News at the School of Government
Christie Hinson, Project Director for the NC Civic Education Consortium, addresses young people from Project Levante as they begin a campus tour of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Project Levante Develops Active Citizens
small Grant funds civic engagement program for immigrant youth
“As a kid, I was always into science and physics,” says Raul Arce. His goal was to be an astronaut, astronomer, or astrophysicist. His academic ability earned him an interview with a recruiter from MIT. But now, Arce says, “I realize that teaching is one of the best ways I can help my community.” He will start college at NC State University in the fall with the goal of becoming a physics teacher.
Project Levante (“to raise up”) builds leadership skills of children of farm workers through training on civic engagement, advocacy, and grassroots organizing. It is one of 12 projects funded this year by the North Carolina Civic Education Consortium's Small Grants Program. Grants were awarded to programs that address diversity, conflict resolution, community advocacy, governing practices, policy making, community service, leadership, and other areas of civic engagement.
Beginning in 1998, the Consortium has received support annually from the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation to distribute grants ranging from $1,000 to $10,000 to support innovative, collaborative civic education projects that prepare North Carolina’s youth for active, responsible citizenship. The program has awarded over $607,000 to 101 outstanding projects in 84 of North Carolina’s counties.
Arce says, “Levante is a way for young people to communicate and be aware, and also to help out, advocate, and spread awareness.” Project Levante is a program of Student Action with Farmworkers (SAF), an organization that works with farmworkers, students, and advocates in the Carolinas and nationwide to create a more just agricultural system.
High school students who participate in Project Levante must commit to full attendance in monthly workshops, annual retreats, and art projects. Through theater, art, and other media, the organization creates a safe space for young people to talk about issues that affect their lives, while helping them achieve success in high school and prepare for college. One recent project involved writing and performing a play about field worker safety and wages. Immersed in the issues, the students learned to articulate the realities of their community. “Before I joined Project Levante, I didn’t understand about my rights,” says Arce. “Now I know what’s going on with my people.”
Focus on access to higher education for immigrant youth
One area of focus for Project Levante this year has been the issue of access to higher education. Participating students include young people who are in North Carolina because their parents or other family members—or the students themselves—work at farms in Johnston, Sampson, Wake, or Harnett counties—planting, cultivating, harvesting, or preparing crops for market or storage. Access to higher education for immigrant youth has been a topic of much discussion in the North Carolina legislature, in high school guidance offices, in colleges, and certainly among the students themselves. Many of these students, with the help of Project Levante, look for ways they can better themselves through education and become contributing members of their community.
“The people at Levante helped me understand what I needed to get into college,” says Arce. “They taught me what to do, how to make sure I met the prerequisites, and helped me apply for scholarships. Project Levante has been like a guiding light in the darkness.”
Above photo: Students from Project Levanted toured the campus at UNC-Chapel Hill in April 2009.
Additional Resources
- For in-depth coverage of how North Carolina is responding to its growing immigrant population, including an article on unauthorized immigrants' access to higher education by Sejal Zota, immigration law specialist with the School of Government, please see the Spring/Summer 2009 special issue of Popular Government: Immigration Impacts on North Carolina.
- Visit the School of Government's Immigration Law website for resources that assist state and local government agencies and officials. The site includes publications, links to legislation relating to immigration law, and links to other sites with information on related issues.
- The Civic Education Consortium works with schools, governments, and community organizations to prepare North Carolina's young people to be active, responsible citizens. For more information about the Consortium, including the small grants program, professional training for educators, publications, and to access the searchable Database of Civic Resources, visit www.civics.org or contact Kelley O’Brien, the Consortium's director, at 919.962.8273 or obrien@sog.unc.edu.