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I. Introduction and Importance

On North Carolina’s coast, surfers scan the sea, hoping to catch a great wave. Now, public officials and businesses in the coastal counties of Brunswick and New Hanover are trying to catch up to another wave: hundreds of Hispanic newcomers fleeing poverty in Mexico and other Latin American countries. A primary lure has been the plentiful jobs—particularly in construction—spawned by the coast’s booming economy as Baby Boomers relocate for retirement. Dr. Claude Ferrell, an economic professor at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, calls Brunswick County the economic "jewel for the Southeast" region of the United States. At a March 7, 2006 seminar, Ferrell said Brunswick County has the fastest-growing economy in North Carolina, with neighboring New Hanover not far behind. "You are blazing red hot," he said, citing an economic index based on such factors as new jobs, housing and retail sales (Stites, 2006, p. 1A). With such forecasts, and data showing North Carolina has the nation’s fastest-growing Hispanic population, Brunswick and New Hanover educators likely will face increasing challenges serving the influx of newcomers, many who speak little English.

II. Synthesis of Research Findings

A look at efforts in the two counties—being made by schools, businesses, social agencies and others—suggests that progress is being made in helping Hispanics adapt and succeed, even while a divisive debate rages nationally over immigration reform. Indicators abound that suggest most immigrants are here to stay and that they are needed to help fill jobs to enable the US to compete with such rapidly growing economies as China, the European Union and India. These realities suggest that many more ESL teachers will be needed in North Carolina and nationwide and that helping the newcomers assimilate can add to the nation’s success.

One story of adaptation and budding success can be seen in the life of 25-year-old Miguel Villegas, a chef at a Mexican restaurant in Wilmington, an historic city stretched along the Cape Fear River. After a day of fast-paced cooking, Villegas leaned back on his sofa in his Greenville Village mobile home park and recalled his first days in 1999 when alone and eighteen he arrived in Wilmington. "There was not much Hispanic people," recalled Villegas, who is in the US illegally and asked during the interview that his family’s real names not be used in this paper. "There was no Mexican stores, no Mexican produce. The TV dish had just one or two Spanish channels." Wilmington was Villegas’ third US stop after he traveled alone from Oaxaca, Mexico at age sixteen and illegally entered Texas. Coming for adventure and "oportunidad," he said he soon was harvesting sweet potatoes in Louisiana for $300 for a 60-hour week. His next harvest was tobacco, in Florence, SC which paid $5 a hour. Then he came to Wilmington and spent two years at another "muy caliente" job of landscaping and increased his hourly wage to $7 an hour. Today, he brags with pride that he’s been a chef for the past five years, earning $13 a hour and working six days a week. Since coming to the US, he has married his wife, Isabel, and fathered their son Juan and daughter Maria. Isabel, who speaks almost no English, works full time as a fast-food cook. Juan is in a pre-kindergarten class, where his parents hope he will become bilingual and eventually go to college. Meanwhile, about 15 of the Villegases’ Mexican relatives have immigrated to the area: most came illegally, found work, and speak little English.

Zdenek Metz is the resident manager of the mobile home park where the Villegases live. Metz is a native of the Czeck Republic, but traveled much of the US. He is a legal US resident and an admirer of Hispanics, who now live in more than half the 30-acre village’s 200 mobile homes. "Family is everything to them," he said. "One person will come here, be the scout, and then they help others come--cousins, brothers, sisters. The mothers take care of each others’ babies, so they can go to work," most often at fast-food restaurants, he said. When Metz began managing Greenville Village three years ago he said the trailer park was a struggling business undermined by tenants who sometimes sold and used illegal drugs and often rent was as much as 15 months late. Metz said he evicted the troublemakers. When he began working at Greenville Village there were only 10 Hispanic families, but he is glad that now about 110 or the 200 homes are now occupied by Hispanic families. He said he checks for criminal records and requires identification, but does not investigate—nor is he legally required to—their immigration status. "They pay their rent like clockwork," Metz said. "They work very hard, people like to hire them. They came for the boom here. Many are in construction, roofing, framing, concrete, landscaping or in the food industry."

About 25 years ago Brunswick County’s 50,985 residents included just 376 Hispanics—less than 1 percent—according to the 1990 US Census. The most recent census estimate (July 2004) put Brunswick’s population at 84,575. Today, 13,500 Hispanics make up about 15 percent of Brunswick’s populace, Fernando Trulin estimated in an interview. Trulin directs Hispanic/Latino programs for Brunswick Community College and heads the Brunswick Educational Transition Center which helps immigrants.

North of the Cape Fear River, in New Hanover County, the 924 Hispanics listed in the 1990 census also made up less than 1 percent of that county’s population of 120,284. The county population has risen to 173,554, according to a July 2004 census estimate. Meanwhile, New Hanover’s Hispanic population rose to 4,331 in 2004, making Hispanics at least 2.5 percent of the county population. In other words, in 25 years the county’s non-Hispanic population grew 41 percent; the Hispanic population grew 357 percent—eight times faster.

The increased presence of Hispanics on the coast mirrors years of surging Hispanic immigration to North Carolina’s urban areas, according to the nonpartisan Pew Hispanic Center in Washington, DC. From 2000 to 2004, only six US metropolitan areas exceeded more than 40 percent growth in the number of Hispanics: two were in North Carolina—Raleigh and Charlotte. Additionally, North Carolina led all states in overall Hispanic growth, from the period 1990 to 2000, gaining 394 percent of 8,541,221 people. The 1990 census reported 21,533 Hispanics living in NC--under 1 percent of the population.

The roots of the wave of Hispanic immigration to the US are in Mexican pesos’ collapse in value in 1994 and the US appetite for cheap labor. An estimated 40 percent of people in Mexico live in poverty, with an average worker making about $2 an hour—well below the US minimum wage of $5.15 an hour. (Chandler, 2006,p.1A). Economically vibrant cities like Raleigh and Charlotte are attracting Hispanics because they are relatively affordable and their economies are creating jobs, says Robert Suro, the Pew Hispanic Center’s director. "New York, Chicago and L.A. have gotten expensive and they haven’t been growing as fast as Charlotte and Raleigh" (Ohlemacher, 2006, p. 5A).

In an interview, Carlos Valle of Wilmington offered his views on Hispanic growth, which he has determined by conversations with hundreds of fellow Hispanics over the past 18 years working as Wilmington’s only bilingual post office clerk. Valle came to the US at age three from Honduras when his parents moved to Chicago. He works at the Myrtle Grove Post Office in Wilmington, where Hispanics sometimes travel across two counties to get his help with mailings, money orders or paying bills. "The Hispanics I noticed in 1988 were coming for farm work, mostly Mexicans," Valle said. "That was it for about 10 years. Then I started noticing Hispanics working as carpenters or in landscaping." Valle said, "Many Hispanics have relatives in New York and Florida. North Carolina makes a good half-way point to live and still be able to visit relatives." The language barrier that Valle helps customers navigate is evident in a 2005 Pew Hispanic Center study titled, "The New Latino South." Researchers studied six states where Hispanic immigration soared from 1990 to 2000: the Carolinas, Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia and Tennessee. They found "most of these immigrants (62%) lack even a high school diploma and 57% do not speak English well or do not speak it at all." They found that the Hispanic school-age population (5 through 17) grew 322 percent, while the African American population grew 18 percent and Whites 10 percent. By the 2001-02 school year, Hispanics made up four percent of enrollment in the six states, but by 2007-08, they will make up 10 percent, according to projections by the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education.

Many Hispanics immigrating to Brunswick County find their way to the innovative Brunswick Educational Transition Center (BETC) in Supply NC.The teaching facility opened in 2003 as the first of its kind in the US, financed with $2.7 million in materials and Internet instructional support from Mexico and co-sponsored by Brunswick County Schools and Brunswick Community College. The center teaches English to Hispanic children and adults and offers a wide range of courses in Spanish. For example, Hispanic adults can earn a GED (high school diploma) from Mexico. "We are starting a system that we would like to have a multiplying effect," Roman de la Pena, Mexico’s president for adult education, said at BETC’s opening (Peterson, 2004, p. 1A). Mexican officials reason that many Mexicans who work in the US may return to Mexico: if they use BETC’s free classes, they’ll be better educated. Even if they remain in the US, Mexicans working here will send billions of dollars to relatives in Mexico, a boon to Mexico’s economy, said BETC director Trulin. Education at places like BETC gives immigrants a chance at better jobs with more pay to be shared with relatives in Mexico.

Brunswick County Schools bused ESL students to classes at BETC during the 2005 school year until high fuel costs stopped both the buses and the centralized ESL classes for LEP parents and their children. The result has forced ESL teachers to lose teaching time because they must now travel great distances to various schools where they and school-based assistants teach the more than 300 ESL students. Adding to the difficulty is the schools’ far-flung placement over Brunswick’s 856 sprawling square miles, straining the always-limited federal and state ESL money. "The schools are told no child should be left behind, but there is never enough money," lamented BETC director Trulin. A Mexico City native, Trulin came to Wilmington in the 1980s as a mechanical engineer with DuPoint. He has spent two decades in the Cape Fear region, helping form the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in Wilmington and other Hispanic support groups and has taught or designed numerous ESL, Spanish and industrial courses at community colleges. Recently, Mexico gave the center $25,000—the first such cash grant by Mexico to the center and the only one given in North Carolina. "The fact is we have Hispanic people here, and we need to serve them," said Trulin. "Providing education provides a sense of belonging and helps merge the communities. Together, we are the US and that is really spelled ‘U’ ‘S’.

Near BETC, Brunswick Community College (BCC) is recruiting more Hispanics to attend its ESL and occupational classes. In 2005, the college’s share of a $150,000 grant provided safety training in skilled labor for 30 Hispanic students, needed in Brunswick’s economic boom. "They show up for work and follow orders," BCC associate deal Velva Jenkins said of Hispanic workers. "The problem is the language barrier" (Peterson, 2005, p.7A). One hurdle for Hispanics is tuition: without legal residency, they pay BCC $211 per class hour, while residents pay $38. Trulin also said that many of the universities in North Carolina will not admit illegal students. He said this accounts for the inflated drop-out rate of Hispanic children at around tenth grade, because even through an individual may be a good student with aspirations for higher education, "What’s the point?" he says, "The doors are closed."

Another venue for Hispanics to learn English in Brunswick County is St. Brendan’s Catholic Church in Shallotte, NC. Father Patrick O’Connor spent three years learning Spanish and now recites Mass in Spanish to Hispanic worshippers each Sunday. The church’s Hispanic outreach programs include ESL classes, pre-marriage counseling and Alcoholics Anonymous group meetings (Snow, 2005, p. 21A).

In New Hanover County, officials at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington are working to connect with the growing Hispanic community, a goal of new chancellor Rosemary DePaolo. In the past year, UNC-W started Centro Hispano, a center headed by psychology professor Antonio Puente. The center, focusing on Hispanic culture and issues, is a place to look for internships, scholarships and community services. It is working with New Hanover high schools to increase the number of Hispanics enrolled at UNC-W, which now number 285 of 11,653 students. "We are not advocating a certain social stand," says Puente. "This is a place for forum, debate, and forward movement" (Gonzalez, 2005, p. 2B). UNC-W also hosted its first Hispanic Leadership Development Class, attracting 29 participants. Sonia Royes, bilingual case manager for Catholic Social Ministries in New Hanover, taught the eight-week class in Spanish to empower Hispanics to do outreach in their own community. "If they become more empowered—they take ownership of their community," said Ms. Royes, who was born in Costa Rica (Gonzalez, 2005, p. 4B).

Also, in Wilmington in 2005, the New Hanover public school system hired a Hispanic services liaison, Maria Black, a Puerto Rican native. Since 2001, the number of Hispanic students in New Hanover has risen 250 percent, to 1,030, and now are 4.3 percent of enrollment (Scott, 2005). In those four years, school ESL positions doubled to 29. Demand by students is surpassing the supply of qualified ESL teachers, said Andrea Belletti, head of the ESL program (Scott, 2006, p. 1B).

In Wilmington, College Park Elementary may offer a portrait of the future of many coastal schools. There, more than one in five children are Hispanic, and a translator attends PTA meetings. Spanish-speaking abilities are considered in hiring teachers, said principal Rebecca Opgrand. She said, "We frankly consider the children more of a joy and a blessing than a challenge" (Scott, 2006, pp. 1B, 4B).

Throughout the Wilmington area there are signs of Hispanics’ growing presence. St. Mary Catholic Church offers mass in Spanish. Several new Hispanic business owners proudly extol their culture. Hispanics Landscaping was begun three years ago by Jesus Macedo, a Mexican native and now a US citizen who employs nine people. Latinos Taxis was started in 2005 by three Mexican immigrants who pooled their savings. The taxi drivers also serve as interpreters when taking riders to such venues as hospitals, said manager Rafael Morales (Gonzalez, 2005, p. 1A). The Mundo Latino weekly Spanish newspaper now has competition from the area’s first bilingual magazine, called Amigos. Several agencies give Hispanics a broad range of services such as ESL classes, tax-return help and legal advice. The include Centro Latino and Catholic Social Ministries.

As more Hispanics make homes in coastal Carolina, a debate simmers about what to do about an estimated 12 million Hispanics who have entered the US illegally or are staying after visas have expired. The Pew Hispanic Center estimates that about 850,000 Hispanics—2,328 a day—have been entering annually since 2000. The controversy is getting wide media coverage, telling of massive rallies of Hispanics clamoring for amnesty or articles explaining laws proposed by Congress and President George Bush.

In December, the US House passed a get-tough bill calling for 700 miles of double-layered fences along the US-Mexican border. The bill would make being in the US illegally a felony. Now, the US Senate is considering proposals that generally are more accommodating, including one to allow those here illegally to eventually gain legal status to stay if they pay $2,000 in fines, pay any back taxes, learn English and pass a criminal records check. One Senate proposal calls for adding 14,000 more border guards (there are 11,300 now) and a "virtual fence" monitored by cameras and unmanned vehicles. Any new laws likely will be enacted well before the November congressional elections.

Everyone seems to have an opinion, including mobile home park manager Metz. "I think we should let the ones that are here stay and work," he said. "But I think we should close the border to control the influx that comes." The prospect of harsh laws has worried the mobile home park owners. "We were wondering how many tenants we would lose," Metz said, if a roundup and deportation began.

Deportation is warranted, say some critics of the illegal immigrants, contending that Hispanics working illegally for low wages are plunging pay scales for everyone. Critics also cite the high public costs to provide the legally required schooling and medical care illegal residents receive. Some critics’ attitudes simply are rooted in prejudice. "Sadly, to some people Hispanic is a bad word," said BETC director Trulin. "They think of the image of a Mexican sleeping against a cactus." Nationwide, a majority of people recently polled opposes letting illegal immigrants stay in the country to work. An NBC/Wall Street Journal poll recently found 56 percent opposed a guest-worker program; 67 percent interviewed for a New York Times/CBS poll said illegal immigrants should not be allowed to stay and work—let alone become US citizens (Funk, 2006, p. 1A).

Supporters of more moderate legislation suggest the low-paid illegal workers have kept inflation down, especially for homebuilders, whose NC workforce is about 33 percent Hispanic, according to a study by the Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Norton, 2006, p. 1D). "If every undocumented worker were removed from North Carolina, the economy of North Carolina would come to a meltdown," says NC Representative Danny McComas, of New Hanover County (Schreiner, 2005, p. 7A).

Some observers say the wave of Hispanic immigration has come just in time to take over jobs needing to be filled. The 82-million strong baby boom generation, born between 1946 and 1964, is turning 50 at the rate of 12,000 a day. The generation that follows is much smaller. "How do you replace 82 million with 67 million?" asks James Johnson, a demographer at UNC-Chapel Hill. "The only way we will be able to compete in the market place is to embrace immigrants" (Rives, 2006, p. 1A).

III. Implications for ESL Teachers and Students

Amid the political hue and cry in Washington, DC, it is inevitable that over time, every wave of US immigrants - legal or not - is slowly absorbed. This is due to a provision in the US law that is unique among developed countries: the 14th Amendment to the constitution that states anyone born on US soil is a citizen, even children born to adults who illegally cross the US border. When these automatic citizens become adults, they can sponsor the legal immigration of close family members, such as their parents (Rives, 2006, p. 1A).

Hispanics will continue to come to coastal Carolina to pursue their dreams of better lives. ESL teachers and students should be ready to assist these children and likely could be more effective by honing their own Spanish-speaking skills. A look at population forecasts suggests the importance of assimilating Hispanics, who surpassed African Americans in 2003 as the nation’s largest minority group. According to a Brookings Institute study, Hispanics made up 14 percent of the nations’ populace in 2004 but have accounted for 49 percent of the nation’s growth since 2000. Whites comprised 67 percent in 2004, but increased just 18 percent from 2000 to 2004. African Americans comprised 12 percent, after a 14 percent increase. Asians were four percent of the population, after a 14 percent increase (Ohlemacher, 2006, p. 5A). The US Hispanic population, now 14 percent, is expected to be 25 percent by 2050. "It’s peanuts in the scheme of things," demographer James Johnson says of ESL costs. "What would we rather do, leave these people uneducated? It’s a form of enlightened self-interest to invest in these kids" (Rives, 2006, p. 1A).

References

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The Wilmington Star-News, p. 5A.

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