(NAME-MCE) 1% of Texas College Students Lack Residency Documentation

[Anselmo Villanueva]

1% of Texas College Students Lack Residency Documentation

About 12,000 students in Texas -- or 1 percent of all college  students in
the state -- lack the legal documentation to show that they  reside in the
United States legally, The Dallas Morning News reported. The  figures come
amid a legal challenge to a state law that grants such  students in-state
tuition rates if they meet certain conditions.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/0315dnmetimmigcount.3d35b14.html

Number of undocumented residents getting in-state tuition for Texas colleges
rises

Monday, March 15, 2010  By KATHERINE LEAL UNMUTH   /  The Dallas Morning
News kunmuth at dallasnews.com

The number of undocumented immigrant college students paying in-state
tuition and receiving financial aid at Texas' public colleges and
universities continues to climb, according to state higher education
records.

During the fall semester, 12,138 students – about 1 percent of all
Texas<http://topics.dallasnews.com/topic/Texas> college
students – benefited from the state law granting in-state tuition, according
to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. Most of the immigrants
among those students are illegal, and some others are not legal permanent
residents or U.S. citizens.

Texas awarded about $33.6 million in state and institutional financial aid
to those students between fall 2004 and summer 2008.

In 2001, Texas became the first state in the country to pass an in-state
tuition law. The law created a national movement. Many private universities
also now award aid to illegal immigrant students.

Now some of the students are graduating but unable to work legally as
professionals. Julie, 29, who moved from Mexico to Austin at age 12, earned
a degree in nursing from the University of
Texas<http://topics.dallasnews.com/topic/University_of_Texas>.
She is unable to work, so instead she volunteers in
Dallas<http://topics.dallasnews.com/topic/Dallas%2C_Texas>.


"You have people here, and they're trained," said Julie, who did not want
her last name used because of her immigration status. "The state has
invested in us, so why not let us be contributing members of society and our
community?"

But immigration reform has stalled. Congress has repeatedly failed to pass
the Dream Act, a proposal that would put the students on a path to
citizenship.

Critics question how much tuition discounts and state financial aid cost the
state, especially during tough economic times. A lawsuit has been filed
challenging the law.

Even so, Gov. Rick Perry
<http://topics.dallasnews.com/topic/Rick_Perry> supports
the law aiding illegal immigrant students. In a recent debate, he said the
students are on the path to citizenship. However, they actually won't be on
that path unless the Dream Act passes.

Illegal immigrants entering Texas' higher education system are direct
beneficiaries of a 1982 Supreme Court decision, Plyler vs. Doe. Parents in
Tyler sued after the state began charging tuition for illegal immigrant
children. The court ruled that Texas and the rest of the country must
educate illegal immigrant children free of charge in public schools.

Some of the most vocal illegal immigration opponents don't oppose the
decision. But they say higher education is different, because it is
tuition-based.

 Suit challenges law

  A lawsuit was filed in December challenging Texas' law providing the
students in-state tuition and state aid. The students are not eligible for
federal aid such as Pell Grants.

Attorneys for the Immigration Reform Coalition of Texas sued the University
of Houston <http://topics.dallasnews.com/topic/Houston>, Houston Community
College and Lone Star College systems in Harris County District Court, but
the case was moved to federal court. "It's not like we're swimming in budget
surpluses," said attorney David Rogers. "It's the responsibility of the
government of Mexico to educate Mexican citizens."

Challenges to similar laws are also occurring in
California<http://topics.dallasnews.com/topic/California> and
Nebraska <http://topics.dallasnews.com/topic/Nebraska>.
Arizona<http://topics.dallasnews.com/topic/Arizona> bans
illegal immigrants from receiving in-state tuition.

Rogers argued that taxpayers suffer because of the law. It's unfair, he
added, that the state gives benefits that students from
Oklahoma<http://topics.dallasnews.com/topic/Oklahoma> or
other states can't receive.

A challenge to a similar law in
Kansas<http://topics.dallasnews.com/topic/Kansas> failed
in 2005 after a federal judge found that out-of-state college students had
no standing to challenge the law there, since they had not been harmed by
it.

Rogers said states are not supposed to offer benefits to illegal immigrants
that are not offered to eligible U.S. citizens.

But University of Houston law professor Michael A. Olivas said federal law
clearly allows states to draft their own policies, and he believes the Texas
case is similar to the Kansas one.

"It is a matter for states to determine," he said. "In-state status is a
state issue."

Illegal immigrant students were never barred from enrolling in Texas
colleges, but the higher tuition price tag for nonstate residents often
meant they couldn't afford to attend.

The Texas law requires students to attend school in the state for at least
three years before graduation from a Texas high school. Students also must
file an affidavit saying they plan to apply for permanent residency as soon
as possible. State officials have argued that the treatment is not
preferential in comparison to residency requirements for other students.

State Rep. Leo Berman, R-Tyler, has tried sponsoring a bill denying
education benefits to illegal immigrants in the past, but he later realized
that went against the Plyler precedent.

"I have concerns about the expense for taxpayers," Berman said. "We're not
providing enough grant and loan money to our own U.S. citizens."

Carlos Hernandez <http://topics.dallasnews.com/topic/Carlos_Hernandez>, 27,
was an illegal immigrant when he graduated from the University of Texas in
2005 with a degree in petroleum engineering. He has since become a U.S.
citizen through marriage. He moved from Mexico to Texas when he was 9 years
old.

He said many parents and students already pay taxes, and that he hopes
immigration reform will create a "return on investment" for the state.

 Take away, pay back

  "The main complaint from people who oppose such laws is that students are
taking away," said Hernandez, now a drilling engineer for an oil exploration
and production company. "If you allow them to go to school, to work and make
a higher wage, they're able to pay back."

Such arguments don't sit well with groups like the Federation for American
Immigration Reform in Washington, D.C.

"Every seat filled by an illegal alien is not being filled by someone else
from the state," said spokesman Ira Mehlman.

But Rick Noriega <http://topics.dallasnews.com/topic/Rick_Noriega>, the
former Texas legislator who sponsored the in-state tuition law, said that
educating the students is an economic development issue.

"This is about access to higher education," said Noriega, now the president
of Avance, a nonprofit organization that educates Hispanic parents on
preparing children for school. "The alternative is to slam the door on any
hopes and dreams. How are they going to perform in high school if they don't
even have a chance at higher education?"
 NORTH TEXAS COLLEGES BENEFIT FROM IN-STATE TUITION LAW

Number of students in North Texas public colleges enrolled in fall 2009
benefiting from HB1403, which includes illegal immigrants and other
immigrant students who are not permanent residents or U.S. citizens:

 *University of Texas-Austin *, 569

*Texas A&M University<http://topics.dallasnews.com/topic/Texas_A%26M_University>
*, 304

*University of North Texas*, 304

*University of Texas-Arlington<http://topics.dallasnews.com/topic/Arlington%2C_Texas>
*, 315

*University of Texas-Dallas*, 192

*Texas Woman's University*, 65

*Collin County Community College District *, 279

*Dallas County Community College District*, 1,717

*Tarrant County
<http://topics.dallasnews.com/topic/Tarrant_County%2C_Texas> College
District*, 772

*SOURCE: Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board*

   ABOUT THE LAW

The Texas law passed in 2001 providing in-state tuition and aid to illegal
immigrant students and other immigrants who are not U.S. citizens or
permanent residents does not specifically identify illegal immigrant
students. It instead defines Texas residency and eligibility for in-state
tuition and state financial aid. The bill required students to:

•Reside in Texas with a parent while attending high school in Texas.

•Graduate from a high school or receive a GED in Texas.

•Live in Texas for the three years leading up to graduation or receiving a
GED.

•Provide colleges and universities a signed affidavit indicating an intent
to apply for permanent resident status as soon as they are able to do so.

The students may qualify for state aid. They also may qualify for
institutional aid from specific universities and colleges.

Since 2001, 22,697 students who benefited from the law have attended Texas
colleges and universities. State officials were not able to provide data on
how many graduated.

During the 2009 fall semester, 8,406 such students were enrolled at
community and technical schools and 3,725 at public universities. Seven were
enrolled at health-related institutes.

SOURCE: Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board