Immigration Issues Hit Home

We learned at last night's TST BOCES meeting that ESL numbers in our adult ed programs have dropped precipitously, because people are afraid that showing up for classes puts them in jeopardy. The refugees we had counted on getting are stalled, mostly back in their home countries or in camps somewhere. Meanwhile, the state, via rulings from the feds, has decided that to get $ for ESL, we must be training people for particular jobs in the workforce. In Ithaca, at least, many ESL students are grad-student spouses or relatives of visiting professors—people who do not have work visas but hope to learn the language to be able to survive grocery shopping and parent-teacher meetings.