‘We Are Happy to Help Them': Migrant Influx Leads to Surge in Student Enrollment at Miami-Dade Schools

If ever there was a school district that knows how to handle a surge of immigrant students, it’s Miami-Dade County Public Schools. What’s happening now — with more than 13,000 immigrant kids having enrolled since October — is nothing new here. 

To take one school as an example, Milam K-8 in Hialeah has accepted 29 immigrant enrollees since the school year started, each of them learning English as they go. 

“It’s definitely a challenge because the students come in with a lot of needs," said the school’s principal, Anna Hernandez. "We are happy to help them, I think that we are in a position to help them."

“We are very much alert to where they’re going in order for us to provide support for the school, for the teachers and anything those students may need, and their families, by the way,” said Superintendent Dr. Jose Dotres.

More than half of the new arrivals are from Cuba, with other large groups coming from Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Haiti. Dotres says it’s not a crisis — the schools have room. 

“Right now we are in a good position to support them because the numbers are not that significant,” Dotres explained. 

“So many of these students are coming with issues like not having affordable housing, not having internet, not having computers — those are all areas we can help them with,” Hernandez said, pointing out the school provides them uniforms and basic supplies. 

The district also can help with another need: mental health support. 

“A lot of these kids are coming with trauma," Hernandez said. "They have crossed the border, they have very negative experiences that have been scary to them. They’re little kids, but definitely, we have an incredible counseling team."

Helping immigrant kids adjust to a new culture and country is personal for Dotres. 

“I, myself, immigrated to this country at the age of 5, went to Citrus Grove Elementary, and so I see in these students myself,” Dotres said.