Crossing Borders: Berkeley Immigration Conference Seeks Education Journalist Fellows

If you’ve been on the education beat long enough, you’ve probably gotten one of those angry phone calls: Student achievement would be just fine if those immigrant kids weren’t taking over the schools and draining the resources.

Children of immigrants make easy scapegoats for lackluster progress by public schools. But as educators–and education reporters, writers and editors–know, the reality is much more complicated.

Immigration and education issues are intrinsically linked. Districts are struggling to deliver appropriate instruction to English language learners. At the same time, many of those children (and their families) need support services beyond what a school alone is able to provide.

Before the economy took over the entire stove, immigration policy --particularly related to public education and college access--had been a front-burner issue. The issues, including the controversial DREAM Act, are likely to return as the federal election cycle speeds up. This is a good time to start preparing for the heated debates ahead.

If you are a professional print, online or broadcast journalist who writes about immigration issues as part of your beat, you might consider applying for a five-day institute being held this fall at the University of California, Berkeley. “The Changing Face of America: Immigration from the Ground Up” will look at how the issue affects all areas of society, including healthcare, law enforcement, the economy and, yes, education.

The institute is a collaborative effort by the Graduate School of Journalism and the Warren Institute at Berkeley Law. Selected applicants, to be designated as New York Times Fellows, will hear from experts and scholars in a wide range of fields, as well as from immigrants who will discuss their own experiences. The goal of the event, says the Journalism Institute’s Royze Adolfo, is for participants to “come away with well-balanced perspectives, new sources, essential reporting tools, and innovative story ideas to deepen their coverage and to share with their newsroom.”

The application deadline is Aug. 22 and the institute will be held at Berkeley Nov. 13-17, 2011. Lodging and meals will be provided, and some need-based assistance is available to help defray travel costs. If you have a specific question about the institute or the application, you can also email Royze Adolfo at radolfo@law.berkely.edu.

This looks like a terrific opportunity, and not just because you'll have a chance to stop by one of my favorite former haunts. Let me know if you are selected for the institute -- we'll want to hear your full report.

Have a question, comment or confidential concern for the EWA's Educated Reporter? Drop me a line at erichmond@ewa.org. I’m also on Twitter @EWAEmily.