Sequoia’s ELD (English Language Development) program allows for non-English speaking students to attend Sequoia High School. This program gives many immigrant students access to American education. Many of these students are still learning English, but have stories that should be heard. Two students shared theirs for the Raven Report. They are identified with alternative names for privacy reasons.
ELI
[How often can you communicate with your family in Guatemala?]
“I communicate with them on various days because sometimes I am here at school and they are working, selling for their store. So I can’t communicate much with them [very often].”
[Why did you leave Guatemala to be here?]
“So I came here because my sister came with my uncle at 16 and she spent her whole life here. And then after seven years he sent for me to come in August. I left my home and came with my other sister who is here and thank God I [was let into America] and am here. It was a great opportunity for me because it was a dream I had and so I am very grateful for that.”
[Where are you from?]
“I am from Guatemala, I am from a very big city called “Quetzaltenango.” I was born in a town called Chiantla. So I was born in an apartment more or less. I started my life there, I grew up there. I had different stages of childhood.”
[How has school been in the U.S.?]
“…school has not been difficult for me at all, they gave me my schedule and I became more independent in my classes.”
[What do you think the difference is between being born in the United States and moving here?]
“People who are born here in the United States have a little more opportunities than people who are born in other countries, where there are [less] resources. It would be good to [get to know other] Latin Americans so we could know each other’s history and have more ways to help others who need them.”
MARIA
[Where are you from?]
“The capital of Guatemala [Guatemala City].”
[How does it feel being away from Guatemala?]
“I felt sad because I didn’t get to return to see my dad and after a year that I was here, my father was killed in Guatemala.”
[What encouraged you to come to the U.S.?]
“I wanted to come here because I had my mom and there are possibilities here [for] a better life.”
[What was something that scared you when you got here?]
“When I arrived here I was thinking and wondering, when I am going to go to Guatemala again?”
[Why did you end up at Sequoia? How has being here affected you?]
“I came to Sequoia because my cousin graduated here and she said they speak Spanish and English and at Woodside, which is closer to me, they only speak English and I was not going to feel comfortable… It has helped me a lot because here at Sequoia almost everyone that I have classes with and almost everyone speaks spanish. I feel that many are from Guatemala and I feel comfortable.”
Transcription by Carmen Victoria Cuevas Contreras
Translated by Haylee Huynh and Allison Wang