UT Austin’s LUCHA Program Helps Immigrant Students Graduate from High School
The Language Learners at The University of Texas at Austin Center for Hispanic Achievement (LUCHA) program is being credited for helping immigrant students from Mexico graduate from American high schools. On May 20, 2008, the Donna Independent School District (DISD) in Donna, Texas honored approximately 50 immigrant students for overcoming great social and economic obstacles to earn their high school diplomas. LUCHA assisted these students in a variety of ways, from verifying comprehension of required subjects to providing accurate transcript credit transfers. LUCHA is a program developed by the K-16 Education Center, a component of the Division of Continuing & Innovative Education at The University of Texas at Austin.
The LUCHA program is designed to help Spanish-speaking students transition into English-language public schools. These students often face academic difficulty not only because of a language barrier but also because most schools do not have the resources to determine appropriate grade placement, diagnose content-area mastery, or train personnel to recognize and address the challenges faced by immigrant students.
“The dropout rate for this demographic is very high,” explains Dr. Felipe Alanis, associate dean for the K-16 Education Center. “These kids are very bright but they become discouraged because of the language barrier or when placed in the wrong grade level.”
One method used by LUCHA to counter these administrative difficulties is the careful interpretation of transcripts to create a student’s Graduation Credit Analysis (GCA). The GCA includes a summary of credits earned in Mexico and their U.S. course equivalencies. The GCA assists administrators in placing these students in English-language public schools.
“This program is a life-line. Finally, these students have been given equity in attaining their education,” says Ophelia Gaona, executive director of Bilingual Education for DISD. “I feel really good as a professional and as an educator that these kids are being given a chance and being allowed to matter.”
“I would not have been able to graduate without LUCHA services,” says Sergio Barrientos, a LUCHA student and speaker at the event. Through LUCHA, Barrientos has earned his U.S. high school diploma. He has gone on to receive a full scholarship from the U.S. Navy based on his academic success.