Nearly 1 in 4 students at this L.A. high school migrated from Central America — many without their parents
Cindy Carcamo of the Los Angeles Times reports on developments at Belmont High School in Los Angeles.
Many of Belmont’s students work full shifts at night before a day in school — sewing clothes, cooking in restaurants, painting homes. Many are immigrants from Central America, including many who arrived as children in the U.S. in the past five years without parents, often after perilous journeys.
At High, nearly 1 in 4 of the school’s estimated 1,000 students came from Central America — many of them as unaccompanied minors. They crossed the border to reunite with mothers and fathers or to find refuge from unprecedented gang violence at home. Some dare to dream they will find success in America. Belmont Principal Kristen McGregor said it has forced the school to reimagine its role in its students’ lives.
KJ