logo
Brief Publisher Logo
FACT BRIEF

Did a recent immigration wave send 400 undocumented children to a Wisconsin town of 15,000 people?

By Tom Kertscher
View this fact brief on Wisconsin Watch
Copy link
email
Copy featured image
email
NO

Based on the latest count, as of September 2023, enrollment in the Whitewater Unified School District included 181 "newcomers" over the previous three years.

The district includes the city of Whitewater, about 50 miles southwest of Milwaukee, which has a population of about 15,000.

Newcomers are "multilingual learners" who are new to the United States — generally less than two years.

There were 83 newcomers in the 2021-22 school year, 84 in 2022-23 and 14 so far in 2023-24.

The newcomers are a subset of the district's 415 "multilingual learners" — those who speak, or are exposed to in the home, at least one language besides English.

Multilingual students include some who were born in the U.S. In Whitewater they speak eight languages besides English, including Spanish, Mandarin and Hindi.

The Whitewater Police Department Dec. 28, 2023, wrote to President Joe Biden asking for more resources because of increases in immigrants.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
Google Docs Whitewater superintendent email Jan. 5, 2024
Channel 3000 Whitewater officials set the record straight on immigration influx
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Wisconsin Watch
Wisconsin Watch, the news arm of the nonpartisan, nonprofit Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, increases the quality and quantity of investigative reporting in Wisconsin, while training current and future investigative journalists. Its work fosters an informed citizenry and strengthens democracy.
FACT BRIEF BY
Brief Publisher Logo
Latest fact briefs from Wisconsin Watch
facebook
twitter
email
email
About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.