high absence and
µ "Easy way out of problems" via student suspension rates
comment µ The students become overwhelmed, frustrated and
µ lack of career goals or seeing a future with give up
success µ No vision of what a good job is. Very low self
µ low expectation of themselves asteem. (Same as with the African American
students)
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µ Student not visualizing him/herself in a higher µ Students being so behind educationaly due to social
education setting promotion. Lack of interest or motivation
µ They believe academic achievement is µ Lack of motivation to attend school when it rains, is
unimportant or beyond their reach inclimate, or when its their birthday.
µ they have struggled in school their entire life,
and now they just can't catch up
Economic Need
µ Poverty µ making money on the streets
µ the need or the desire to work µ Many of the students feel a responsibility to support
µ students assist with financial support for the the home by quitting and getting a job--there is an
family by working part-time jobs expectation that they contribute financially to the
home
µ poverty and hopelessness drives them into
working at menial jobs as soon as they are old µ Some of our students (high school) goes to bed
enough without eating and they still have to go to school and
some of them have to work and come to school tired
µ Family needs that require students to take on a
job with demanding hours µ cycle of poverty caused by low literacy.
µ Many students want to get a job to help their

families or to support their own young family
Pregnancy
µ Teenage pregnancy µ Poor parenting and Family concept. We have the
µ We need to change the perception of this as a highest rate of teenage pregnancy than just about
positive event to an awareness that, anywhere for a reason: it is taught and accepted at
statistically, they have condemned themselves, home. Our welfare system is also to blame for it
and their child, to a life of poverty serves as a catalyst for this behavior. Pregnancy.
Boys and girls alike drop out for this reason. They
µ Teen pregnancy is high among our inner city do not comprehend the long-term consequences of
youth population
dropping out over a baby. And our district even has
µ teen pregnancy--girls wanting to get pregnant a nursery to babysit the kids while the parents go to
rather than attend school or do school work it classes. This may backfire when other high
almost appears that getting pregnant is a schoolers see the adorable babies they want one of
favorable contest with just about all girls their own…I know of parents of MIDDLE SCHOOLERS
competing,but in this district a huge portion of who were excited to have a new grandchild! Most
Latinas American parents would be thoroughly angry and
µ dating men rather than boys their age upset if their young child were pregnant. One Latino
family I know WAS very, very upset when their
µ Teen pregnancy, some of which is culturally
youngest child, a 16 year old, became pregnant to
encouraged
an African-American. HOWEVER, a HUGE PARTY
µ Teenage pregnancy-they are impatient to grow with a couple hundred guests, DJ, open bar, etc. was
up, want to be seen as adults and most given to her as a shower where she received an
importantly, they want to be loved, both by a incredible amount of money, and as she opened gifts
boyfriend/girlfriend and by a baby nearly rolled her eyes with "and another one of…
Lack Parental Involvement/Support

µ Lack of parental support, involvement-parent µ parents who aren't supportive of the educational
conferences, volunteering, etc process
µ Lack of academic support in the home µ Many parents have become disconnected and
µ parent tolerance of "dropping out" disenfranchised with their child's education and may
not push them to stay in school
µ Parents and students who undervalue what
education can provide their children µ Limited success in school because of conflict with the
home values and needs to study
µ lack of parental understanding of the
importance of becoming competitive in a highly µ No positive role models in the home
skilled job market µ uneducated parents.
µ apathy of parents
Education Not Important

µ Education is not seen as a priority µ Growing up in families where no one else has
µ Belief that education will not improve their graduated from high school so the importance of an
quality of life education is overlooked. an education is not
215
important to reaching good job preparation and can simply dropout, take the GED and get a good
a better life job like their parents
µ Not understanding the importance of getting a µ Wanting to work because that is family members
good education have done
µ Cultural disregard for education. I have heard µ Students fail to understand how important education
Latino pastors, in church, demand that the is in the job market
youth be at church multiple days a week µ history of low educational levels in families
µ That the Lord comes first (which I to beleive), µ They just don't seem to care
but for them, at the expense of homework,
µ The parents do not understand the value of an
education etc
education
µ Cultural predispositions do not place education
in high regard. Many students feel that they µ completing high school isn't enforced by the family
Gangs, Violence, Peer Influence

µ It is cool to quit school, uncool to do well in µ LOW VALUE OF HUMAN LIFE
school µ Social factors
µ gang membership and violence µ social pressure
µ gangs µ Societal pressures, other priorities( teenage
µ Intervention to provide safe and effective pregnancy, poverty, etc.)
alternatives to gangs
µ Lack of Conflict Resolution Skills
Transiency
µ Movement back and forth between schoosl and µ Latino families are too transient, and students do not
native country. Gaps in learning contribute to have a stable enough educational background
students needing to catch up. They get µ Transience of student which makes academic
frustrated progress difficult
µ Transient issues. Children move from school to µ Transient nature of the population. Many are
school on a frequent basis. Many of our Latino migrant families or move between the US and
children continually move back and forth to various other Spanish speaking countries with
Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. Many frequency and fluidity. Lack of continuity in the
children do not develop a feeling of belonging educational process makes achievement and a sense
in the community of efficacy difficult to acquire.
Attendance
µ Absenteeism;unable to catch up µ attendance
µ disengaged from school reguardless of race, could drop out for the same
µ due to lack of success in the classroom. This is reason.
not all Latino students . Any student,
Family Issues
µ High priority of other responsibilities µ Honestly? Sometimes I think we need a social
µ unstable home life/ no support for school at worker, a doctor and a dentist in every school, in
home addition to the guidance counselor, nurse, therapist,
and home visitor. So many of our families are sadly
µ poor home environment--students fail to get
lacking in support. The more we can support them,
the support and encouragement they need to the more successful their children will be.
persist to graduation
µ personal/family issues that prevent these
children from finishing school
Lack Role Models

µ Lack of Positive Role Models principals, support personnel not just custodial staff
µ Lack of role models in professional settings µ Lack of academic role models in the home
µ Lack of positive role models in the community µ Lack of successful academic, social, and economic
and in the district itself in the form of teachers, role models
Language
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µ Language - the gap in academic language the students to transition back and forth within a
versus conversational language is difficult for day.
µ Language barrier
Changes Implemented Within the Past Three Years
Can you identify any recent changes (within the past three years)
implemented by the administration that you believe will positively
impact the academic achievement of Latino students?
N %
NO 42 40%
SUPPORT SERVICES—PROGRAMS FOR AT RISK 27 26%
ELL PROGRAMS—SUPPORT 17 16%
CURRICULUM – TEACHING 8 8%
NO—NOT HERE THAT LONG 5 5%
OUTREACH TO PARENTS 4 4%
No
µ No one is holding the students accountable. student benefitted from this. Instead it created a
Now there are so many programs being dependancy on the system. Setting students for
promoted that allow students to get out of future failure.
school that do not hold them accountable. µ No. I cannot even articulate the superintendant's
They really have no skills and can not compete educational philosophy, broad vision or long term
with the counterparts goals. I believe the administration is too concerned
µ no, I can not identify any recent changes that with the overall test scores to deal with the "real"
will help the Latino students. Changing the issues, affecting individual students. In fact, this
availability of the International School in the push to make the curriculum uniform etc., in
high school has made it more difficult for the addition to the pressure teachers already feel to
Latino students who have limited English "teach to the test" has caused many teachers to feel
proficiency they are being LESS effective with ALL students.
µ No - A Learning Community was established Certainly, many feel their intellectual creativity,
under International Students. I truly believe no normally essential in the art of teaching, is being
pushed out of the picture
Support Services - Programs For At Risk

µ Tutoring Programs µ Phoenix Academy is available for alternative
µ Tutoring after school has helped students graduation opportunities/more staff involved in
directing students into available options to dropping
µ There is much more support given to students
out
that are struggling in school. There are many
opportunites to attend extended day programs µ Phoenix is trying to get/keep students to help them
for tutoring both before and after school graduate, more of a push to get students in LCCTC
and area colleges part days
µ There have been a number of initiatives to
identify middle school students who are in µ The creation of the Phoenix Academy and the
danger of dropping out that have been helpful continuation of the International School
and several alternative education settings have µ Increased services supporting family and individual
also been developed student wellfare, health, and safety
µ The creation of position to reduce dropouts µ Small Learning Communities - aligning partnerships
and provide alternative education µ College Plannning workshop for all Juniors at HACC
µ Support programs in conjunction with parent college information nights
µ Future Planning Center, and dinner
µ Parent training, µ The full service community idea
µ Twilight school, µ parent cafe, life after school programs
µ PLATO programs µ More outreach to students who are chronically

absent.
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ELL Programs – Support

µ Additional Ell teachers. Ell teachers working on and the regular classroom teachers are using to
writing with students work together to help the ELL students. Like the co-
µ Allowing ELL's to remain in courses where an teaching aditional to the pull out
ELL/Spanish speaking teacher co-teaches with µ Hiring more support people who speak Spanish and
the regular ed teacher offering programs for Spanish speaking parents
µ District Coordinator for ELL µ I have seen jobs posted with the clarification that a
µ ELL instructors "slightly" increased bilingual person is preferred
µ ELL support teachers pushing in to the µ The hiring of more ELL teachers, differentiating
classrooms and reinforcing the "regular" instruction for all students, smaller class size for our
curriculum ELL children (I'm speaking for our school only),
enrichment programs and remediation programs
µ More things are translated to Spanish and we
that carry into the summer months, additional
have several bilingual staff members who help tutoring, use of technology to enhance and improve
translate and also the migrant ed person is
academic areas (colleen hovanec
bilingual, occasionally there will be translation
at evening mtgs or activities µ The increase of the number of ESL teachers has
been beneficial to the students. The ordering of new
µ Increase number of ESL teachers at the middle
teaching material that will be in alignment with the
school level. Phoenix Academy and non-
new district wide curriculum in communication arts
traditional school hours for students at risk of will be a positive change
dropping out
µ Reading curriculum that addresses ESL
µ In Washington school the communcation with
parents. The system that some ESL teachers
Staffing – Staff Development

µ Trying to keep administrators in jobs and µ Hiring of more faculty focused on the issues of urban
making sure we "home-grow" admistrators education
µ There have been one or two Latino's promoted µ Hiring within the district
to administrative positions µ Our school has sponsored a lot more "what
µ More ESL staff education can do for you" workshops. I think
they've been somewhat beneficial.
Curriculum – Teaching
µ The purchase of the literacy resources at the µ The district stayed with the same math curriculum
elementary level so that the instruction so the students saw some consistency
between schools remains consistent µ Standardized curriculum, program reorganization,
µ The use of a common districtwide curriculum newer resources for ELLs
µ The ELL teachers are now being trained to push µ Offering Spanish instruction at the elementary level.
in in the classroom and to pre-teach student's I do, however, believe that the population that
the concepts being taught in the classroom. I would be best served by this initiative would be
think this is a very good direction for District to Latino students. I strongly believe that every Latino
be moving in student should take formal instruction (not an
exploratory course) in Spanish
Miscellaneous
µ Attendance being mainly the acquistion on the language rather
µ Making ELL classes services only those than the core adacemics
students who have entered the school system µ Partnership with the community business's
in this country for the first time this year. I feel µ Recent additional funding dedicated towards
strongly, having had to learn the English community school initiatives
language myself in school, that students learn
best totally emersed in the new Language, with µ school resource officer
the academic goal for the first year or two µ Uniforms in the middle schools and elementary
schools.
218
Suggested Changes for SDOL to Implement
What changes would you suggest the administration implement over

the next five years that you believe would positively impact the
academic achievement of Latino students?
N %
CURRICULUM-SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT 28 27%
ELL-ESL – LANGUAGE 13 13%
OUTREACH TO PARENTS-FAMILIES 9 9%
COMMUNITY OUTREACH 5 5%
Curriculum-School Environment
µ I doubt if the trust could be brought back with primary language is crucial to later success. SDOL
this administration, but true open dialogue and should be willing to retain students between K-3rd or
conversation (without fear of reprisal) about 4th grade until they can read at grade level. I
common concerns and goals between the staff believe that this is the single most important factor
and administration would be a first step in determining whether or not students continue
µ Develop more vocational programs that through to graduation
address the needs of the community. Our µ early reading programs
students are directed into service jobs, hotel µ I believe that the administration should keep the
workers, food service workers, retail sales Harcourt reading series in the regular classroom and
persons. They have no real skills. Because of allow the ESL teachers to teach reading on the
this they see no value in the education. If you actual levels the students are reading on. Now we
can get the same job no matter if you graduate are forced to teach them with stories that are on
or not, what is the reason to stay in school? grade level and most of our students are not on
µ Don't let children leave the primary grades grade level. If the student is struggling with
without basic grade level skills. Remove the understanding the story, they will not be able to
chronically disruptive children from the regular learn the strategies we are trying to teach them
classrooms µ I believe we are working in the right direction.
µ make class groupings for them alone. Maybe Current programs and policies will be effective in
30% of the children consume 80% of the time
teachers' time µ Give SIOP and multicultural training to ALL content
µ they also create a stressful environment for the area teachers, have teacher aides--bilingual ones for
majority who could be learning so much more ESL teachers who don't speak Spanish
µ Continue working on that curriculum µ I don't know if this makes senses, but I think it
µ General math courses that are useful in would be helpful to use the idea of looping in the
everyday life.(banking , checking accounts ...) high school grades. Basically, a group of students
and teachers would stay together up until that class
µ Graduation Project that starts with 9th grade
graduates. This way the teachers monitor their
career portfolio, continues through a series of
specific groups of students over time and have built
planning activities over 10th and 11th grade teacher-student relationship that span the time they
and culminates in senior celebration of
are going through high school
completion
µ Implementation of Spanish version of Trophies
µ Greater emphasis on guidance and time with reading program
smaller groups and individual students. More
availability of guidance counselors and easily µ Improvements must be made with the discipline
available information for students that are policies to address the various issues related to the
trying to succeed for college prep safety and educational setting
µ Heavily decrease the classroom student size µ Less testing all of the year to more instructional
time
µ Heritage speakers should receive formal
instruction (preferably bilingual) at the k-5th µ Lower teacher to student ratio
level in their primary language. Literacy in µ more Learning Support teachers
219
Lancaster Latino Perspectives
µ Early intervention programs including phonics µ We need to open up the world to our children, more
for those students who can not read in opportunities to go on trips, any and every where,
elementary No student should leave the the post office, the market, the farm, DC, etc. The
elementary school without being able to read at children talk about the one trip they took last year
least close to grade level If that student does ALL the time, it's the only thing they remember from
not have a learning disability that keeps him last year and is an irreplaceable language experience
from being able to read, then the district must µ Place students based on ability, not age. Perhaps a
do ALL that it can to do this with meaningful placement test (in Spanish) ought to be developed
programs where teachers are experts in for this. I have students that are 7th graders age-
teaching children HOW TO READ! wise (though I teach 6th) but are at a 3rd grade
µ Establishing a Latino District-wide Advisory level academically, so having some remedial or
Committee basics courses for students with little educational
µ Smaller classes background would be nice. Then move them out into
their proper grades
µ More Latino administrators especially in OTL
µ Spanish Language classes for all students in
µ More vocational programs
elementary school
µ Non performing students be removed from
µ Smaller schools that have a community focus with
classes higher parental/community involvement.
Staffing—Staff Development
µ Free and mandatory Spanish classes for non- a stipend for being bilingual—Appreciate and
bilingual professionals employed by the district acknowledge the Latino staff who have stayed with
µ Start hiring more Latino educational leaders the District over the years
and teachers. The children need to see people µ Hire more people who speak Spanish. Many of our
like them in professional and leadership parents do not speak English. Hire ELL teachers with
positions an actual degree in ESL!
µ Continue to search for Latino/Latina teaching µ More ESL staff, continued focus on program
candidates. Open dialogue to address to hard improvement
issues of race and culture that we tend to µ More ESL support teachers/ reading support. Smaller
ignore class size
µ Hire more bilingual teachers. Offer Spanish µ More teachers that are Latino and more teachers
classes to teachers again. Offer emersion that can speak Spanish
courses for teachers to take in Puerto Rico,
Dominican Republic or Mexico µ Teacher preparation courses in language and Latino
culture expectations
µ Hire more minority teachers. Provide explicit
µ Professional development gear to the knowledge of
professional development for teachers on how
to best teach Latino students the differences in cultures. Classroom management
that teach more about positive reinforcement than
µ Hiring more bilingual staff to assist in authority. High standards that keeps in mind that
translations when needed any student can learn. We just have to be aware of
µ Hiring more people with counseling, bilingual all their needs and help them in what we can. Help
capabilities, and peer mediation strategies them how to succeed not to feel that school is a
µ I would like SDoL to offer Spanish for challenge they have to face everyday with some
Educator's. I would like to be able to teachers that really doesn't care about their future.
communicate with my parents more directly (Prof. Dev.) (High school) The prof. development I
been talking about goes also to the administrators
µ I think in the SDoL, we are way ahead of other
schools in trying to serve our students, the BIG µ Provide up-front tuition for ELL certification just like
problem is: not enough staff to serve all the the Aspiring Leaders program
needy students! We must have more µ Providing teachers with continuing education courses
professionals/para professionals working with in the area of second language acquisition. Many do
smaller groups of kids. I also think that models not understand the time it takes to become fluent
such exist in NYC, where the school community and to understand academic language
also provides education for parents, health µ however, this is not only a failure of our district, but
services etc., would be beneficial also of the people at the top level of our state. If
µ Having conversations with current professional they understood about students who are second
staff members who are Latino. Paying language users, they would not be administering the
individuals who are professional staff members PSSA as they do.
220
Lancaster Latino Perspectives
ELL-ESL – Language
µ A stronger English as a Second Language µ Intensive English for non-English speakers
program, reduce class size µ Intensive instruction for students with no English
µ Bilingual Education µ More emphasis on improving the ESL program.
µ Smaller class sizes More materials are needed as is a consistent
µ Continue to hire bilingual staff and provide instructional model across the district. Some
accommodations and strategies that are entering level ELL students receive 20 minutes a day
researched-based to help our Latino students of ESL instruction in their first year in the SDOL. This
succeed is hardly enough to help these students achieve
English language proficiency as quickly as possible
µ I believe that all English Language Learners
should be mainstreamed into school and work µ All documents in Spanish and English
one on one with a tutor or instructor to µ more intensive ESL classes
facilitate the language needs. I don't believe in µ Introduce Spanish Reading Recovery in first grade,
segregating all students because of their so that students may become literate in their native
language. I believe it's a misconception to language. This way they will have a foundation for
automatically assume that all Latino/Hispanic their second language
students have some language need
µ more communication between ESL and
µ Developing a truly comprehensive ELL regular/special education teachers.
Program
Outreach to Parents-Families
µ Creating community schools where the parents µ Parent involvement that focuses on building
of our Latino students can go and have access leadership among Latino parents, which would
to many organizations in Lancaster city. By empower them and encourage other Latino parents
doing this, we can get the parent support as to get involved
well as allowing the parents to feel invested in µ Involve the parents on a more serious level,
the schools
µ Need to get parents more involved
µ Parenting programs
µ Parent/Guaridian instruction in English language
µ Offer English classes, GED classes and parent and method to encourage uses of English outside of
involvement classes school
µ Educate the parents and community leaders µ Parent connections need to be maintained and
on the importance of homework time / study parents need to be educated on how to help their
time. Our high school students should not be children and basic parenting skills.
their parents babysitters while the parents go
out and have "a life"
Community Outreach
µ Make every school a full service community µ work more closely with Boys and Girls club leaders
school linking community social service, non- so that if a kid isn't going to school he cannot play
profits and the schools to pull resources on one of their sports teams
µ Build partnerships with the big employers of µ Get out into the community, into the churches, into
our parents to support the education of their the social clubs etc
children. I am talking about Dart, QVC, µ neighborhood meetings, visits to each school to talk
Armstrong, Donnelly etc with and listen to parents' concerns.
µ Miscellaneous
µ I think we need to set up medical services for µ The opportunities are there
our students and families, so that glasses, µ Latino students refuse to take them. The students
toothaches, etc. don't take months to remedy, need to change, not the school.
and schools become known as centers of
community activity. We need to help families
succeed on some levels, so that their kids can
succeed
µ I’m not sure. Overall, I find that our country
has enabled Latinos, and as a person of color, I
find it very offensive. Everywhere you go,
information is communicated in Spanish which
provides no incentive for Latinos to learn
English. Other people come to this country not
knowing English and have to learn it. There
should not be any entitlement privileges
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APPENDIX D – CRIME STATISTICS
ADULT MALE POPULATION - SUMMARY ARREST REPORT FOR
LANCASTER 2006/2000
TOTAL COUNTY 2006 TOTAL COUNTY 2000 CITY 2006 CITY 2000
Offense Code Total White Black Latino Total White Black Latino Total White Black Latino Total White Black Latino
PART I/CRIME INDEX OFFENSES
Violent Crime Arrests
01A-Murder & Nonnegligent Manslaughter 11 4 6 1 5 0 2 3 6 0 5 1 5 0 2 3
020-Forcible Rape 8 3 2 3 20 13 4 3 2 0 0 2 5 3 1 1
030-Robbery 84 38 26 19 81 34 20 22 24 6 10 8 35 5 12 18
040-Aggravated Assault 179 103 37 38 195 92 29 70 75 14 31 30 91 14 20 56
Percent of Total Arrests 52% 25% 22% 46% 18% 33% 19% 43% 38% 16% 26% 57%
Property Crime Arrests
050-Burglary 360 300 36 24 216 171 23 22 23 6 6 11 25 6 12 7
060-Larceny-Theft 839 564 105 168 851 571 129 139 177 91 28 57 197 84 58 51
070-Motor Vehicle Theft 47 33 6 7 71 54 6 11 5 2 1 2 9 5 1 3
090-Arson 9 7 1 1 6 6 0 0 2 0 1 1
Other Part I Offenses
01B-Manslaughter by Negligence 2 2 0 0 2 2 0 0
080-Other Assaults - Not Aggravated 1079 739 167 168 1081 733 162 179 250 63 94 92 276 67 93 115
Percent of All Arrests 68% 15% 16% 68% 15% 17% 25% 38% 37% 25% 33% 41%
Total All Part I Offense Arrests 2616 1791 386 429 2528 1676 375 449 564 182 176 204 645 186 199 254
Total Percent 68% 15% 16% 66% 15% 18% 32% 31% 36% 29% 31% 39%
PART II OFFENSES
Theft-Fraud
100-Forgery and Counterfeiting 105 53 30 22 154 131 15 7 11 5 5 1 6 3 3 0
110-Fraud 227 179 29 17 320 268 33 17 24 11 7 4 9 2 5 2
120-Embezzlement 11 5 3 2 10 9 1 0 9 3 3 2
130-Stolen Prop., Rec., Posses., Buying 117 58 26 31 118 61 24 32 41 10 8 23 31 6 11 14
Behavioral or Alcohol Related
140-Vandalism 321 236 34 50 311 216 40 54 91 32 23 36 124 43 32 49
210-Driving Under the Influence 1221 1026 61 126 1146 987 58 89 114 69 17 28 140 90 18 27
220-Liquor Law 515 439 32 38 493 394 30 68 72 30 15 27 119 56 10 53
230-Drunkenness 944 607 144 190 964 647 122 192 526 248 117 159 540 255 104 178
240-Disorderly Conduct 1563 911 281 364 1394 958 201 224 692 204 212 274 483 175 130 175
250-Vagrancy 12 5 4 3 5 5 0 0 8 1 4 3
Drug Sale/Mfg or Possession
18B-Drug Sale/Mfg 217 52 78 85 302 86 113 102 145 9 64 72 183 17 91 75
18F-Drug Possession 613 319 156 136 637 302 157 171 286 86 99 100 359 79 125 152
Other Part II Offenses
150-Weapons, Carrying, Posses, Etc. 52 20 18 14 33 22 4 6 26 4 12 10 8 1 4 3
160-Prostitution-Commercialized Vice 39 17 9 12 40 28 7 4 39 17 9 12 38 26 7 4
170-Sex Offenses (Except 02 and 160) 65 58 2 5 91 82 3 6 7 4 1 2 23 18 0 5
200-Offenses Against Family & Children 16 10 2 4 11 11 0 0 3 0 1 2
260-All Other Offenses (Except Traffic) 2521 1237 512 754 3164 1376 725 1040 1475 425 380 657 2258 611 661 971
Total All Part II Offense Arrests 8559 5232 1421 1853 9193 5583 1533 2012 3569 1158 977 1412 4321 1382 1201 1708
Total Percent 61% 17% 22% 61% 17% 22% 32% 27% 40% 32% 28% 40%
TOTAL COUNTY 2006 TOTAL COUNTY 2000 CITY - 2006 CITY - 2000
TOTAL ALL ARRESTS 11,175 7023 1,807 2,282 11,721 7259 1,908 2,461 4,133 1340 1,153 1,616 4,966 1,568 1,400 1,962
PERCENT OF ALL ARRESTS 63% 16% 20% 62% 16% 21% 32% 28% 39% 32% 28% 40%
Source: PA State Police Uniform Crime Reporting System, http://ucr.psp.state.pa.us/UCR/Reporting/RptMain.asp
ADULT FEMALE POPULATION - SUMMARY ARREST REPORT FOR
LANCASTER 2006/2000
01A-Murder & Nonnegligent Manslaughter 3 1 0 2 1 0 1 0 3 1 0 2 1 0 1 0
020-Forcible Rape 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
030-Robbery 11 7 1 3 14 6 8 0 3 1 0 2 10 2 8 0
050-Burglary 64 55 3 6 4 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
060-Larceny-Theft 494 328 84 78 445 269 95 70 153 85 30 35 156 70 50 31
090-Arson 3 3 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
01B-Manslaughter by Negligence 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total Percent 69% 14% 16% 65% 19% 14% 47% 24% 28% 43% 32% 23%
PART II OFFENSES
Theft-Fraud
110-Fraud 96 78 9 9 178 154 11 13 11 4 2 5 6 5 0 1
120-Embezzlement 13 7 3 3 6 6 0 0 5 0 2 3 0 0 0 0
140-Vandalism 78 46 16 16 68 46 12 9 40 13 12 15 32 13 10 9
220-Liquor Law 135 120 7 7 97 83 8 5 16 9 3 3 33 26 3 3
230-Drunkenness 170 111 36 22 141 102 21 14 91 44 29 17 83 48 18 13
250-Vagrancy 3 2 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
18-Drug Sale/Mfg 32 10 9 13 66 26 23 17 29 9 7 13 52 18 20 14
18-Drug Possession 90 68 16 6 88 53 22 12 39 27 8 4 50 18 20 11
160-Prostitution-Commercialized Vice 8 6 1 1 27 14 8 5 5 3 1 1 19 6 8 5
200-Offenses Against Family & Children 12 11 1 0 8 8 0 0 4 3 1 0 0 0 0 0
Total Percent 66% 16% 17% 68% 16% 15% 39% 27% 33% 43% 29% 27%
TOTAL ALL ARRESTS 3,164 2122 488 536 2,969 1998 506 441 1,160 469 310 370 1,224 526 361 323
JUVENILE MALE POPULATION - SUMMARY ARREST REPORT FOR
LANCASTER 2006/2000
01B-Manslaughter by Negligence 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1
020-Forcible Rape 4 0 2 2 3 2 0 1 4 0 2 2 1 0 0 1
030-Robbery 28 12 9 7 52 18 9 25 11 2 3 6 30 2 4 24
050-Burglary 106 71 17 17 157 109 21 27 15 2 5 7 46 14 15 17
060-Larceny-Theft 314 194 47 72 469 286 67 104 85 29 21 34 164 78 31 51
090-Arson 9 8 0 1 18 12 3 3 1 0 0 1 2 0 0 2
Total Percent 59% 17% 23% 63% 14% 22% 20% 32% 46% 33% 24% 41%
PART II OFFENSES
Theft-Fraud
110-Fraud 11 7 0 2 29 26 2 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
120-Embezzlement 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
140-Vandalism 255 172 31 48 273 214 24 35 57 6 22 27 57 20 13 24
220-Liquor Law 167 137 17 12 160 136 7 17 34 16 10 7 31 13 3 15
230-Drunkenness 10 10 0 0 14 11 3 0 0 0 0 0 5 2 3 0
250-Vagrancy 2 1 1 0 4 3 0 1
Percent of Total Arrests
18-Drug Sale/Mfg 21 2 7 12 64 19 21 24 17 0 6 11 43 5 17 21
18-Drug Possession 121 64 36 21 211 114 39 56 56 10 30 16 109 23 36 50
Curfew - Runaways
280-Curfew and Loitering Laws (Under 18) 411 165 116 127 339 176 78 81 189 15 85 89 172 31 66 74
290-Runaways 96 40 30 26 50 42 5 3 51 4 24 23 3 1 1 1
200-Offenses Against Family & Children 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total Percent 54% 21% 24% 60% 16% 24% 14% 40% 45% 21% 29% 49%
TOTAL ALL ARRESTS 3,236 1,790 648 767 3,691 2,246 566 847 1,167 179 452 527 1,386 334 388 657
JUVENILE FEMALE POPULATION - SUMMARY ARREST REPORT
FOR LANCASTER 2006/2000
030-Robbery 8 1 3 4 2 1 1 0 7 0 3 4 0 0 0 0
050-Burglary 5 3 0 2 20 10 6 4 1 0 0 1 6 0 4 2
060-Larceny-Theft 201 139 20 40 244 151 42 47 128 79 15 32 154 79 34 37
090-Arson 2 2 0 0 4 1 0 3 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 3
Percent of All Arrests 73% 14% 12% 74% 20% 7% 14% 57% 29%
Total Percent 64% 14% 21% 64% 18% 16% 46% 22% 30% 45% 26% 26%
PART II OFFENSES
Theft-Fraud
110-Fraud 6 6 0 0 14 13 0 1 0 0 0 0 3 2 0 1
120-Embezzlement 4 1 2 1 1 1 0 0 4 1 2 1 0 0 0 0
140-Vandalism 39 26 5 8 36 25 1 10 9 0 3 6 12 4 1 7
220-Liquor Law 86 78 1 5 55 47 5 3 8 4 0 4 13 6 4 3
230-Drunkenness 3 2 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
18-Drug Sale/Mfg 2 1 0 1 4 1 2 1 1 0 0 1 3 0 2 1
18-Drug Possession 17 13 2 1 36 29 6 1 0 0 0 0 9 3 6 0
Curfew - Runaways
280-Curfew and Loitering Laws (Under 18) 173 104 33 36 135 91 17 26 71 22 24 25 43 14 12 17
290-Runaways 75 67 4 3 79 68 2 8 0 0 0 0 12 3 2 7
Percent of Total Arrests 89% 5% 4% 86% 3% 10% 25% 17% 58%
Total Percent 58% 18% 23% 65% 15% 20% 18% 35% 46% 27% 31% 42%
TOTAL ALL ARRESTS 1,292 770 218 293 1,213 789 192 224 505 142 154 205 507 170 149 183

Latinos in Lancaster County: Voices, Perspectives, Myths and Realities

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Latinos in Lancaster County: Voices, Perspectives, Myths and Realities

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Latinos in Lancaster County:

Voices, Perspectives, Myths and Realities

Lancaster County Workforce Investment Board

Latinos in Lancaster County:

Alegre Research and Demographics

TABLE 1. POPULATION 1980-2006 ....................................................................................................................................................30

Latinos in Lancaster County:

Lancaster Latino Perspectives: Myths and Realities

A BRIEF HISTORY OF LATINOS IN LANCASTER COUNTY

The First Puerto Rican Farm Workers in Lancaster County

Fastest Growing Population

LANCASTER COUNTY DEMOGRAPHICS

generation families combined with the growing numbers of second, Hispanic/Latino 3% 4% 6% 7%

non-Latino population, which, historically, has been the predominant population.

It is important to note there is overwhelming anecdotal data

Table 3. LATINO POPULATION IN COUNTY SD SUBDIVISIONS (2000 CENSUS - 2005 ESTIMATES)

Hempfield 43,421 1479 3% 45,518 2,549 6% 72% 595 8%

Manheim township 33,697 932 3% 35,577 1,743 5% 87% 393 7%

Conestoga Valley 28,551 893 3% 30,295 1,909 6% 114% 342 9%

Penn Manor 37,369 724 2% 38,749 1,356 4% 87% 245 5%

Columbia borough 10,311 463 4% 10,092 918 9% 98% 187 13%

Ephrata 30,458 625 2% 31,873 892 3% 43% 148 4%

Donegal 14,859 356 2% 15,836 554 4% 56% 140 5%

Warwick 28,337 426 2% 29,883 628 2% 47% 135 3%

Eastern Lancaster County 29,212 546 2% 30,825 863 3% 58% 131 4%

Elizabethtown Area 29,437 354 1% 32,517 683 2% 93% 122 3%

Solanco 28,883 279 1% 30,059 631 2% 126% 113 3%

Cocalico 21,454 299 1% 22,293 468 2% 57% 93 3%

Lampeter-Strasburg 19966 248 1% 21749 457 2% 84% 83 3%

Manheim Central 20,674 213 1% 21,957 307 1% 44% 70 2%

Pequea Valley 19,588 171 1% 19,979 280 1% 64% 41 2%

The Latino population began settling in Lancaster County in

quantitative documentation of the increasing Dominican

Table 6. LATINO SUBGROUP GROWTH Table 5. LATINOS: URBAN VS NON-URBAN

households, or of undocumented persons being turned in to Immigration, or of non-citizen residents being

There appears to be distinct patterns of where in Lancaster County Latino

Table 7. MEDIAN HOUSEHOLD INCOME BY SD SUBDIVISIONS - (2000)

Lancaster City* 4,964 $ 22,453 $ 32,337 $ 25,891 $ 46,750

Hempfield 421 $ 27,212 $ 53,297 $ 47,219 $ 36,118

Lancaster Township 403 $ 33,616 $ 46,209 $ 33,523 $ 61,563

Conestoga Valley 260 $ 38,899 $ 47,625 $ 35,737 $ 42,874

Manheim Township 244 $ 40,000 $ 56,275 $ 51,875 $ 62,917

Ephrata 177 $ 44,152 $ 45,077 $ 33,250 $ 57,810

Penn Manor 171 $ 49,118 $ 47,759 $ 50,523 $ 34,932

Eastern Lancaster County 151 $ 43,734 $ 46,281 $ 64,799 $ 59,326

Columbia Borough 130 $ 22,625 $ 34,007 $ 22,115 $ 37,625

Warwick 108 $ 56,173 $ 49,487 $ 56,489 $ 47,780

Donegal 102 $ 45,534 $ 47,769 $ 46,276 $ 75,102

Elizabethtown Area 93 $ 31,645 $ 48,675 $ 35,363 $ 43,217

Lampeter-Strasburg 69 $ 24,650 $ 51,805 $ 40,624 $ 37,886

Solanco 67 $ 50,352 $ 45,175 $ 26,030 $ 88,926

Cocalico 64 $ 54,219 $ 50,462 $ 42,661 $ 55,457

Manheim Central 58 $ 33,462 $ 47,156 $ 48,193 $ 64,441

Pequea Valley 45 $ 31,934 $ 42,776 $ 55,605 $ 45,142

Octorara 8 $ 46,250 $ 51,616 $ 64,650 $ 75,487

have settled here.

selection of specific racial categories regardless of actual racial

standard racial categories, either answer the race questions at all.”6

While more than three- linguistically diverse Latino

ECONOMIC, EMPLOYMENT, AND HOUSING STATUS

º Because of the economy in Puerto Rico, there are a lot of professionals

Single Mothers and “Making It”

HOUSEHOLDS, INCOME AND ECONOMIC STATUS

Table 11. INCOME ESTIMATES 2005 11%

Table 13. HOUSEHOLD TYPES 2005

An examination of the sources of income supporting households

Table 14. AGGREGATE HOUSEHOLD INCOME