By: Victor M. Sternberg, D.M.D. 

April 15, 2025 

Probably no issue has been more divisive in America over the last ten years than immigration. The issue has divided and continues to divide us. The issue is a complex one but worthy of a more nuanced discussion than currently occurs.

The story I want to share is more personal about immigrants. All of us are from elsewhere. This is a feel-good story that has few, if any, political implications. 

Two decades ago I placed an ad in the Pennysaver seeking an individual to help sterilize our surgical instruments. I indicated in the ad that no experience was necessary and I was willing to provide training for an inexperienced applicant. 

One of the first calls I fielded was from a young lady with a very pronounced European accent. She shared with me that she was from Bosnia and was currently working at Home Depot. She had come to America two years prior to escape the carnage that had visited her country during the war that was waged in the former Yugoslavia, primarily between Serbia and Bosnia. She

arrived with two children under the age of five. Her husband and the father of the children found it difficult to live in America and quickly returned to Bosnia, leaving her a single mother with no resources other than a great deal of ambition and intelligence.

She had been sponsored here as a refugee from a war-torn area. She’d quickly gotten a job at Hope Depot and learned English. She was seeking a greater salary to help support her children.

There was something about how she expressed herself, and particularly when she said the following, “Dr. Sternberg, you’ll never be sorry you hired me.” Meaningful words I had never heard before. And she was right. 

I decided to give this young lady an opportunity. She quickly learned the details of her position and performed them well. One day when I had some free time, I shared with her the art of taking dental x-rays, being mindful of the fact that she had never had any training as a dental assistant and at that point was only operating a sterilizing machine. 

She quickly demonstrated an ability to line up and take very accurate x-rays which, in some cases, were superior to those taken by people who had been educated formally.

I will continue this dialogue shortly but I wanted to share what happened next. 

She very much wanted to become a citizen of the United States because if she did her children would also become citizens. In order to do so however, she had to pass a citizen’s test which involved a great deal of American history and civics.

Thus began our journey on a daily basis where I would question her and she would do the homework. It quickly became obvious that she was becoming knowledgeable of our history and constitution. 

Along the way I asked my employees, who had been educated in the United States, the same questions I was asking Anita. 

Much to my chagrin, they could not answer many of the questions that Anita had mastered.

After several months of tutoring she took the exam. I was not surprised when she passed the exam and got every question correct. 

Ultimately, about a year later, she came to me and said that she needed to move on with her career because of the economic burden of raising two children and putting them through college, requiring a much greater income than I was able to provide. 

She had entered sixteen-month program to study to become an ultrasound specialist. The program was given on weekends, Saturday and Sunday all day, or during the week. She chose the weekend program and elected to go back to Home Depot where she could work from 6 am until 3 pm and would have time to study in the evenings. 

Sixteen months later she graduated at the top of her class. At that point an internship was required. Her internship was at Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital. She finished her internship earlier than the other students, with honors. 

Within a year she had a position in New York City as an ultrasound specialist dealing with high risk pregnancies. At our last encounter she was earning an income far in excess of $100,000 a year and her children had graduated from college. 

I would like to now contrast this with a disturbing article I read several years ago. A civics and history exam was administered to sophomore students at six ivy league colleges. The thirty-twoquestion test covered American history, the constitution and civics. The students scored a median average of 40% out of 100.

I took the exam and scored of 80%, and Anita aced the exam. Mind you she was the high school graduate from Bosnia. 

These two stories presented are important and prescient issues challenging our nation.

The first of which is immigration is the life blood of a nation and has always been the essence of the amazing story of America.

Many of those without resources or family support have accomplished the American Dream. This is the essence America. The fact is that there is no other place in the world this could happen.

On the other hand, the fact that we have failed to educate even “the best and brightest” inAmerican history and civics is a serious failure of our educational system. Despite spendingmore than any country in the world, we have one of the lowest educational outcomes among our peers.

To quote Thomas Jefferson in discussing democracy, "An educated citizenry is a vital requisitefor our survival as a free people." Given that standard, I think many of you would agree that we are in trouble.

As always, I appreciate your feedback. 

Yours truly, 

Victor M. Sternberg, D.M.D. 

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By Westchester Center for Periodontal & Implant Excellence

December 31, 2023