Responding to visa emergency at Lydia Patterson
BATON ROUGE, La. — The Louisiana Annual Conference unanimously voted to support immigrants, just as attendees heard news that the U.S. government is halting visa interviews, threatening the immediate future of the Lydia Patterson Institute, a United Methodist college-preparatory school that welcomes students from Mexico. An emotional moment unfolded June 12 as Carla Cardoza, the school’s president, shared news of the U.S. State Department’s pause.
If such a situation remains, about 30% of students will not be able to return to the El Paso, Texas, school in the fall. Mark Lambert and Todd Rossnagel report.