skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Immigrant Children Seek Access to NC Public Schools

play audio
Play

Wednesday, February 19, 2014   

ASHEVILLE, N.C. - Civil rights groups are asking the U.S. Justice Department to launch an investigation into two North Carolina school districts and how they handled the enrollment of immigrant teenagers.

The complaint alleges that Buncombe County and Union County Public Schools have discriminated against children by "denying, delaying or discouraging" their enrollment in school.

"Children have the right to access public education, regardless of where they were born," said attorney Christopher Heaney with the Southern Coalition for Social Justice. "North Carolina is not keeping that promise."

Heaney and others in the coalition represent two young people who are classified as "unaccompanied children," which describes kids who arrive in the United States without a parent or guardian to care for them.

A representative from Buncombe County Schools said the district cannot comment on a student's individual situation, but it believes "some of the facts outlined in the complaint are inaccurate." Union County Schools did not respond to a request for comment.

Although the two counties are specifically named, Heaney said, there are reports of similar discrimination in other school systems in the state.

"We also hope that schools work to make their policies more welcoming to students who are coming from other countries, who may have language barrier issues, who may not have family members around to help them navigate the school systems," he said.

Both minors represented in this case were denied enrollment at age 17 and told that they were too old for school. Under North Carolina law, all students under age 21 are entitled to a public education in the school district where they live.

More information on the complaint is online at southerncoalition.org.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021