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OLLAS Reports Religion and Community: Mexican Americans in South Omaha (1900-1980) Mexicans, like all other ethnic groups that created the U.S. as a nation of immigrants, were adamant in establishing churches of their own. Ethnic religious affiliations were essentially of Judeo-Christian origin and befitted effectively under the tolerance of worship mandated by the Constitution. Freedom of belief was a tenet known, demanded, and exercised by all immigrants. For Mexicans and other ethnic communities alike, religious belief and centers of worship were the very heart of their community and identity bonds. It was their source of strength and reason to persevere in a new society were multiple nationalities, cultures, languages, and ethnicities converged. This report provides a historical account of three Christian churches in South Omaha: The Virgin of Guadalupe Catholic Church, Gethsemane Lutheran Church, and the First Assembly of God Church. Chronologically the congregations were organized between 1918 and 1948. These churches were first small community gatherings in family sitting rooms and rented shops. All of them were and still are located in South Omaha. All three churches were established by the Mexican community. Today these churches serve all those who reside in the area or attend ceremonies and rituals: old and new Latinos, latest generations of immigrant origin (Czech, Hungarian, Italian, Poles, Russian, Lithuanians, et al.), and recent refugee communities from Africa. Latino Political Participation in Nebraska: The Challenge of Enhancing Voter Mobilization and Representation This OLLAS policy brief seeks to enhance our basic information regarding the role that Latinos will play in shaping the future of politics in the state of Nebraska in the short and medium term. Because issues such as immigration policy, fair housing, labor practices and public education have risen to the top of the political agenda nationally and statewide, and because these issues most directly impact the lives of Nebraska’s growing Latino constituencies legitimately, we must consider to what extent Latino stakeholders can shape the debate and articulate acceptable policy responses to these matters. The effectiveness with which each of these issues is dealt with will have major implications for all Nebraskans. This report sets out the basic parameters for an initial analysis of Latino’s political participation in Nebraska. In order to arrive at a more conclusive statement we must continue to gather data and engage in multiple discussions. Nevertheless, we hope this report will begin to inform a broader conversation on Latino and immigrant political participation across Nebraska. Examining the Impact of Parental Involvement in a Dual Language Program: Implications for Children and Schools The above study focuses on a dual language (Spanish-English) program in the Omaha Public Schools. Dual language programs are programs in which children develop proficiency in two languages. These programs are currently seen as the gold standard within second language education because of the large amount of empirical support they have received with respect to children’s academic gains. All of the dual language classrooms are comprised of half native English speakers and half Spanish speakers. Parental involvement has received much empirical attention with respect to traditional school programs, however little is known about the role of parental involvement in dual language programs (Lindholm-Leary, 2001). Systematically studying dual language programs is an especially important area of investigation because of the latest census trends and because barriers to involvement for the parents of language minority children are likely to differ from those for the parents of language majority children. For a list of additional publications produced from this project, please visit the Faculty Publications page on this website. Educational Achievement and the Successful Integration of Latinos in Nebraska: A Statistical Profile to Inform Policies and Programs Resumen Ejecutivo en Español: PDF The unprecedented and continuous growth of the Latino population compels us to engage in institutional changes, comprehensive policy reforms, and innovative programs that enhance the productive integration of this population into our state. As an abundant body of research and informed practices make clear, education is the bedrock of successful integration for current and future generations of Latinos. No longer can a job, obtained without a high school or college education, provide the opportunities it may have once provided to older generations of Americans or, for that matter, first generation immigrants. The latter tend to measure their socioeconomic success relative to conditions of unemployment and below-poverty wages they may have left behind. Their children’s socioeconomic mobility will hinge on educational attainment in this country. This report was prepared by the Office of Latino/Latin American Studies (OLLAS) at the request of the State of Nebraska Mexican American Commission (MAC). It is, in part, an update of earlier reports prepared for the commission by the Bureau of Business Research at the University of Nebraska−Lincoln. Its main contribution is to serve as a resource for program managers and policy makers in their formulation of policies and innovative programs aimed at addressing the recalcitrant educational gap affecting the Latino population. The report utilizes a combination of census and educational data. Our analysis is grounded in current sociological and educational research. The Development of Mexican Nonproliferation Export Controls This report by OLLAS Assistant Director Jonathan Benjamin-Alvarado is part of a developing research and outreach project with the Center for International Trade and Security at the University of Georgia that involves working with Mexican government officials as they design and implement national responses to international agreements and obligations to ensure command and control of critical nuclear, biological and chemical materials in Mexico. Benjamin-Alvarado will conduct a comprehensive survey, that he has administered in Argentina and Cuba previously, later this year assessing Mexican export controls. The Integration of the Hispanic/Latino Immigrant Workforce The main purpose of the study was to explore the degree to which Latino newcomers are being effectively and positively integrated into the economic, social, and political lives and institutions of the state and local communities. The project consisted of three phases. The first was based on the analysis of Census 2000 figures, government documents, media archives, and published research. The second phase was the development of a survey questionnaire mailed to a wide array of agencies and organizations directly or indirectly charged with the process of integrating newcomer populations. In the third phase we conducted focus groups with newcomers and key organizations in three Nebraska communities. Although it is too early in the process to arrive at definitive conclusions or accurately predict the direction that integration for Latino newcomers and their children will take and the speed at which it will occur, this project represents an important step on the part of state to address the serious dearth of research on the state’s Latino population. In January 2000, Legislative Bill 1363 was introduced to the Nebraska legislature by a group of seventeen state senators. The purpose of LB 1363 was to create the Task Force on the Productive Integration of the Immigrant Workforce Population. As part of its initiative, the Task Force held a series of public hearings which gave individual citizens across the state an opportunity to express their views and ideas about the opportunities and challenges ‘oldtimers’ and new arrivals to Nebraska face as a result of an increasing immigrant workforce population in the state and their respective communities. The second component of the research initiative was to sponsor a research study on this same topic. The authors were selected by the State of Nebraska's Mexican American Commission to conduct such a study, the result of which is the above report. A Guide to the GED in the Omaha Area |