“Our society tends to say, ​‘Well, why don’t they just learn English?’ Well, learning another language is extremely difficult,” ELL teacher Cheryl Welch shared. She works primarily with students from the Marshall Islands and she understands how hard kids work to acquire the English language.

Seeds of Hope explores how schools welcome and educate immigrant and refugee families as they start their lives over in America. Follow Nebraska’s newcomer students: the inconceivable trauma and tribulations of their past, the perseverance to succeed in the present, and their hopes for a brighter future through quality education.

Interesting Facts

• Since 2000, Nebraska’s public schools have seen a 113 percent increase in English Language Learner (ELL) students. Source: Nebraska Department of Education
• Nebraska led the nation in resettling the most refugees per capita in 2016. Source: U.S. State Department’s Refugee Processing Center and the U.S. Census Bureau 
• The 28-episode For A Better Life Mini-Series explains the basics of what it means to be an immigrant or refugee student in Nebraska. (Available Now).