Pave Academy Charter School in Red Hook has been supporting its new migrant families in many different ways.
There are 10 new migrant families there with kids in grades ranging from from kindergarten to eighth grade who arrived at the school in October and November. Idalia Herrera, the family and community engagement manager, is the go-to person for the migrants for any assistance they might need.
“Sometimes they ask for academic help, sometimes they ask for free food, maybe they received a document in English that they don’t understand so we will help them with translation,” Herrera said. “Whatever they need help with, we try our best to support them.”
The migrants feel comfortable coming to Herrera and talking to her about what they need help with because she speaks Spanish.
She has given the families a list of pantries in Red Hook and also in Sunset Park so they have information for where they can get free food or other items they need.
“We support them with finding community resources,” Herrera said. “If I hear of any job fairs that they might be interested in, I would forward that information to them.”
The families ended up at Pave by word of mouth and because it was close by to where many of them are staying.
A lot of the families were placed in shelters in Red Hook and also in Sunset Park. They then began the process of searching for a school.
“Once they were placed here (at shelters) they were looking for a school for their students and being that we are close by, they came to our school to inquire about open seats for their children,” Herrera said.
There is a shelter on Hamilton Avenue where families are staying.
Clothing drive
In an effort to make sure that the migrants had everything they needed, Pave Academy organized a clothing drive in November in the cafeteria over a two day span.
It was a community effort with Pave parents that made it happen.
“I was the one who organized the clothing drive,” Herrera said. “I sent out communication to our families from Pave and they brought in tons of clothes. I did not have to go outside of Pave to get items for our students.”
The families were allowed to take as many clothes and other items as they wanted because they had so much to give away. The drive was initially designed for the migrants but was opened up to everyone else since so much was donated.
It was organized in the cafeteria by boys and girls clothes, clothes for men and women, a baby section, a section for Pave school uniforms and then there was a section for accessories like purses and shoes.
There were shirts, pants, winter jackets, backpacks, sneakers, and MetroCards given away for the children and parents. Families left with bags of clothes and other items.
“I let them know ahead of time that we would be in the cafeteria and to make sure to stop by and grab whatever you need for yourself but also for your families,” Herrera said.
They gave the leftover clothes that they did not donate to New Leader Hoops, which is dedicated to serving the youth through basketball, education and community.
There is a buddy system where migrant students are partnered with a student in the classroom that knows both Spanish and English.
“We have them sit together so they can have somebody their age they can feel comfortable with and connect with,” Herrera said. “If they have any questions besides asking their teachers and Mr. Blandi they can also have their partner help them as well, or support them.”
Mr. Blandi is a English as a New Language teacher who works with the migrant students. He has them in smaller groups and supports them with academics and language.
In selecting a buddy for the migrant the teacher chooses a student who is comfortable communicating in Spanish since the migrants didn’t know English before arriving at the school.
“Also, somebody that is friendly and will make the migrant kids feel comfortable in the classroom,” Herrera said.
The buddy system has been helpful outside of just helping to adapt in the classroom since they’ve been able to connect on a personal level.
“A lot of these children end up establishing a friendship with their buddies,” Herrera said. “You will see them outside playing together and they gravitate towards people they feel comfortable with.”
Using tablet devices
Another part of the English as new language program is the use of tablets to help adapt. Since the migrants are learning English, the tablets are provided as a tool to help with translation with their school work.
The teachers will help the students with translating but if they aren’t able to the migrants can use the tablets to better understand what their work is to help them be successful.
“We are setting them up for success so that is why we provide the technology, the buddy system and the smaller groups so they can feel successful and comfortable at Pave,” Herrera said.
Herrera sits with the families and explains the enrollment process when the families originally came to the school last October.
After the application, registration required submitting documents.
These included a copy of the birth certificate, immunization records and a copy of ID or passport. She works to get those documents on SchoolMint.
An evaluation process after the student was enrolled made sure they were put in the right class, got the support they needed and deans would also determine if they needed to repeat a grade or not.
“Once we have them registered and their documents are uploaded, I then speak to the principal to see which classrooms have space in them,” Herrera said. “They will tell me where to place them. Once I have a placement I think of a start date for them.”
Food Bazaar gift cards
Another way Pave has helped out the students was by giving supermarket gift cards to Food Bazaar during the holidays.
Pave has helped families get to the building who have had their situations disrupted.
There have been time limits on how long a family can be in a shelter. Pave helped a family with transportation who could not find a way to get their child to school after being relocated from Brooklyn to a hotel in Manhattan.
“We provided her with an Uber gift card to help get the child to and from Pave to make sure she was attending school and not missing,” Herrera said.
Another practical way they help is that Metrocards are given to kids who do not live in the neighborhood so they can get to school everyday.
She has a good relationship with all the families and will call them when she needs to check in with them or send them information.
“As a school we send them emails and phone calls but me personally, not only do I send communication via the platform we usually use for the school, but I also have my families on WhatsApp,” Herrera said.
If a child does not show up to school on a given day then she will check in and ask if everything is okay or if anything is needed.
In addition to communicating by calling, texting and emailing, she talks to the families in person to provide help and support.
Red Hook local
Herrera, who lives in Red Hook, has been the family and community engagement manager since February, 2023.
She was a pre-K and kindergarten teacher at Pave back in 2017 and is happy to be back at the school.
“I came back when I saw this position was open and thought it would be a great fit,” Herrera said.
She has enjoyed reconnecting with families and staff and hearing about the progress of her pre-k and kindergarten students who are now in fifth and sixth grade.
Besides helping the migrants, her role is wide ranging as it includes all school communication to the families. She emails and calls the families about events.
She is in charge of the monthly newsletter, the school’s social media and supports with recruitment, orientation and enrollment. She organizes events like back to school night & picture day.
