The experience of Cultural Stress in the School System among Puerto Rican Hurricane Maria migrant families

Hurricane María prompted a large-scale migration from Puerto Rico to the United States. Among other changes, this entailed a disruption to youths' education and necessitated navigating a new educational system. While prior research indicates that school environments are important influences on migrant adolescents' behavioral health, the specific mechanisms of this influence remain underexplored. Guided by cultural stress theory, we conducted qualitative interviews with Puerto Rican adolescents and parents (N=76) displaced to Florida by Hurricane María to explore how cultural stress manifests in the school context. The findings highlight three significant axes of interaction within the school context: language stress for youth and parents, peer relationships, and parental involvement with schools. This study underscores the critical role of schools in shaping the experiences of cultural stress for Puerto Rican Hurricane María crisis migrant children and parents. It emphasizes the importance of multilingual support, positive peer relationships, and addressing cultural differences in parental involvement to mitigate the negative impact of cultural stress on their well-being and educational outcomes.