Dropout Prevention: How Migrant Education Supports Mexican Youth

This article discusses the school performance of Mexican-descent migrant students in an ethnically diverse California high school. Despite their high risk for school failure, the migrant students persevere in school in significantly higher numbers than nonmigrant Mexican classmates. We examine how the federally funded Migrant Education Program and its staff facilitate student engagement by creating caring relationships with students, providing them with access to institutional support, and implementing activities that build from and serve to validate students' home cultures. Together these foster a sense of belonging and community that lead students to persist in school despite the many obstacles they face.