Exploring the Impact of Love, Education, Respect, and Diversity on Immigrant Communities in North Carolina

• In Event: Family-School Connections With Immigrant and Multilingual Communities

Abstract

This multi-year longitudinal study documents the ways in which one community non-profit organization in North Carolina supports the growth and development of newly arrived immigrants from Southeast Asia, Central America, and Africa. Specifically, the study explores the ways that this organization supports immigrant children using Love, Education, Respect, and Diversity (LERD) as the framework for their afterschool program. Using quantitative and qualitative data, this study examines the experiences of 150 English Learners (ELs) kindergarten through eighth grade who participated in this program over a period of two years. Quantitative and qualitative data show how this community-based organization served as a critical social space for immigrants in Charlotte and supported the academic, language, and socio-emotional growth of English Learners.

Authors

• Lan Quach Kolano, University of North Carolina - Charlotte

• Chuang Wang, University of Macau

• Kathryn Wagner, University of North Carolina - Charlotte