Q & A

* Ilda Esparza, Santa Ana Unified migrant education coordinator

As coordinator of the Santa Ana Unified School District’s migrant education program, Ilda Esparza oversees 24 tutors and community outreach workers who help children and their parents adjust to the constant changes of their lifestyle. For children, that means as many as four hours a week of after-school tutoring at 13 school sites across Santa Ana. For parents, who work seasonally in the fields of Orange County’s remaining agricultural areas, the office provides everything from donated food to instructions on how to conduct parent-teacher conferences. Esparza, 39, is responsible indirectly for more than 1,200 children and oversees an annual budget of about $300,000. She recently spoke with Times correspondent Jeff Kass about the migrant education program.

Q: Why do children of migrant education workers need extra schooling?

A: They’re here, they make friends, and then they’re gone. . . . When they get to a new school, not everyone is on the same math page.

Q: What do you advise the parents about parent-teacher conferences?

A: That it’s OK to ask questions. . . . You need to say to the teacher, “Look at this grade here. How did [the child] get it?” Even if it’s an A, is it because [the child] is in fifth grade and reading at a second-grade level?

Q: All of the people in your program are Latinos. What are their goals?

A: A lot of it is being citizens and learning English. That’s what they see themselves doing.

Q: Do people ever refuse your services?

A: Most of the parents say yes. Some say no because they’re scared about this immigrant stuff [such as Proposition 187, which would deny some government benefits to illegal immigrants]. They really take it to heart. They’re hard-working people. “We don’t get welfare,” they say. “Why do they say it’s us?”

Q: Why do migrant workers choose to live in Santa Ana?

A: One of the reasons we have a high concentration in Santa Ana is because it’s cheaper to live here, and they drive out to wherever they need to work.

Q: You do more for families that just help with schooling for their children. What else is involved?

A: We find out their needs. These families are just making it. They might not have beds to sleep in; because they move around a lot, they don’t have much.

Q: What do you like about your job?

A: You develop this relationship with the community, and you can get them to do things [that will be beneficial]. I told the kids, you’re going to summer school, and the parents supported me. You have time to talk to the parents. They get to know you.