NewsPalm Beach CountyRegion C Palm Beach CountyWest Palm Beach

Actions

Immigrant student shares difficult path from Guatemala to graduation

Posted at 7:42 PM, May 24, 2017
and last updated 2017-05-24 19:42:57-04

Thousands of Palm Beach County students are graduating high school this week.

Many of them have worked hard to earn that diploma but there's some students who have traveled thousands of miles to get it.

Nineteen-year old Orlando Morales-Lopez is one of those students.

"Deep breaths!" he said on Wednesday morning, as he got ready for the big day.

He was preparing to walk the stage with fellow Forest Hill High High school graduates. But it's the journey it took to get here that makes this day extra special.

Morales-Lopez was born and raised in Guatemala. He dropped out of school in 6th grade to work and support his family, working on local farms with his grandfather.

"I had to work in order to buy food," he said in an interview with WPTV's Alanna Quillen.

When his grandfather died, he decided to move to America to find a better education so he could support his family. 

"I decided to come here, seeking a good future," he said.

Just three years ago at age 16, Morales-Lopez came to the United States alone knowing only his native Mayan language. Starting in 9th grade at that age, Morales-Lopez hadn't been to school in nearly four years.

"At first, I didn't want to go to school because I couldn't understand anything," he said. "I couldn't understand anybody, they couldn't understand me."

He moved into this tiny pool house with his uncle while studying late and learning vocabulary. He relied on his mother -- who was thousands of miles away -- for support.

"Sometimes when I arrived home, I cried. I was angry because I couldn't do the homework they gave me," he said. "She was the only person who was with me, every time she cried with me."

He studied hard to learn English and Spanish fluently in less than two years.

"He'd almost always be the first one there and he'd be the last one to leave. If I stayed until midnight, he would be there until midnight," said Moralez-Lopez's literacy teacher, Ann Yamchura. "His willingness to overcome all obstacles. That young man is willing to work as hard as it takes, he's willing to put in as much time as it takes."

She said he inspired his teachers and fellow students alike.

"It's pure pleasure as a teacher to work with a student who wants to learn so badly," she said.

He eventually became an honor student and eventually started tutoring other immigrant students. But there were some days that he said he felt like he wanted to quit.

"I started to think about my family because I have a little brother and little sister and I don't want them to experience what I experience," he said. "It inspires me to work even harder because I want t a good future for them."

On Wednesday, he graduated high school, overcoming what he says thousands of immigrant students here struggle with in Palm Beach County.

"Orlando's story is not unique. His background is not unique. We have many many immigrant students who come to this country where there face similar or even worse situations," said Yamchura.

"It's similar to so many stories of the youth we work with but unfortunately, not all of them make it this far," said Tim Gamwell, executive director for the Guatemalan Maya Center. "We hope that the district continues to support our immigrant students and indigenous students."

Nationally, the Hispanic dropout rate is declining but remains higher than blacks, whites, and Asians, according the the Pew Research Center.

According to the District Diversity & Equity Committee, from 2011 to 2016, Palm Beach County Schools outperformed the average graduation rate for the State of Florida.

The District’s graduation rate increased over those five years by six percentage points. The graduation rate among black students increased from 63.8% in 2013 to 73.7% in 2016 - an increase of 9.9%. The graduation rate for white students increased from 85.5% in 2013 to 90.7% in 2016, an increase of 5.2%. The rate for Asian students went up from 91.7% in 2015 to to 93.1% in 2016.

The Hispanic graduation rate jumped from 75 percent to nearly 80 percent from 2013 to to 2016.

But Gamwell said it's hard to follow the numbers for some immigrants.

"To say that these Mayan families are Hispanic missed a larger picture. Many of them are indigenous and come from a completely different culture. And without understanding the culture, you may miss the necessary relationship that goes with educating our families and our students," he said.

Either way, Gamwell credits increasing graduation rates for immigrants to new programs in the school district.

"One big stride is an initiative that started last year, the Welcome Center -- which is a one stop shop for enrolling students. And that's helped a lot of students who have come to the U.S. recently and may not speak the language or understand the process for registration," he said. "The outreach of the guidance counselors. The school board's resolution to be a welcoming school district and a general sensitivity to the issue, especially since the election."

Morales-Lopez has this advice for students like himself.

"Everything is possible, but first, you have to believe in yourself," he said.

Morales-Lopez's family in Guatemala could not attend his graduation due to distance and cost. With his trilingual skills, he hopes to work with Palm Beach County Schools as an ESOL coordinator.

This fall, he plans to attend Palm Beach State College to study crime scene technology.