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The Day Worker Center's vision is a world of diverse communities where day laborers live with full rights and responsibilities in an environment of mutual respect, peace, and harmony. A goal of the Day Worker Center is to spread awareness about the day worker community among youth. Our hope is that bringing awareness to the youth will inspire them to get involved and advocate for the day worker community. We believe it is important to inspire youth embrace aspirations to build a better world because...
THERE IS NO AGE TO MAKE A CHANGE!
THERE IS NO AGE TO MAKE A CHANGE!
As of March 2022:
We have partnered with over
14
local schools ranging from elementary to college
Approximately that is about
2000
students that we have
worked with
Together, over
40
projects have
been completed
From the teachers:
Bayard Nielsen, Spanish Teacher
Notre Dame High School
“As a local high school Spanish teacher, I was looking for meaningful opportunities for students to work with Spanish speakers. Each year I bring my students, they say it’s one of the most meaningful experiences they have had as Spanish learners. For many, it serves as a window into communities and cultures they did not know before, but with which they can now stand in solidarity. For others, it serves as a mirror into their own communities and cultures, offering them a chance to share a piece of themselves with others. For all students, one of their biggest takeaways is that each of them can relate to someone they spoke with somehow.
The impact this partnership has had on my classroom is that students use the language and skills they have learned to form new relationships with others. They make connections between their own cultural practices with the practices of day workers, and for some students who might not have used Spanish outside of the classroom previously, their Spanish finally comes alive.”
Teresa Fradejas,
Spanish Teacher,
Kehillah Jewish School
“Year after year I would visit the Center and the experience would be different every time. Not only were my students able to practice their Spanish, they also learned about different situations and realities that may have been foreign to them. The Center provided a point of encounter for my students to interact with the workers while also creating connections; one of my favorite memories is when, after talking to the workers and teaching them some English, the workers and my students began playing music together. It was a powerful and beautiful moment that students still remember today. Our visits to the Center enrich our class and give the students a purpose to find out more about the Center and ways in which they can be helpful. It also helps them understand the journey that some people go through in order to fulfill their dreams and have a better future. All in all, the visits to the Center help bring Spanish to life.”
Jorge De Luna, MPH, Director of Community Engaged Learning-Health, Stanford University
Haas Center for Public Service
“The DWC has provided opportunities for our students they could not have imagined. Our students discovered a community of day laborers many of them were not aware of before and a great deal of co-learning and co-teaching has taken place over the years.
Although our projects often focus on skills development, our students often walk away with other important lessons which teach them about humility in service, the impact of socio-economic factors on health, and how to be an effective advocate and ally. I am proud to call the Day Worker Center our friend and community partner, and I hope we can continue to work together to make our community a better place for everyone.”
Philip Pompei, Associate Campus Minister,
Community Service and Outreach, Saint Francis High School
“Our social justice classes at Saint Francis High School have benefitted immensely from having Maria join us for guest speaking appearances each of the last few years. We have invited her to speak at the end of our unit on "Welcome the Stranger," which lifts up modern day justice issues involving refugees and migrants who leave their homeland in search of a better life. The students love hearing from Maria about the real, relevant ways in which the Day Worker Center fulfills the call to Welcome the Stranger and are inspired by her story and the stories of so many of the day workers. Meeting and hearing stories about the workers has helped our students build empathy for folks in similar situations and grow in solidarity with this population of neighbors.”
Verónica Meza, Spanish Department Chair,
The Girls’ Middle School
“It has been a pleasure to bring some students to the Day Worker Center. Every year, we have one week at The Girls’ Middle School, where teachers can lead a course different from the subject we teach, and I organize diverse activities with my students. We visit Latino galleries, and one of my favorites is “Community Service at The Day Worker Center.” Every time my students go to the Center, they are welcomed by María Marroquín, a natural leader who likes to connect with students friendly and assign chores that my students can do, have fun and understand the purpose of the activity. It is meant for students to connect with the community, know the value of Latino cultural background by connecting with workers at the Center, and understand the importance of continuous learning and speaking Spanish in California.”
Alice Miano,
Spanish Professor,
Stanford University
“My students and I are so grateful for our collaboration with the Day Worker Center. Each quarter, members of the Center chat in Spanish with my students. For 30 minutes weekly, we talk about daily life topics such as family, work, and hobbies, as well as life experiences and societal issues. Besides helping my students make measurable gains in their conversational proficiency, the workers have taught us so much about life! In getting to know a different group of workers each quarter through their stories, testimonies, and opinions, we have witnessed what it means to live a life of grace, resilience, and positivity in the face of great adversity. My students have also appreciated the boundless kindness of the workers, who listen with saintly patience as my learners stumble through the beautiful Spanish language. Words cannot express my gratitude as a teacher for the invaluable lessons my students have learned from the workers”
from the students:
— “I really enjoyed connecting on a personal level with the day workers and understanding their experience in a way that made a personal connection rather than just an academic one.”
— “Active inclusion in the lives of migrants…was absolutely life changing to the way I consider my privilege and activism. I will remember this experience with the community for the rest of my life.”
— “I learned a lot about the real implications of poor migratory laws by talking about experiences with the migrant day workers.”
— “I always left the Center feeling so happy because the conversations I had with the workers were always so meaningful. I learned so much from them and about their stories and they will always have a very special place in my heart.”
Learn more:
ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS:
MIDDLE SCHOOLS:
Click here to learn more about Made Into America project.
HIGH SCHOOLS:
About our partnership with Notre Dame High School:
The project Day Worker Stories: Using Language & Technology to Advocate for our Community:
Click HERE to see the stories from 2024
Click HERE to see the loteria game created for our 25th anniversary from 2021
Click HERE to see the stories from 2019
Click HERE to see the stories from 2018
Click HERE to see the stories from 2017
Click HERE for stories from 2016
Click HERE for stories from 2015
Senior Service Learning Project:
Click here to watch a video students created to show how the Day Worker Center has helped them.
HIGHER EDUCATION:
