Properly supported, the children of migrants, farm laborers and other low-income immigrant workers can thrive in some of the bay area's most challenging academic programs. Five such students at Lennard High School in eastern Hillsborough County are working through a grueling dual enrollment program with Hillsborough Community College. They are shining examples of what can happen when determination meets opportunity.

Profiled recently in the Tampa Bay Times, the students are all products of the well-regarded charter school program run by the Redlands Christian Migrant Association, which provides child care and education services for low-income and rural families. The brightest students were encouraged to apply for the Collegiate Academy, a dual enrollment program that allows students to earn college credit while in high school.

The students at Lennard have the added challenge of coming from families with migratory or seasonal employment and the ever-present cloud of citizenship issues. Each is having varying degrees of success in the program. All are committed to achieving their goals, which include becoming an astrophysicist and a neurologist.

In an era of virulent public discourse about immigrants in the United States, it is affirming to see their children excelling in education. In doing so, they open doors for themselves and their families. This is the American dream in motion, one difficult class at a time for five students who want more.