This article in The Chronicle reminded me of when I first presented on the issue of illegal immigrants and in-state tuition. It was 2007 and I was sure (or at least extremely hopeful) that illegal students would soon be able to pay in-state rates as the DREAM Act was up for a vote (again) soon. The article comes up from a view of Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry who is sanctioning in state tuition for illegal immigrants living in Texas. It also covers issues as they relate to federal immigration laws. However, I am not focusing on Perry (although I am intrigued on his view) or federal laws but on the opinion of higher education and should illegal immigrants who meet residency requirements for in-state tuition pay in-state tuition rates.
When I looked up the residence requirements for CSU I found that illegal immigrants to some extent do and could fall under the residence requirements. So could anyone who would move to Colorado for a year, set up shop and then apply to CSU. So why the focus on illegals specifically? Why the heated debate when these students would be adding to the fiscal well being of the institution they attend. From the heated debate article an interesting statistic was shared. It stated that Colorado had 737 illegal immigrants set this year to graduate and if only 25% of them attend a college or university it would give an increase of 1.7 million dollars to Colorado colleges and universities. Now, if we reflect back on higher education being a mature industry and the need for a new person(s) to serve, why not the students who are here and willing to learn and be part of our communities?
There is a school of thought that illegal immigrant students in higher education would increase operating costs and should not be 'rewarded' for illegal behavior. However, I would have to question how a student who is paying the same as a legal student would be increasing cost? And for that matter does it really cost that much more to educate one in state student versus a out of state student that lives four miles outside the Colorado boarder or 100 miles? It is possible that it does as I have not researched this thought in depth but, my thought is my services and cost do not change whether I meet with a in-state, out of state, illegal, or international student.
I guess when I get down to it I wonder why we have out of state tuition. Would we not gain more students by having a flat rate for all that could increase as the unvieristy needs increase? Would we not be more attractive for our programs and services if we had that one tuition rate? Why are we creating debt and financial burdens on students when our focus is on making students successful?
But to bring my thought back to illegal immigrants and in state tuition I refer to a statement in the article, "But take two young persons, both whom are children of illegal immigrants. Suppose both came to the U.S. in 1992. Suppose the first child was born in Mexico in 1991 (so the child is therefore "illegal") while the second child was born in the U.S. in 1993 (and therefore is "legal"). Does it make sense to charge these two students vastly different amounts because of circumstances of birth?"
I encourage all of us to give that statement some thought and we can each decide for ourselves. I do understand that this issue can be more complicated than just that statement but at the same time we are a nation of immigrants who were allowed to move past our circumstance of birth.
In state tuition rates for illegal immigrants...for some reason this statement feels like an oxymoron. My comment to Rick Perry of Texas is what about my child that wants to come to college in Texas who was born and raised in America with American parents and relatives that have served our country and they are required to pay "out of state" tuition rates. So with this said, I do wish that colleges would eliminate the requirement of out of state tuition or at least make it more feasible for ALL students to attend. I agree that a flat rate, like what a private college charges, would seem much more fair.
ReplyDeleteBut, I feel torn about how to deal with illegal immigrants attending college and for what price. On one hand, if they are here in the US Illegally, why allow them to attend at discounted rates? On the other hand, educating illegal immigrants can benefit our societies and communities especially if they are allowed to stay in our country. I believe we allow them to attend but not allow special treatment for tuition reductions. Just the same rules across the board.
Then comes along the question of federal money and grants and allocation of some of these funds to illegal immigrants, this becomes another topic for debate!!
I agree colleges and universities are losing an opportunity to increase their enrollment and revenue. I believe everyone should have access to higher education. For me, the reasons against providing these students with in-state tuition are merely an attempt to cover up institutional racism. Undocumented students are able to attend elementary and secondary schools, but have the doors to a post-secondary education shut on them. It makes no sense.
ReplyDeleteI would like to challenge you and others not to use oppressive and dehumanizing language when discussing this community. Instead of illegal, you could use undocumented. The media often uses these words to promote anti-immigrant sentiment, and to instill fear in people. Language is powerful.
Clearly in-state tuition for undocumented students is a hot topic right now and in the interest of full-disclosure I support the passing of a National Dream Act. In response to the idea that granting in-state tuition to undocumented students, is unfair to out-of-state residence, I have to say that the courts disagree.
ReplyDeleteThe Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 prohibits an undocumented alien from receiving a higher education benefit based on residency within a state unless the benefit is available to any U.S. citizen or national. (http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/hrd/pubs/restuition.pdf)
Technically, whether we agree with it or not, state Dream Acts do not violate this Act. In a 2005 lawsuit a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit brought forward by 24 American Citizens who paid out-of-state tuition to attend the University of Kansas. They contended that they were treated unfairly and that undocumented students were receiving a benefit based upon residency, that they themselves could not receive as US citizens.
The case was dismissed because the judge ordered that the college implemented in state tuition for students who attended high school in the state, graduated, and assured that they are pursuing legal documentation. Put simply, the instate tuition classification is not made on residency, rather on attending a high school in the state and graduating. If the out-of-state students had done this, they too would qualify for in-state tuition. Although, if they had done it they probably would have qualified under the residency guidelines anyway.
While this may seem like a way to get around current law, and perhaps it is, I don't think it is a bad thing, necessarily.
A few brief thoughts about the reasons we have in-state and out-of-state tuition. Remember, that our state institutions receive support ($) from the state. In Colorado that means UNC, CU-B, CSU-Pueblo, AIMS, etc. get a particular amount of tax revenue from the citizens of the state. In Kansas, institutions get a different amount of $ from the taxes raised in Kansas. In fact, there are 50+ different ways in which the various states and common-wealth states fund higher education. Some states are very generous with their funding of higher education because they believe it is an investment that will pay future dividends to the state in the form of an increased tax base. Others states believe higher education is a luxury that primarily benefits the person who earned the degree and therefore, he/she should pay more for the cost of attending. But in each state, tax dollars are used.
ReplyDeleteAs a hypothetical with made up numbers: Let’s suppose there is no such thing as in-state and out-of-state tuition. However, Kansas gives each institution $1000 for each credit they generate and Colorado gives its institutions $100 for each credit they generate. Because the tuition to attend college in Kansas is about $3,000 a year and $15,000 in Colorado, 1000 students from Denver decide to enroll at KSU. Do you think the citizens of Kansas would think that is fair? They are essentially paying Colorado citizens $12,000 a year AND they have fewer spaces for their own students! 12k X 1000 is $12 million! It is analogous to the citizens of Kansas giving millions of dollars to Colorado to maintain its highways or prisons. We have in-state and out-of-state tuition because otherwise students would simply go to the state with the best subsidized system of higher education and the students of that state would have to go elsewhere.
As for undocumented students (thank you Nelson) and the various Dream Acts, I believe the general philosophy from an economic and legal perspective is that the undocumented parents of these students have been paying state taxes for at least 3-4 years (the real reason for the high school requirement) and therefore have the right to in-state tuition.
I take a perspective on this topic that has not been mentioned yet in this forum: many of the undocumented young people who seek to enroll in institutions of higher education did not choose to enter the United States illegally. In many cases, they were infants, toddlers, or children who had no say in the fact that their parents or other relatives brought them into the United States of America, illegally, in search of a better future. Should motivated young people with academic credentials sufficient to gain them acceptance into a college suffer for the actions of the adults who look after them?
ReplyDeleteState schools are intended for the citizens of that particular state since it is funded partially through their taxes. There is a limit to how many out of states students can attend any given institution. Granted international students pay the out of state tuition rate however they do not count against the out of state student cap. Basically, illegal immigrants are being treated as international students as they are not US citizens.
ReplyDelete