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Cabarrus County leaders focus on Hispanic issues


By Justin Vick
jvick@independenttribune.com
Friday, September 15, 2006


Community leaders from Cabarrus County will travel to Mexico next week to see the cultural, political, social and economic issues that lead immigrants to North Carolina.
And when they return from the week-long trip, they'll create a local action plan to address challenges of the increasing Hispanic population.

The trip is part of a yearlong course dubbed the "Latino Initiative," sponsored by the Center for International Understanding, a public service program of the University of North Carolina.

The delegation, which will also consist of leaders from Rowan and Union counties, will meet with government, education and economic development leaders in Mexico City and Guanajuato.

"It's a chance to see firsthand what happens on the other side of the border," said Stephanie Carter, communications director for the Center for International Understanding.

Cabarrus County has seen a 1,271 percent increase in its Hispanic population from 1990 to 2000.

The trip will help translate that jump in the census data into real people, Carter said.

Such growth will not stop any time soon, said William Pilkington, public health director for Cabarrus County.

"If we can better understand the immigrants that are here, we'll all be better off," said Pilkington, noting that about half of the Cabarrus Health Alliance's patients speak Spanish.

Pilkington hopes to learn what Hispanics are accustomed to expecting from their health service providers.

Holly Blackwelder's interest in going lies with the educational system in Mexico, since she's a member of the Cabarrus County Schools Board of Education.

Cabarrus County has seen a 955 percent increase in its Hispanic student enrollment from 1995 to 2005.

As a result, some schools have struggled with students who speak English as a second language. Educators across the county have said schools with diverse student populations are at a disadvantage when it comes to No Child Left Behind, since the law requires all students test at grade level despite language barriers.

She'd like to find solutions to defeat the barriers that hinder immigrant children in local classrooms.

"We don't get involved with the politics of whether they are here legally or illegally," Blackwelder said. "If they have a Cabarrus County address, they have to be in the Cabarrus County Schools system."

Two representatives from law enforcement are involved in the Latino Initiative.

"My personal expectations are to make myself and the police department more culturally aware by seeing the region our citizens are migrating from," said Concord Police Chief Merl Hamilton. "On a broader scale, we hope to bring back information that will allow us to put together an initiative with other community leaders to help our Latino population integrate into the community."

Kannapolis Police Maj. Woody Chavis hopes to improve communication between the Hispanic community and police department both in Mexico and in Kannapolis.

"From what I heard, they don't have a real trusting relationship with police in Mexico," he said. "I want to see what the situation is there and assure them that's not the case here."

He doesn't want Hispanic residents to feel hesitant about reporting crimes.

"We're continuously trying to hire Spanish speaking officers so we can have someone who can fluently speak with them and knock down that communication barrier," Chavis said.

Funding for the trip comes from grants from private foundations as well as contributions from local industries and participants.

Research determines the counties that participate in the Latino Initiative, as well as the cities and states that participants explore in Mexico.

The center tailors the program to take county leaders to the hometowns of many of the immigrants now living in their communities.

Since 1998, nearly 300 North Carolina policy leaders from 18 counties have participated in the Latino Initiative.

? Contact Justin Vick at jvick@independenttribune.com or at 704-789-9138.