Studies have found that most children and youth benefit from involvement in out-of-school (OST) time programs; however, minority children, and children of immigrants in particular, tend not to participate. Child Trends' new Research-to- Results brief, Children of Latino Immigrants and Out-of-School Time Programs, describes risk factors that contribute to low participation rates for children of immigrants, and discusses what these programs can do to help improve outcomes. In addition, the brief provides tips for attracting and retaining children of immigrant families in OST programs.

Children with at least one parent born outside the United States are the fastest-growing segment of the U.S. child population. Presently, children of immigrants make up one-quarter of the U.S. child population, and the majority of these children are Latino. Children of Latino immigrants are even more likely than other children of immigrants to live in poverty, which exposes them to risks that can jeopardize their healthy development.

Child Trends highlights several ways OST programs can support children of Latino immigrants, including:

• Give immigrant children a supervised place to go. Many immigrant parents work long hours, have irregular schedules or work late shifts. This leaves many of their children unsupervised by an adult during their out-of-school time.
• Provide or connect immigrant children with counseling or mental health services they may need. Many immigrant families feel that they are victimized by anti-immigrant sentiment and ongoing discrimination, and struggle with feeling unwanted in American society.
• Offer English instruction, in addition to providing academic assistance.

Children and youth in Latino immigrant families have numerous needs that can be met by appropriate OST programs. The challenge for programs is to recruit and serve these children and youth in culturally relevant ways.

Read here for seven tips on attracting and retaining children of immigrants in OST programs.