Oh The Irony! Pre-k for Refugees! (Sandy Springs, Norcross: day care, public schools, college)

[RoslynHolcomb]

Y'all reckon I could enroll my son in THIS pre-K?

Yeah, I'm bitter.

[GF72]

umm... maybe i'm a little confused


what exactly is the problem? this sounds great. good job for the people who made this happen.

[RoslynHolcomb]

I'm NOT a refugee, unless you consider someone who just moved here from Alabama a refugee, and I have been unable to register MY American born child in GA pre-K.

I'm delighted that an NGO has undertaken the task of making pre-K available to refugee children. I just wish someone would do likewise for those of us who would like the same available to our children.

[gt6974a]

Originally Posted by GF72

umm... maybe i'm a little confused


what exactly is the problem? this sounds great. good job for the people who made this happen.

I'm guessing the same reason illegal immigrants get 'in-state' tuition but a legal Hispanic from N.Y. has to pay out of state.

[GF72]

Originally Posted by RoslynHolcomb

I'm NOT a refugee, unless you consider someone who just moved here from Alabama a refugee, and I have been unable to register MY American born child in GA pre-K.

I'm delighted that an NGO has undertaken the task of making pre-K available to refugee children. I just wish someone would do likewise for those of us who would like the same available to our children.

oh i see. sorry bout that. timing issue? (too late) I mean... I've never heard of being unable to register for pre-K otherwise... in a public school at least.

Originally Posted by gt6974a

I'm guessing the same reason illegal immigrants get 'in-state' tuition but a legal Hispanic from N.Y. has to pay out of state.

oh boo hoo

the entire state of texas is the result of americans illegally immigrating into mexico, then stealing it

when it comes to territory, no one is right

(also, refugees aren't illegal.)

[RoslynHolcomb]

oh i see. sorry bout that. timing issue? (too late) I mean... I've never heard of being unable to register for pre-K otherwise... in a public school at least.

That's just it; they don't have enough slots in the public schools. People wouldn't be camping out for them if they did. So, it's not a matter of being late, I've talked to plenty of other moms who have the same problem, and they didn't just move here. In the public schools you can only go to the one you're zoned to. The school my child is zoned to only had 20 slots, which were quickly filled the first day enrollment was opened. They now have more than 30 kids on the waitlist.

The director of the program says the schools should just ask for more slots, but they won't because they don't want pre-k in the first place. So they farm it out to private companies which run sub-standard programs that I wouldn't put my cat in. (Yeah, I've been to every one of them within a reasonable distance of my home). The few that are decent have dozens of kids on the waitlist.

When you ask the people who run the program about alternatives they suggest you try other counties. Of course, those within a reasonable (or even an unreasonable) distance, are all filled too.

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by GF72

oh boo hoo

the entire state of texas is the result of americans illegally immigrating into mexico, then stealing it

Er... Texas separated itself from Mexico and was independent for some time before it actually joined the US.

when it comes to territory, no one is right

So you wouldn't mind if I came over an used your house, then?

(also, refugees aren't illegal.)

That depends completely on the circumstances of their arrival and on the laws of the receiving country.

[RainyRainyDay]

Originally Posted by GF72

(also, refugees aren't illegal.)

Originally Posted by rcsteiner

That depends completely on the circumstances of their arrival and on the laws of the receiving country.

I think GF is right and RC has it backwards. There is a specific legal definition of a refugee. See e.g. Refugee - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. If somebody comes to your country claiming to be a refugee, but the relevant authorities have not yet decided whether or not the claim is valid, then in Canada at least, the person would be called a refugee claimant. If their claim is not accepted, then they're not a refugee, they're a migrant of some kind.

[lastminutemom]

Back to the pre-K issue.

One of your challenges Roslyn is that you missed the lottery -- it is a lottery in DeKalb not a camp out. The other challenge if that in the past 18 months two day care centers and GA Perimeter College closed (GPC closed their Pre-K program). There is a shortage of spaces, but this is exasperated because many people in the community you live in can afford private pre-k and so when they don't get in public, they simply leave their kids where they are enrolled.

Have you check out programs a little further away?

Norcross and Sandy Springs are not terribly far away.

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by RainyRainyDay

I think GF is right and RC has it backwards. There is a specific legal definition of a refugee. See e.g. Refugee - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. If somebody comes to your country claiming to be a refugee, but the relevant authorities have not yet decided whether or not the claim is valid, then in Canada at least, the person would be called a refugee claimant. If their claim is not accepted, then they're not a refugee, they're a migrant of some kind.

I didn't realize were having a discussion about specific legal terms. GMAFB.

Refugees (following the general usage of the term) are regularly denied entry into the US. See Cuba for a primary example. I believe they actually have to reach dry land in order to be accepted -- refugees intercepted still in the water are typically denied access to the US.

IANAL, so the above might not be technically correct in a legal context. However, this isn't a legal forum, and Canadian policy tends to be somewhat different from US policy in MANY different areas so I'm not sure it's a good measuring stick in this case.

(Yes, your technical correction pissed me off. I'll get over it, tho... )