Prince William County (web | news) 's crackdown on illegal immigrants is hitting the school system as immigrant students begin to drop out.


Just a few months after the controversial decision to cut services for illegal immigrants and only after police started checking, there is more evidence that the crackdown is pushing immigrants out of the county.

Since September 30th, about 600 students who are "English to Speakers of Other Languages" students have withdrawn from county schools altogether.

Carolina Padua teaches pre-school and said many children, because they are born here, are citizens, while their parents are not. "They came here to learn something and where they're going, they probably won't learn what they learned here," she said.

It's illegal for schools to ask immigration status, but the assumption is many of the ESOL dropouts are in the country illegally or even more likely, they are children of illegal immigrants.

Following that assumption, the exodus could be construed as an indirect result of the crackdown, one the policy's architect welcomes, "What we've said all along is that this effort to reduce illegal immigration in Prince William County is going to ultimately save," said Corey Stewart, a Prince William Co. Chairmen.

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