Title I, Part C - Migrant Education Program (MEP) Identification and Recruitment (ID&R)

101

Title I ConferenceJune 18, 19 & 20, 2013

Presenters:John Wight, State Program ManagerBernardo Sánchez-Vesga, State Identification and Recruitment Coordinator

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Objectives

• To understand the elements of the Title I, Part C – Migrant Education Program (MEP) in Georgia

• To learn the legal authorities for MEP eligibility

• To understand MEP eligibility factors

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MEP History

1960 “Harvest of Shame” www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7087479n

1965 President Lyndon Johnson “Great Society Initiative”

1966 Migrant Education Program included in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act

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Georgia’s Responsibility

The Georgia Department of Education is the direct recipient of Title I, Part C funds and is, therefore, responsible for ensuring the appropriate and best use of funds.

To ensure the appropriate and best use of funds, the state follows its comprehensive Service Delivery Plan for implementing all aspects of the MEP.

Supplemental Program

The MEP is entirely a supplemental program, meaning that funds can be used only to supplement, but in no case supplant, State, local or other non-federal funds.

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MEP Funds in Georgia

• Direct funded districts – Local educational agencies (LEAs) with a migrant eligible

child population generating more than $15,000 in formula-based migrant funds

• Consortium districts– LEAs with a migrant eligible child population generating

less than $15,000• Three regional GaDOE Migrant Education offices, statewide,

provide LEAs and staff with program implementation support

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Special Educational Needs of Migrant Children and Youth

• Gaps in learning resulting from repeated moves

• Credit accrual• Continuity of education from state-to-state

and district-to-district• Language barriers• Emergency health and medical issues

impacting academic performance

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Priority for Service• Program requirement

– Identify student needs– Identify those failing or most at-risk of failing– Identify those with repeated moves as well as

failing– Create supplemental support based on the needs

of the individuals

• Provide services to those migrant students first, and then to other migrant students

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Types of MEP Supplemental Services

• Classroom support – inclusion and pull-out• After school, intersession, and summer

programs• Tutoring, including home tutoring• English language acquisition assistance• College and career preparation• Health services (when they impact academic

achievement)

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Migrant Education Program Unique Feature

• Before a migrant child may be served or counted for funding in the program, his or her eligibility must be documented on a Certificate of Eligibility (COE). These COEs are completed through face-to-face interviews performed by trained and qualified LEA and state staff, and they are certified by the state.

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Implication

• Only trained, authorized personnel are permitted to identify and recruit migrant students.

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South Georgia

North Georgia

North Georgia

Child EligibilityChildren are eligible to receive MEP services if they meet the definition of “migratory child” and if the basis for their eligibility is properly recorded on a certificate of eligibility (COE).

Legal Authorities for MEP Eligibility

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Legal Authorities for MEP Eligibility

Section 1309(2)Defines a “migratory child”

Section 1115(b)(1)(A)Defines “eligible children”

Statute

Section 200.81(a) – (k) Defines several key eligibility terms such as “migratory agricultural worker,” “migratory fisher,” “migratory child”, “in order to obtain,” “move,” “temporary employment,” “seasonal employment,” and “personal subsistence”

Regulations

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Eligibility FactorsAGE

SCHOOL COMPLETION

*MOVE

*IN ORDER TO OBTAIN

*QUALIFYING WORK

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AGE:The child is younger than 22 years of age.

SCHOOL COMPLETION: The child is eligible for a free public education (no HS diploma or GED).

*MOVE:The child and worker “moved.”

*IN ORDER TO OBTAIN: One purpose of the worker’s move was to seek

or obtain “qualifying work.”

*QUALIFYING WORK:Temporary or seasonal employment in agricultural or fishing work.

Eligibility Factors

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The child and worker “moved”

Change of residence

From one school

district to another

With orto join the worker, or on own as

worker

For economic necessity

Within the past 36 months

AND

AND

AND

AND

Move

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Move “due to economic necessity”

• The worker moved either because he or she could not afford to stay in the current location or went to a new location in order to earn a living.

• The worker’s move is related to work.

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What is the definition of a “residence”?

• A place where one lives and not just visits. In certain circumstances, boats, vehicles, tents, trailers, etc., may serve as a residence.

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“change from one residence to another residence”

a person, who goes to a new place because theperson cannot afford to stay in his or her currentlocation, has “changed from one residence toanother residence” if the person makes a returnmove to obtain qualifying work

Similarly:

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“change from one residence to another residence” Cont..

a person who goes to a new place to help sick or elderly family members on an extended basis is living with those family members, and thus might meet the MEP’s change of residence requirement if the person makes a return move to obtain qualifying work.

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A person would not have “changed residence” upon returning home from one of these visits

A person who leaves, on a short-term basis, theplace where he or she lives to:(1)visit family or friends, (2)attend a wedding or other event, (3)take a vacation, (4) have an educational or recreational

experience, or (5)take care of a legal matter

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Work during a vacation

• Is not qualifying, but…. there might be cultural differences in how people describe the reason for their relocation and, therefore, it is recommended that the recruiter question the worker carefully to determine what is meant when the worker asserts that his or her family is going on or returning from a vacation during which family members worked.

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One purpose of the move was to seek or obtain qualifying work

To obtain qualifying work

and obtained qualifying work

To obtain any employment and

obtained qualifying work soon after the

move

Specifically to obtain qualifying work, but did not obtain the work soon after

the move

OR

OR

Other credible evidence that worker sought

the work

Prior history to obtain

qualifying work

AND

OR

In order to obtain

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Other credible evidence to qualify under “seeking”

• Information obtained from conversations with an employer, crew chief, employment agency, or credible third party that indicates that the worker sought the qualifying work;

• Documentation of a natural disaster

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In order to obtain

ANY employment

Specifically non-qualifying

work

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Any employment…..

• If the worker indicates that he or she was looking for a specific type of non-qualifying work, e.g., construction, the recruiter may ask whether the worker would have moved to the area to take any kind of work, if construction work was not available. If the answer is “yes,” and the worker obtained qualifying work, the recruiter can presume that obtaining qualifying work was one purpose of the move.

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Does the fact that a worker and child moved to relocate permanently affect the child’s eligibility for the MEP?

• No. The fact that a worker moved to permanently relocate does not matter so long as (1) another purpose of the worker’s move was to obtain either qualifying work or any employment (not to include a move specifically for non-qualifying work), (2) the worker obtained qualifying work soon after the move, and (3) all other conditions of a qualifying move were met.

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Are H-2A temporary agricultural workers eligible for the MEP?

Yes, if they meet all requirements. Visa status does not foil eligibility.

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Qualifying work is…

*Seasonal Employment

*Temporary Employment

*Fishing Work

*Agricultural Work

OR OR

AND

Qualifying Work

AND

For Wages

For Personal Subsistence

OR

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Seasonal Employment

Occurs only during a

certain part of the year

because of the cycles of nature

May not be continuous or

carried on throughout

the year

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Temporary Employment• Employment that lasts for a limited period of time,

usually a few months, but no longer than 12 months. It is determined based on…

1. EMPLOYER’S STATEMENT – e.g., the employer hires the

worker for October, November, and December to

prepare for the holiday season.

2. WORKER’S STATEMENT – e.g., the worker states that he plans to leave the job after a period of four

months.

3. SEA DOCUMENTATION

– The SEA has determined that,

despite the apparent permanency of work

at a particular worksite, virtually

none of the workers (>90%) remain

employed for more than 12 months.

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Temporary Employment

Indefinitely Less than 12 months

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Agricultural Work

Productionor Initial

ProcessingDairy

Products

TreesCrops

Poultry

Livestock

OR

Cultivation or

Harvesting

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Agricultural Work

“Agricultural work” is: 1. The production or initial processing of crops,

dairy products, poultry, or livestock, as well as 2. The cultivation or harvesting of trees,

that is—3. Performed for wages or personal subsistence.

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Initial Processing

Means working with a raw agricultural or fishingproduct before the raw material turns into amore refine product.

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Is work such as gathering decorative greens considered agricultural work?

• Yes. The term “plants” includes decorative greens or ferns grown for the purpose of floral arrangements, wreaths, etc.

• Excludes the collection of these greens for recreation or personal use

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What is livestock?

• any animal produced or kept primarily for breeding or slaughter purposes

• livestock does not include animals that are raised for sport, recreation, research, service, or pets.

• livestock does not include animals hunted or captured in the wild.

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Are animals such as deer, ostrich, and bison raised on farms considered “livestock”?

• Yes, so long as these animals, sometimes referred to as specialty or alternative livestock, are raised for breeding or slaughter purposes and not for sport or recreation.

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Cultivation or Harvesting of Trees

• In the context of trees, “cultivation” refers to work that promotes the growth of trees for wood production.

• Examples: soil preparation; plowing or fertilizing land; sorting seedlings; planting seedlings; transplanting; staking; watering; removing diseased or undesirable trees; applying insecticides; shearing tops and limbs; and tending, pruning, or trimming trees.

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Harvesting of trees

• For the purposes of the MEP, “harvesting” refers to the act of gathering or taking of the trees for wood production.

• Qualifying activities are; topping, felling, and skidding• Non-qualifying activities are: clearing trees in

preparation for construction; trimming trees around electric power lines; and cutting logs for firewood.

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May a worker who is “self-employed” qualify as a migratory agricultural worker?

• In some circumstances, workers, such as those who pick up leftover crops from fields, might consider themselves “self employed”.

• The money such workers earn from the sale of the product is equivalent to “wages”.

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Fishing Work

Catching or initial

processing

Fish

Shellfish

Raising or harvesting

at fish farms

Fish

ShellfishOR

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What is a “fish farm”?

• A tract of water, such as a pond, a floating net pen, a tank, or a channel reserved for the raising or harvesting of fish or shellfish

• Qualifying activities include, but are not limited to; raising, feeding, grading, collecting, and sorting of fish, removing dead or dying fish from tanks or pens, and constructing nets, long-lines, and cages.

• Catching fish or shellfish, for recreational or sport purposes, are no qualifying activities.

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Eligibility FactorsAGE:

The child is younger than 22 years of age.

SCHOOL COMPLETION: The child is eligible for a free public education (no HS diploma or GED).

*MOVE:The child and worker “moved.”

*IN ORDER TO OBTAIN: One purpose of the worker’s move was to seek

or obtain “qualifying work.”

*QUALIFYING WORK:Temporary or seasonal employment in agricultural or fishing work.

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Scenario• In Toombs County, a family with two children,

ages 11 and 4, moved ten miles down the road last month to pick blueberries at another farm. The children changed schools, but they remained in the same school district. This is the family’s only means of income. Are the children eligible for the MEP?

Scenario Answer Age School Completion Move

Time of move Purpose

Agricultural/FishingTemporary/SeasonalEconomic Necessity

- ages 11 and 4

- no HS diploma or GED

- Moved w/in the district, not across SD boundaries

- last month (w/in 36 months)

- in order to seek or obtain qualifying work (i.e., work in a crop harvest)

- agricultural

- seasonal

- Help family to earn a living

NOT ELIGIBLE

Scenario• Ana Maria, age 21, worked at a processing plant in

Arkansas. Her friends told her that the Tyson plant in Georgia was hiring temporary workers. Ana Maria moved to Gainesville, GA in October 2010 and worked at the Tyson plant for three months cutting chicken legs. This was her only means of income at that time; today she works at a restaurant. Assuming that Ana has not graduated from high school and does not have her GED, is she eligible for the MEP?

Scenario Answer Age School Completion Move Time of move Purpose

Agricultural/FishingTemporary/Seasonal Economic Necessity

- age 21

- no HS Diploma or GED

- Arkansas to Georgia (across SD lines)

- October 2010 (w/in 36 months)

- in order to seek or obtain qualifying work (i.e., cutting meat)

- agricultural processing work

-temporary (3-month period)

- Earn a living

ELIGIBLE

Contact Information

John Wightjwight@doe.k12.ga.us

Bernardo Sanchez-Vesgabsanchez@doe.k12.ga.us

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