The Geography of Opportunity: Educational Progress of the Children of Immigrants in New and Traditional Immigrant Destinations

Kevin O'Neil, Princeton University

The geographic dispersal of the foreign-born population to the “New Immigrant Destinations” presents both opportunities and risks for the children of immigrants in these places. They may have access to better-funded, less segregated schools than their peers in the Traditional Immigrant Destinations, but programs to assist them may be less well-developed and co-national support networks may be weaker. This paper compares the educational performance of the children of immigrants in the New and Traditional Immigrant Destinations in terms of grade-level completion, using Census data. It tests whether any difference is best explained by differences in family or school district characteristics across New and Traditional Immigrant Destinations, and examines what variables best predict scholastic progress.