National Newcomer Network

“The National Newcomer Network is providing an important space for a diverse cross-sector of individuals who are not only passionate about Newcomers, but also bring their expertise in directly serving these students. Together, we are learning from each other and building a movement across the country to ensure that Newcomer student needs are uplifted and prioritized in national policy discussions.”

—Xilonin Cruz-Gonzalez, deputy director, Californians Together

Newcomer students sit in classrooms across the country, contributing valuable knowledge to our school ecosystems and learning and dreaming alongside their peers. Many schools and districts that serve newcomers have taken great care to develop programs that elevate their strengths and aim to address their needs. Unfortunately, these programs aren’t standard. Students may enroll in one district and receive a very different educational experience than a newcomer student enrolled in another district. This is an equity issue.

We created the National Newcomer Network (NNN) to bring together educators, researchers, and advocates from across the country who are invested in developing systemic solutions to address newcomer student inequity. Together, alongside our students and communities, we imagine a more just educational system for immigrant youth.

“All young people need to receive a quality education to build the foundation for future success in life. But by ignoring the educational and socio-emotional needs of newcomers, the United States has left entire generations of immigrants unable to properly access that education. We are delighted to join forces with the National Newcomer Network to advance improvements in newcomer education. NNN’s member organizations and educators have been successfully fighting in states and localities across the country to improve equity and access to education programs that recognize newcomers’ strengths and meet their unique needs. Together, we will design the policies and implement the practices necessary to harness our newcomer youth’s incredible potential.”

—Andrea Ortiz, senior manager of education policy, New York Immigration Coalition

“NNN gives me hope that the specific linguistic, academic, cultural, and social-emotional needs of each unique newcomer, in every community in our nation, will not only be heard—but, most importantly, be met.”

—Lindsey Bird, education leadership coach, emergent bilingual and linguistic equity, Teach Plus

“Supporting newcomer students is an important part of achieving educational equity in our nation’s schools. The NNN works towards arming educators and community leaders with the tools and resources necessary to ensure that these students can thrive and succeed in our schools. ImmSchools is proud to be a part of this critical work.”

—Astou Thiane, director of policy and advocacy, ImmSchools

“When we founded Internationals Network, our mission was and is to ensure that every multilingual newcomer is welcomed into a high quality school that supports them academically, linguistically, culturally, and socially by building and sustaining a national network of high-quality schools and programs designed specifically to serve their needs. It is natural for us to become part of and help lead a broad national effort that aligns so closely with our mission, and we’re thrilled to have such outstanding partners in this work. Alejandra and Xilonin are amazing young leaders, and we’re excited to join them in fighting for bright futures for newcomer youth.”

—Claire Sylvan, founder and senior strategic advisor, Internationals Network for Public Schools and
Lara Evangelista, executive director, Internationals Network for Public Schools

“Being a part of the NNN is so beneficial because of the wealth of knowledge and expertise of all involved. We’re able to collaborate on a shared objective for increasing advocacy for newcomer students across the United States. My hope is that our collaborative will be able to be a part of enhanced national support and resources.”

—Carlene Thomas, CEO and independent educational consultant, Carlene Thomas Consulting, LLC