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Ana Reyes is taking accounting classes at the Center for Employment Training in El Centro on Wednesday. "It is easy," she said. (JOSELITO VILLERO PHOTO / September 19, 2012) |
A recently released study contends that improving the integration of immigrants could have long-lasting benefits. The study, titled the California Immigration Integration Scorecard, suggests that locales that excel at immigrant integration are better able to adapt to economic and social changes.
Having an integrated immigrant population translates into more “economic resilience” for a region, said Vanessa Carter, co-author of the study that was released earlier this month by the University of Southern California’s Center for the Study of Immigration Integration.
“We know that it is the time for immigrant integration in California and the nation at large,” she said, noting that immigrants contribute to 33 percent of the state’s gross domestic product.
The integration study looked at 10 cities in the state and assigned scores based on the cities’ ability to absorb high- and low-skilled immigrants. The novel study used numerous criteria to measure an area’s warmth of welcome, civic participation, and economic mobility.
Santa Clara County received the overall highest ranking, while the Fresno area ranked the lowest. The Imperial Valley was not included in the study.
Services attuned to local needs
Being located near the border demands that services strive to reach recently arrived Spanish-speaking immigrants, said Imperial County Workforce Development Director Frank Marquez.
Language acquisition often presents the biggest obstacle. Unfortunately for some, the environment along the border allows them to go through their lives without having to be fluent in English.
“If they don’t take the time to become fluent they will not be viable in the work force,” Marquez said.
Spanish is the primary language spoken at home for 71 percent of the county’s residents, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
A broad consortium of agencies collaborates with the Workforce Development office to provide a variety of services to anyone interested in finding employment, he said.
Since its inception in 1971, Brawley-based Campesinos Unidos has provided services for the county’s rural poor.
It initially had gotten its start out of a need to provide English and citizenship classes to the public, said director Jose M. Lopez. From there the organization branched out to provide services associated with health care, housing and education.
Yet not everyone who can benefit is seeking the services provided by his organization or local agencies, he said, noting the high incidence rates of asthma and tuberculosis.
“I think they are reluctant to request support,” he said, adding that there is a stigma attached with receiving aid.
Importance of naturalization services
The amount of infrastructure available for immigrants to seek naturalization was also one of the study’s measures.
On Tuesday, Calexico resident and Mexicali native Ana Reyes became an American citizen. Next on her to-do list is getting her GED. She also hopes to one day find work as an accountant and is a student at the Center for Employment Training in El Centro.
“I like to set and reach new goals,” she said in Spanish.
A former customer service representative for a Mexicali-based American company, Reyes had recently been laid off and decided to move to the U.S., where she was a lawful permanent resident.
“I wanted to expand my knowledge and launch a new career,” she said.
Of the county’s 174,000-plus residents, more than 53,000 are foreign born, of which 38 percent are naturalized citizens, according to Census Bureau data.
Immigrants who fail to become naturalized can expect to earn 40 cents on the dollar less than those who do so, CSII’s Carter said.
Economic mobility
While the CET is there to serve anyone and everyone who qualifies, director Elvira Anaya said the majority of those seeking its resources are farmworkers. The center has been operating for the past 37 years and owes much of its existence to the fact that a significant percentage of the Valley’s population is immigrants with limited income and English skills.
“We have existed here because we’ve been needed here,” Anaya said.
At the CET in El Centro, the five different job training courses include green building construction skills, retail specialist, truck driving, accounting clerk and welding fabrication.
The CET averages about 250 students a year, Anaya said. The center graduates about 85 to 90 percent of its students and is able to place on average about 86 percent of its graduates in jobs.
Juan Manuel Rodriguez had worked in construction for 15 years in Mexicali before deciding to move to the Imperial Valley about 10 years ago.
A former construction site supervisor, the 55-year-old Calexico resident is starting anew stateside and had recently enrolled in CET’s green building construction class.
While he has no doubt his past experience would enable him to find work in Mexicali, he said he has no plans to return.
“You can earn more money here,” he said.
Staff Writer, Copy Editor Julio Morales can be reached at 760-335-4665 or at jmorales@ivpressonline.com
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