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Geneseo
Migrant Center:
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| Beyond its service to the
college community, the Center has been a good neighbor to the wider
community - Geneseo and the surrounding counties of central-western New
York State.
It has reached out to local growers, the employers of seasonal farm labor. The Center has on-site access to farmworkers only with the support of their employers. It seeks employers' cooperation in identifying migrant needs and providing services. |
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Over the past 30 years, more
than 1900 people have worked with the Center in some capacity. Most live
in Geneseo and surrounding towns. They gain hands-on training,
generalizable skills, and useful job experience. Part-time or full-time
employees also bring home cash income.
Training, skills, experience, and income in turn have a multiplier effect in the community, contributing to the regional economy. |
| The Center has other impacts
on our community. Through outreach to schools and civic groups, it
builds public awareness of farmworkers' needs and also of the
contributions that farmworkers make to our lives. Transient farmworkers
have all too often been marginalized, even invisible, in their host
community.
Public exhibits of farmworker life, arts, and cultural heritage are one way to tell farmworkers' stories. Another way is to facilitate direct communication between farmworkers and their neighbors. And when farmworkers are assisted in integrating into the host community, as temporary or (if they "settle out") permanent community members, everyone benefits. |
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