Texas Border Business
Funding for National Farmworker Jobs Program also increased
WASHINGTON— Congressman Henry Cuellar (TX-28) announced over $500 million in funding in the U.S. House of Representative’s fiscal year 2019 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Government Agencies Appropriations bill for educational programs supporting migrant and farmworker students. With this funding, Texas educators will be able to continue to dismantle barriers to education for our migrant families. The Congressman additionally included language that directs the Department of Education to spend over $500 million over the next fiscal year on these programs. This bill passed full committee markup on Wednesday and is scheduled for a vote on the House and Senate Floors this summer.
Education for Migrant Students
Congressman Cuellar has ensured that $374.7 million of maximum federal funding will go towards the State Agency Program for Migrant Education. This program supports special educational and related services for children of migrant agricultural workers and fishermen. These services will include supplementary academic education, remedial or compensatory instruction, English for limited English proficient students, testing, guidance counseling and other activities to promote services toward migrant children whose education is interrupted by frequent moves. These funds are critical to families who make their living in agriculture and whose children should not be penalized in any manner due to frequent relocations. (See attached bill language)
High School Equivalency Program and the College Assistance Programs
The Congressman also helped include $44.6 million dollars in maximum funding towards the High School Equivalency Program (HEP) and the College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP), special programs supporting migrant students. These programs make grants to colleges, universities and non-profit organizations to support educational programs designated for students who are engaged in migrant and other seasonal farm work. HEP provides academic and support services to help students obtain a high school equivalency certificate and subsequently gain employment or admission to a postsecondary institution or training program. CAMP provides tutoring and counseling services to first-year, undergraduate migrant students and assists those students in obtaining student financial aid for their remaining undergraduate years. These programs will provide access and expand opportunities to higher education for migrant South Texas students who deserve the same opportunities as other children in the U.S. (See attached bill language)
Job Training for Migrant Workers
The National Farmworker Jobs Program (NFJP) will also receive $87.8 million due to Congressman Cuellar’s efforts. The NFJP provides job training, employment assistance, and other supportive services to migrant and seasonal farmworkers and their dependents with the goal of helping farmworkers secure full-time employment. Farmworkers who depend primarily on jobs in agricultural labor and who have experienced unemployment and underemployment as a result will benefit greatly in their pursuit of stable employment due to this funding. (See attached bill language)
“I understand the situation of students who are migrant workers or seasonal farmworkers because my own parents were migrant workers,” said Congressman Henry Cuellar. “Everyone deserves an equal chance to reap the benefits of higher education, even those students whose grades suffer because they are working in the fields. These federal funds are an investment in our younger generation and our future local workforce. I will continue to work to secure funding for programs that empower our community and open the doors of opportunities for those who are not familiar with collegiate life.”
Congressman Cuellar added, “I want to thank my fellow Appropriators and Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Tom Cole and Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro for helping include this funding that will help migrant workers and their families receive the means of obtaining a quality education.”
