ABSTRACT
Every year in California, Migrant Program Offices within the County Offices of Education file their Regional Applications in order to apply for the federal funding allocated and administered by the Migrant Education Office at the California Department of Education. Migrant programs and services are to consider migrant students and their families as knowledgeable others capable of supporting, enhancing, and enriching teaching and learning processes. Family Biliteracy stresses the importance of increasing the number of vocabulary words migrant students know, use, and comprehend in their home before they enter kindergarten. Family Biliteracy and Language Explorers are two examples of programs designed for migrant students and their families. Family Biliteracy and Language Explorers reverse the existing pattern in which migrant students are served with programs designed for other student populations. Without specific programs for migrant students, politicians and stakeholders could question the need for maintaining migrant funding as an imperative and much needed support.
