Controversial Legislation May Give Immigrant Students a Chance at College
For many undocumented immigrant students, college has been out of reach
When Marisol Hernandez arrived for her first day of third grade at a public school in Compton, Calif., about 10 years ago, she couldn't read any of the words that filled her textbooks but was nevertheless happy to have them. Her family had just moved from Mexico, and even from her 8-year-old perspective, Marisol (in order to protect her identity, U.S. News is using a pseudonym for this student) sensed she was in the land of opportunity. A shooting in the cafeteria of her school soon shook Marisol's faith, but it wasn't until she moved to Colorado and entered high school that she became truly disillusioned. It was then that she learned of her status as an undocumented immigrant and the impact this would have on her ability to go to college.
Undocumented immigrants living in America have legal rights to attend primary and secondary public schools, but those rights do not extend to higher education. Because immigration laws prevent these students from obtaining federal financial aid and just 10 states consider them eligible for in-state tuition at public universities, a vast majority of undocumented students simply can't afford to go to college. Marisol, who recently graduated with a 3.5 grade-point average, has dreams of studying classical humanities at Colorado State University, but today, she spends her time trying to figure out how to pay the bills.
"My friends were so excited about the loans they got and what schools they were going to," Marisol says. "My high school held a breakfast to honor the students who had received scholarships, but I couldn't go—not because I had poor grades or because I couldn't get a scholarship, but because I did not have a Social [Security number]."
A bill introduced by a bipartisan group of legislators this spring could dramatically improve undocumented students' access to higher education. Known in the Senate as the DREAM Act (for Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors), the bill would allow most students who came to the United States as children to stay in the country legally on a temporary basis upon graduation from high school. Though these students would not qualify for Pell grants under the DREAM Act, they would be eligible for work-study and student loans. If they studied at least two years toward a bachelor's degree, graduated from a two-year college, or served at least two years in the military, they would become eligible for permanent resident status.
While the DREAM Act has many supporters—including the College Board, the University of California system, Harvard University President Drew Gilpin Faust, Microsoft, and a number of other education, business, and political leaders—organizations like the Federation for American Immigration Reform strongly oppose the legislation. They say it would reward undocumented immigrant parents who have unlawfully brought their children into the country.
About 65,000 students who could benefit from the DREAM Act graduate from high school each year, according to a report published by the College Board in April. Though DREAM Act opponents express concerns that the bill would take financial aid and acceptance spots away from American citizens, the College Board's report found these concerns unfounded. The 11 states that consider undocumented students eligible for in-state tuition have not seen overwhelming numbers of new applicants, and most of the new applications they have received are from students seeking admission to community colleges with open enrollment policies and affordable tuition, the College Board states.
Ira Mehlman, media director at FAIR, says he would normally empathize with young adults put in difficult situations through no fault of their own. But if parents bring their children to this country illegally, it should be the parents' responsibility to help those children pay for higher education, Mehlman says. "When you ask the typical illegal immigrant why they came to this country, many will tell you that they did so because they wanted to do better for their family," Mehlman says. "The DREAM Act basically says to these people, 'While we disapprove of you breaking the law, we will still offer green cards and subsidized education to your children.' This simply encourages more people to break the law."
No control. Rep. Howard Berman, a Democrat whose district covers parts of California's Los Angeles County, says he decided to propose the federal legislation after he learned of an undocumented high school valedictorian who was nearly denied the opportunity to attend college because of her legal status. "We tell students to stay in school, do the best they can, resist temptation to join a gang or drop out, and their hard work will be rewarded," Berman says. "But many of the students who follow these guidelines are being blocked from success because they are undocumented." He adds that it is not fair to blame the students for their parents' actions, particularly because most undocumented students had no control over how their families entered the country. Berman hopes that the American Dream Act, as the House bill is known, will be signed into law this fall either on its own or as part of comprehensive immigration reform.
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Reader Comments
A different perspective
The people who are against the DREAM Act are people who are too worried about how "they" are unwilling to accept that it is BENEFICIAL TO THE US to help create and support a more open and diverse community and workforce.
I think people who support reducing immigration are not really afraid about having to pay the way for immigrants. They are more afraid that immigrants will take their spots of their children because they might actually work harder, appreciate the opportunity to study in America more, and perhaps one day, these immigrants would replace their positions of privilege someday. It is not the immigrants who are entitled, but the people who think that they get to be the one who can decide who is American and who is not. Some people who have been living in the US for many generations have not even leveraged the opportunity they have had here for most of their lives. Shame on them for denying that same opportunity to people who do not have it at all in their home countries!
I'm a child of legal immigrants and in terms of the issues regarding illegal immigration, I am not personally affected. However, I consider the viewpoints of young people who, although they did not always choose to come here when they were little, were brought here as a beacon of hope that would uplift the family out of otherwise poverty and suffering. This may sound like a bunch of emotional rhetoric to some but it is the truth. Young people who would benefit from the DREAM Act are just looking for a way to fulfill the hopes of their parents and families, this is not so much about entitlements and stealing taxes but about what is the right thing to do for these young people who are innocent in the illegal immigration issue, work hard in school, and potentially could be productive members of society? Wouldn't providing opportunities for accessing education allow them to make more informed and productive decisions that could perhaps result in participating in the naturalization process.
My parents came here when they were 21, legally. At the time, there were no ESL programs so they had to fail basically every class but still managed to get into college through the public state system. Neither of them got graduate degrees but they were the first people to go to college in my family. Through a humble lifestyle, they were able to give my brother and I everything we could ask for. Allow me to rewrite the story as though we were illegal immigrants. Basically, the whole story would have ended at the point where they failed every class because of their inability to speak English (at the time when they came here, now there are English-programs). They wouldn't have been able to afford college and my brother and I probably would have been born regardless but we would not have had nearly as comfortable of a lifestyle as we do now.
People need to see things in other people's shoes before they start judging them.
Are you kidding me!?
This entire idea is absolutely absurd! I am a white LEGAL student from New Jersey, whose parents parents came here the right way. They went through the processes that took in order to provide the American dream to their children and so on. The fact that illegal immigrants think that they are entitled to a free education at my expense is laughable.
I myself will be in serious debt when I finish my college schooling and I graduated with a 4.0 GPA. I dont see anyone rushing to my aid and assisting me with my school costs. Thats because clearly people in this country are more concerned with the unreasonable cries of people who don't belong here instead of the problems right under their noses.
When they come here legally, get proper documentation, and contribute to the economy in this country, then they will be able to benefit from our government.
Please don't give these people your sympathy.
I understand both sides
But honestly we don't have to be punished for our parents "American Dream", because we had no say. WE came here at such a young age, and after graduating HS trying to figure out how we're going to fit in this country being illegal. My "American Dream" was not like my parents. They obviously came here to find a job that paid enough money to give me a better life. My dream was and is to get an education,and now to be legal in this country. You might say go back to your country. I understand America shouldn't be blamed for other countries problems and corrupt government. But some of us were basically raised here, lived our childhood here, and most important were educated here. I graduated when i was 17 and i still feel lost. I've been here all my life, i don't know of any other country. No one told me my education would come to an end. I'm a criminal just because my parents brought me to this country illegaly? I wish i could have the opportunity that many have. I see people who are legal here or born here, that don't bother to go to school, are a threat to society, in gangs, and don't have any thrive to be someone in life. These people throw away the opportunity they have to be in a great country. The opportunity that i wish i had. I graduated with a 3.5 GPA, never been in any trouble with the law(i guess until now you might think). When i think about the difference between some people who have a SS and myself, it honestly hurts that a SS# makes them a better person thn i am. I'm not for or againts any of this, only because when i came here i wasn't told i would become a criminal.
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