Teens Tell Their Families’ Stories of Coming to America

These students from immigrant families are telling their stories about coming here. They are from many countries and all their stories are different. This should give them positive feelings about their experiences. - - Donna Poisl

by Extra News

Forty-two Chicago high school students from immigrant families will gather at DePaul University a week before Independence Day to participate in an innovative oral history project, called “In Our Own Words.” The project will challenge them to explore who they are through the stories of their families’ diverse journeys to America.

Nominated by public and private high schools across the city, the sophomores and juniors will engage in a series of exercises led by DePaul educators to discover and tell their families’ stories on the university’s Lincoln Park Campus in Chicago through June 27.

The program targets academic achievers from low-income backgrounds who are immigrants, or the children of immigrants, from a wide range of Latin American, African, Asian and Eastern European countries. This year’s group speaks 11 languages in addition to English. The program is designed to give students the skills necessary to understand and embrace their family histories without letting their backgrounds become stumbling blocks for their continued academic success.
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