Elsabel Rincon ‘02: Immigration Champion
Elsabel Rincon, Class of 2002, has been an immigration advocate since her arrival to the U.S. in 1994
SALEM (Sept. 27, 2024) – In the field of advocacy, there are likely few alumni that bring Salem Public Schools more pride than Elsabel Rincon, a 2002 graduate of Salem High School.
Ms. Rincon immigrated to the U.S. from the Dominican Republic in 1994, settling in The Point neighborhood. The oldest of four siblings, she often found herself navigating situations for her family.
“I naturally fell into that role,” she said.
In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, Salem Public Schools is reconnecting with prominent alumni making significant differences in their communities.
It is a role she has never left. Currently, Ms. Rincon has a full plate:
- She is completing her dissertation – Immigration Safety Planning Post-Migration – to obtain her PhD in Global Studies from UMass Lowell.
- Simultaneously, her primary career is with Mill Cities Community Investments (MCCI), specializing in loans for small business professionals, many of whom are immigrants in disadvantaged communities.
- Ms. Rincon also finds time to oversee her nonprofit Welcome Immigrant Network (with the aptly-named acronym, WIN), founded in 2012, which empowers and advocates for immigrants in Greater Salem.
WIN helps immigrants in an abundance of ways, not the least of which challenging the myths and rhetoric around immigration. It researches and measures the economic impact and workforce participation of immigrants. It also helps newly-arrived folks find jobs and get their taxes paid, among many other services.
Following high school, Ms. Rincon attended Boston University for five semesters, but left for financial reasons. After several years, she attended Springfield College on weekends and graduated in 2016 with her undergraduate degree in Human Services, and moved on to receive her master’s degree in 2018 from Merrimack College in Community Engagement.
All the while, she worked in different capacities for immigrants and too often encountered those without the awareness of services, much less how to navigate them.
It is the impetus of Ms. Rincon’s dissertation. A highly-charged issue surrounded in uncertainty, she is focused on establishing a safety plan for immigrants and noncitizens under threat of deportation and displacement, particularly those employed, in schools and contributing to communities.
“Our immigration system is failing our whole communities by not implementing a safety plan,” she noted.
In February, Ms. Rincon returned to SHS to speak with recently arrived immigrant students about her experience and the possibilities afforded to them. She recalled a small group that was encouraged to know she is a college graduate.
Ms. Rincon expects to deliver her dissertation to UML within the next 18 months. She admittedly isn’t certain of her next move, but offered a hint:
“Maybe extend my work to an international arena somehow.”
About Salem Public Schools
Salem Public Schools is an urban public school district in Salem, Massachusetts. Salem is a small, diverse city with a proud maritime and immigrant history. Our leaders and our teachers are all passionate about education and understand the urgency of improving student achievement with equity and social-emotional needs as the lens we view all of our work through. We respect and value the racial, cultural, and linguistic diversity of our students and their families, and have a strong commitment to the Salem community. Salem Public Schools staff serve all of our students, regardless of ability or language. Salem Public Schools enrolls approximately 4,000 students across its eleven schools.
