The 976 students at Place Bridge Academy speak 65 different languages and come from 40 nations.
One of those nations is Ethiopia. That's where eighth grader Asiya Hassan and her family traveled from four years ago.
"I didn't know how to speak English," she said. "I only knew how to say, 'How are you?' and ‘Hi.'"
Hassan, like most kids at Place Bridge, are English learners. Only 15 percent are native English speakers.
"I saw a lot of people speaking other languages, and not only English so I thought, 'Yeah, people are just like me,'" Hassan said.
That’s why Denver Human Services (DHS) and Denver Public Schools (DPS) are teaming up to bring much-needed resources to students working to integrate into the state.
Jaleesa Torrez, a school-based social case worker for Denver Human Services at Place Bridge, said her job is to be that extra support for students like Hassan and their families.
Those families also face obstacles beyond language barriers.
"Some of the cultural norms of children's upbringing in different cultures are different than what we have here in the United States, and so we want our families to know about the laws here in Colorado," Torrez said.
The idea is to be preventive.
"We're really trying to provide resources, and then educating parents as they’re integrating into the United States so they're aware of our customs," Torrez said.
Joe Homlar, a DHS employee and one of the people behind the push to get on-site caseworkers in some DPS schools, said the key is to remove barriers.
"By having a DHS social case workers in the schools, that's just one more step where we can remove barriers and make sure that we're bringing in families and making sure that the school is a valuable resource," Homlar said.
Caseworkers are currently placed at Place Bridge, Kunsmiller and Whittier.
"We want to make sure that parents know about that and that they can ask us and ask school staff about what might be different, as well as what might be available to help support their families," he said.
And families like Hassan's are using their new school to bridge their past life with a hopeful future.
“At this school, they have a lot of different people and it's welcoming, and you can feel belonging here," Hassan said. "I just feel so happy to be here, and I love this school so much."
