Report: 6.8 percent of K-12 students have an undocumented parent

April

The Pew Hispanic Center released a new set of estimates today on the size and characteristics of the undocumented population, which has surged in size since 1990 but leveled off in 2006. The center has put the number of undocumented at 11.9 million, or 4 percent of the nation’s population.

Here are some highlights of the new report:

About 8.3 million unauthorized immigrants were working in the United States as of March 2008, accounting for 4 percent of the overall population and 5.4 percent of the work force. In New York, the percentage is 6.7 percent.

The undocumented are more likely than either American-born residents or legal immigrants to be married and have children — due largely to the fact that they are younger than the overall population. Almost half of “unauthorized immigrant households” consist of a couple with children, compared to 21 percent of U.S.-born households.

Most children of undocumented immigrants — 73 percent — are Americans by birth.

Among all K-12 students in the United States, 6.8 percent have at least one undocumented parent.

The report by Jeffrey Passel and D’Vera Cohn, available here, is titled “A Portrait of Unauthorized Immigrants in the United States.” The estimates are produced by combining census data with data on legal immigrants.

Updated: Here is a chart from the report showing the family dynamics of this population. There are 4 million U.S.-born children with parents who are undocumented.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 14th, 2009 at 9:33 am by Leah Rae.
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3 Responses to “Report: 6.8 percent of K-12 students have an undocumented parent”

Harry Plopper April 14th, 2009 at 8:08 pm
Time to pay your own way, freeloaders.
Lyn April 15th, 2009 at 11:18 am
Hispanics, lot many parasites, have way too many kids. They put too much stress on our schools, hospitals, courts, and prisons. That illegals are coming over here and having anchor babies is disgusting.

The workplace immigration raids that Homeland Security Chief Napolitano ended should be resumed now. There is nothing special about illegal immigrants. I don’t care if they have “families” here. Deport them. Fine their employers. American high schools – especially ones with large black student bodies – turn out all the illiterate, unskilled workers this economy needs.
Sonia Aguire April 19th, 2009 at 11:49 pm
I cannot believe the disgusting comments on this board. To assume that all undocumented, illegal immigrants are destroying this economy and this government is blasphemous at best.

Just think about it. These students are going to COLLEGE. They are going to get an education and contribute back to THIS economy that has given them so much. They are going to teach, educate, and do what no one in their family has ever been able to do before. So be grateful that their giving back to “YOUR” country even after “YOUR” country has brain drained these students from their own and has hence, prevented their respective countries from moving forward. I have seen so many of my friends cry because their options have been limited due to the chance of birth, a poor and inefficient legalization process, and the text of the law. And these are students graduating at the top of their class.

So keep in mind that this article isn’t talking about undocumented immigrants who want to destroy your country — they want to make it better. These students — the one that the article reports on — want this more than anything because they acknowledge that admissions to any college is a privilege not an entitlement. After all, “your” country has provided them the privilege of getting an education which they have taken advantage of. Furthermore, these students are the ones taking out loans and making a financial investment in their education. Why? Because you have to be legal to receive any kind of financial aid or scholarships depending on the school (and most will give you none). Talk about sacrifice. Their doing the same thing other students in America are.

Oh and one more thing, those who are destroying “your” country are not the students who are doing something with their lives like these but the ones who drop out of school daily — documented and undocumented. Tell your “Republican party” to fix that — our failing educational system — before they kick out talented and able students who can make it better.

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