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CREATING A CULTURE OF SUPPORT
FOR UNDOCUMENTED STUDENTS IN
YOUR HIGH SCHOOL COMMUNITY

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Jane Slater- Sequoia High School, Redwood City
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Itzel Díaz- Sequoia High School, Redwood City
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María Fernández- John W. Gardner Center for Youth and their Communities, Stanford University
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Sheryl Muñoz-Bergman- International Institute of the Bay Area

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Connecting with your undocumented population
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Differentiating students’ views of their documentation status
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Recognizing your school’s culture with respect to undocumented students
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Creating a supportive school culture
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Starting a club
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Fundraising
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Partnering with community groups

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Range of time in country
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Family members with different status
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Estimated numbers of undocumented people by county:
47,298 in San
Mateo County
11,769 in Marin
County
39,045 in San
Francisco
102,268 in
Alameda
County
146,208 in Santa
Clara County
58,663 in Contra
Costa County
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Assume that there is at least one undocumented student in each of your classes

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Students’ understanding varies:
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Those who know status and advocate for selves
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Those who don’t know…find out filling out FAFSA or other applications
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Those whose parents want them to hide it
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Those who see no hope & have given up
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Those who just think things will work out

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What Staff Should See and Hear
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What Students See and Hear
Positive
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Staff publicly addresses issue
DREAM club
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Available resources
Staff attempting to speak students’ native language
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Negative
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The issue is avoided
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Negative comments
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Staff lacks knowledge
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Topics related to undocumented students on staff meeting agendas
Student presentations to staff
Legal expert visits/ guest speakers
Visible info for AB540 students
Posted scholarships not requiring
SSN (Naviance)
Go-to people on staff. Public allies you can send students to.
Public conversations (with students & staff) about different immigration status
Respect for confidentiality

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6.
7.
4.
5.
1.
2.
3.
Get the students there
Enlist staff allies
Have specific projects to work on (short term goal momentum)
Develop long-term goals
Develop students’ leadership abilities within the club
Publicize
Connect to community resources

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Sequoia High School Dream Club:
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Invite students personally
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Include documented students
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Encourage members to bring friend(s)
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Present to classes
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Announce in daily bulletin
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Collaborate with counselors

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Sequoia High School Dream Club:
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Gain administration support
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Present yourself as a resource to staff on these issues
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Use your personal connections on staff
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Connect with staff who can share their knowledge, time & resources

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Sequoia High School Dream Club:
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Annual Event
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Presentations at Middle Schools
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Presentations to parents
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Participation at community events
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San Mateo County Youth Conference, Teens In Action
Community Showcase
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Fundraising for Scholarships
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Political Activism
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Rally in support of Dream Act, postcard campaign on Back To
School Night

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Sequoia High School Dream Club:
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Posters
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Yearbook page
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T-shirts
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School newspaper
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San Mateo Daily Journal
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Staff presentations
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Facebook

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Host events
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Sell products
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Wedding/birthday gifts
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Church Groups
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Work with other school groups
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Ask for donations from staff and personal network

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Immigrant Youth Action
Team
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Sequoia High School
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Redwood City 2020
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Redwood City Public
Library
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Fair Oaks Community
Center
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Boys and Girls Club of the
Peninsula
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International Institute of the
Bay Area
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Cañada College student group and Upward Bound
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Peninsula Conflict
Resolution Center
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Sequoia District Migrant
Youth Program
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Alumni

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Partners and supporters who share your mission, work with same population, and can spread your message
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More resources (financial and in-kind) to help grow and expand your current efforts
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A greater network of individual allies, mentors and partners who build meaningful relationships and experiences with undocumented youth

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Who in your community shares your mission or serves undocumented youth in some way?
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What are they already doing that can contribute to your efforts?
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When can you get together and learn about each others’ work and learn how you can both benefit?
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Where can these partners experience what you’re doing and see the impact their potential contribution can make?
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How will you make concrete commitments for working together?

The Community Youth Development
Initiative’s
Immigrant Youth Action Team
Presents/ Presenta :
Making Dreams Come
True:
The Time is Now!
Logrando hacer sueños realidad:
Hoy es el momento!
11.18.11
Sequoia High School
Redwood City, CA

Who We Are
Formed in the summer of 2010, the Immigrant Youth Action Team is comprised of youth and adults working to increase the visibility, actions of, and resources for our immigrant youth.
This team is part of Redwood City 2020’s Community Youth Development
Initiative, a collaboration of nearly 40 organizations that work to support the children, youth and families of the Redwood City and North Fair Oaks community. We invite you to join us!
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Quienes Somos
Formado en el verano del 2010, el Equipo de Acción de la Juventud
Inmigrante está compuesto de jóvenes y adultos que trabajan para aumentar la visibilidad, las acciones, y los recursos para nuestros jóvenes inmigrantes.
Este equipo forma parte de la Iniciativa para el Desarrollo Comunitario y
Juvenil de Redwood City 2020, una colaboración de casi 40 organizaciones que trabajan para apoyar a los niños, jóvenes y familias en la comunidad de Redwood City y North Fair Oaks. Los invitamos a que nos acompañen.
Join is in these activities as you arrive!
Acompáñenos en estas actividades al llegar
•Dream Wall / Pared de Sueños
•Resource Table / Mesa de Recursos
•Sequoia Dream Club Table/Mesa de Sequoia Dream Club
Student Photo Silent Auction / Subasta de fotografías
•elaboradas por los estudiantes
•Buy your raffle tickets/ Compre boletos de rifa
•Dinner! / Cena!
Program/Programa
6:00 – 6:30 pm Arrival, Activities, Dinner and Raffle Ticket Sale
Llegada, Actividades, Cena y Compra de Boletos de Rifa
6:30 – 7:00 pm Welcome and Purpose
Bienvenida y Propósito
Itzel Díaz & Lilly Campos
Special Message/ Mensaje Especial
Alicia Aguirre, Vice Mayor/Vice Alcalde, Redwood City
Recognition/ Reconocimiento
Gabriel Arteaga, Congresswoman Anna Eshoo’s Office
About/ Acerca del: Sequoia Dream Club
Roberto Pablo Pimienta
7:00 – 8:00 pm Dramatic Re-enactments / Obras Dramaticas
Names of youth actors here?
Personal Stories / Historias Personales
Yaritza, Yessica, and Jesús
Digital Stories / Historias Digitales
Valeria, Alexis, Rossmeri, Itzel, Javier
8:00 – 8:10 pm How You Can Support/ Como Puede Apoyarnos
Jane Slater, Dream Club Scholarship Founder,
Fundadora de la Beca Dream Club
Magali Molina, Becario Anterior
8:10 – 8:20 pm Acknowledgements and Raffle!
Reconocimientos y Rifa!
8:20 – 8:30 pm Closing /Cierre
We invite you to take information from the resource table home with you.
Los invitamos a que lleven la información de la mesa de recursos a casa.

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What can you do as part of your every day behaviors to make all students feel safe?
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Think of one undocumented student with whom you work. What is one concrete thing you can do as his or her ally to show your support?

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Jane Slater- Sequoia High School, Redwood City jslater@seq.org
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Itzel Díaz- Sequoia High School, Redwood City idiazbuild09@gmail.com
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María Fernández- John W. Gardner Center for Youth and their Communities, Stanford University mafernandez@stanford.edu
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Sheryl Muñoz-Bergman- International Institute of the
Bay Area smbergman@iibayarea.org
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Websites: http://www.rwc2020.org/ http://gardnercenter.stanford.edu/ http://www.iibayarea.org/