The Current Chapter 1 Program and New Directions, which was submitted to Congress on February 22. This report describes the services provided through the MEP, characterizes the student population served and suggests policy options for improving targeting and accountability. Most migrant students identified and served through the MEP are enrolled in grades K through 6. These are also the grades in which students are easiest to identify, least costly to serve, and in which other compensatory education services are most readily available. The nation's migrant children are not evenly distributed across the country.
Most migrant children have substantial needs for supplementary instructional and support services.
Large proportions of the children are limited English proficient, many are one or more years behind their peers in school, and their teachers report that on average their reading and language arts achievement lag behind national norms. State and local MEP staff view summer-term services as important, especially for currently migrant students. Summer programs assist in filling in educational gaps caused by movement during the regular term, promoting accrual of secondary-school credits, and serving as a link between regular terms. The funding formula for determining state MEP grants takes into account the number of MEP-eligible children within a state and their length of residency. Further, in-school, formerly migrant children usually cost less to serve than currently migrant children or children who are not enrolled in school.