The PK-12 Immigration Literature Guide was introduced at the recent PK-12 Immigration Literature Conference, attended by more than 300 people in CCNY's Great Hall.
The City College of New York-based CUNY-Initiative on Immigration and Education (CUNY-IIE) released its PK-12 Immigration Literature Guide, a selection of 100 recently published PreK-12 books that showcase the transformative power of immigration-centered stories.
The guide is organized into four sections based on age range: early childhood and elementary picture books; upper elementary chapter books; middle school; and high school. Each sub-section presents brief summaries of 25 books and highlights five authors to show the people behind the stories.
“This collection offers an entry point into the humanization of immigration, introducing readers to resilient characters, courageous journeys, and acts of solidarity, while confronting racism, xenophobia, and healing from trauma,” wrote the authors, Rosa Angela Calosso of the CUNY Graduate Center and Cecilia M. Espinosa of Lehman College, in the introduction.
The guide features several authors who presented at the recent PK-12 Immigration Literature Conference, which celebrated the works, writing, and stories of immigrant communities and their authors. The theme of the conference, “Storytelling for Visibility, Understanding, and Transformation,” reflected the organizers’ commitment to amplifying the voices of these communities. As the attendees united in opposition to harmful and hateful anti-immigrant policies and book bans, they also explored immigration through a range of perspectives in recently published books curated for the occasion.
Author Edwidge Danticat, Wun Tsun Tam Mellon Professor of the Humanities in the Department of African American and African Diaspora Studies at Columbia University, served as keynote speaker. The attendees also heard from four distinguished children's and young adult authors: Sonia Guiñansaca, Areli Morales, Emma Otheguy and Ly Tran. Ten breakout sessions led by educators, social workers, librarians, and community leaders covered a variety of topics, including: “Books as Bridges: How Elementary Students Use Literature for Advocacy;” “Teaching about Religious Diversity with Picture Books for All Ages;” and “The Power of Story: Supporting Immigrant Youth Mental Health Through Literature.”
“The conference welcomed over 300 people to CCNY’s Great Hall to celebrate immigrants and authors who center immigration in a time of anti-immigrant discourse, policies and programs,” said the conference organizer, Professor of Bilingual Education & TESOL Tatyana Kleyn. “It allowed us to uplift immigrant voices through storytelling and come together in community as we centered joy as an act of resistance.”
CUNY-IIE envisions educators across New York State and beyond, using its new Immigration Literature Guide to foster deep, meaningful classroom conversations that highlight our shared humanity. “This guide and conference couldn’t have come at a more crucial time,” said CUNY-IIE Project Director Daniela Alulema. “Our educators need the resources and spaces to build community, support one another, and proudly uplift immigrant stories and storytellers.”
About The City College of New York
Since 1847, The City College of New York has provided a high-quality and affordable education to generations of New Yorkers in a wide variety of disciplines. CCNY embraces its position at the forefront of social change. It is ranked #1 by the Harvard-based Opportunity Insights out of 369 selective public colleges in the United States on the overall mobility index. This measure reflects both access and outcomes, representing the likelihood that a student at CCNY can move up two or more income quintiles. Education research organization Degree Choices ranks CCNY #1 nationally among universities for economic return on investment. In addition, the Center for World University Rankings places CCNY in the top 1.8% of universities worldwide in terms of academic excellence. Labor analytics firm Lightcast puts at $3.2 billion CCNY’s annual economic impact on the regional economy (5 boroughs and 5 adjacent counties) and quantifies the “for dollar” return on investment to students, taxpayers and society. At City College, more than 15,000 students pursue undergraduate and graduate degrees in eight schools and divisions, driven by significant funded research, creativity and scholarship. In 2023, CCNY launched its most expansive fundraising campaign, ever. The campaign, titled “Doing Remarkable Things Together” seeks to bring the College’s Foundation to more than $1 billion in total assets in support of the College mission. CCNY is as diverse, dynamic and visionary as New York City itself. View CCNY Media Kit.
Syd Steinhardt
212-650-7875
ssteinhardt@ccny.cuny.edu