Working with Immigrant Youth

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Working with Immigrant Youth

• What you need to know

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Immigrants in Iowa
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Where are they from

• Latin America
• Southeast Asia (Hmong, Vietnamese, etc.)
• East Asia (Chinese, etc.)
• Former Soviet Union (Russia, Ukraine, Georgia,
  etc.)
• Former Yugoslavia (Bosnia, etc.)
• Ultra-Orthodox Jewish (Israel and East Coast)
• African (Sudan, Somalia, etc.)
• South Pacific (Marshall Islanders)
• And many more!
• (M. Grey, personal communication, October 5, 2006)

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Latin Americans

• The largest immigrant population in Iowa, and
  largest minority in Iowa.
• 2000 Hispanic population in Iowa 82,473
• Iowa ranked 11th in Hispanic growth
• 2005 Census Estimate 108,968
• 66 of Iowas population growth 2000-2005
• (M. Grey, personal communication, October 5,
  2006)

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Hispanic Income and Poverty in Iowa

• A Hispanic person working full time in 1999 made
  22,380 while a White person made 29,379 or 24
  more than Hispanics
• 23 of families with children 17 and younger
  lived below poverty level
• 47 of Hispanics families living in poverty are
  headed by single females
• (M. Grey, personal communication, October 5,
  2006)

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What to Consider

• Language
• Early Adult Role Taking
• Is my language wrong
• Strong Cultural Ties
• Loss of Identity
• No Positive Connection with American Culture
• Strong Family Ties
• Parent-Child Disconnect
• Change of Format
• (Chapman, 2005) (James, 1997)

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What to Do

• Be Patient
• Be Considerate
• Be Respectful
• Take Action!

(K. Dusanek, personal communication, October 20,
2006)
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Programs that Worked
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Ridgedale YMCA

• Minnetonka Heights Community Enhancement Program
• Housing Complex
• 25 Immigrant
• Educate
• Immigrant parents speak to youth and share
  cultural activities
• American traditions shared by complex
  (Thanksgiving meal)

(Robinson, J. , 2006)
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Huntington Valley Boys and Girls Club

• Twilight School
• Immigrant youth participate in culture sharing
  activities
• Immigrant parents learn English
• All Free
• Transportation Provided

(Portier-LaLumiere, L., 2006)
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Other Suggested Programs

• Family Forums
• Mentor Programs
• Adolescents demand to be taken as a whole
  people. They resent being categorized, diagnosed,
  and placed in special classes or groups. They
  want to deal with not only the personal troubles
  that have been highlighted by adults but also
  with normative issues that they find troubling
  challenging, or simply interesting. And they want
  to have fun (Malekoff, 1997, pg.21).
• Connect youth with groups that fit their
  interests

(Yeh, 2005)
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References

• Chapman, M. Perreira, K. (2005). The Well-Being
  of Latino Youth A Framework to Inform Practice.
  Families in Society The Journal of Contemporary
  Social Services , 86(1), 104-111.
• James, D. (1997). Coping with a new society the
  unique psychosocial problems of immigrant youth.
  Journal of School and Health, 67(3), 98-103.
• Malekoff, A. (1997) Group work with adolescents.
  New York, NY Guilford Press.
• Portier-LaLumiere, L. (2006) By educating the
  parents, along with their children, youre giving
  the kids a much stronger support system. Youth
  Worker News
• Robinson, J. (2006) This program has revolved
  around building trust, education and recognition
  of the many talents all cultures have to share.
  Youth Worker News.
• Yeh, C. Ma, P. Madan-Bahel, A. Hunter, C.
  Jung, S. Kim, A. Akitaya, K. Sasaki, K.
  (2005). The cultural negotiations of Korean
  immigrant youth. Journal of Counseling and
  Development, 83(2), 172-183.