Untapped Potential: Partnering with Community-Based Organizations to Support Participation of Lower-Incidence Immigrant Communities in the Illinois Preschool for All Initiative

Smaller immigrant communities can face barriers to participating in prekindergarten programs, in particular lack of knowledge about the program, language barriers and enrollment logistics. Community-based organizations working with these communities can support outreach efforts and play a role in overcoming all of these barriers. This study presents findings from focus groups of a number of community-based organizations working with smaller immigrant populations in the Chicago metro area, and identifies a number of strategies that could be employed to support prekindergarten participation among immigrant families. The appendix contains "The Immigrant Family Resource Program (IFRP) of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR)". (Contains 1 table and 4 endnotes.)