Undocumented Latino Youth Strategies for Accessing Higher Education

Undocumented Latino Youth Strategies for Accessing Higher Education

Christina Gómez, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Northeastern Illinois University Director, Latino & Latin American Studies María Luna-Duarte, M.A. Doctoral Student, University of Illinois at Chicago Interim Director, NEIU El Centro Campus Elizabeth Cervantes Undergraduate Student, Northeastern Illinois University

Purpose 1. Increase awareness of educational challenges encountered by undocumented Latino immigrant students. 2. Expose interlocking relationships between education and immigration policies. 3. Explore common factors and strategies that enable undocumented Latino students to succeed.

Our work and research Work/Study at Hispanic Serving Institution Involved in a research project on the experience of undocumented Latino students in Chicago-land area. Interviewed over 40 undocumented or formerly undocumented Latino students who were enrolled in college, had obtained a college degree or were seniors in high school planning to go to college.

Who is undocumented or unauthorized? Foreign-born non-citizens residing in the country who are not legal immigrants. The vast majority of unauthorized immigrants entered the country without valid documents or arrived with valid visas but stayed past their visa expiration date. They do not yet have permanent residency.

U.S. Statistics ~ 11.2 million individuals in the US who are undocumented (Pew Hispanic Center, 2011) ~ 1.7 million undocumented immigrants are children under the age of 18 (Passel, 2005). 65,000 undocumented students graduate from United States high schools every year (Zehr, 2002). The number of children born to at least one unauthorized-immigrant parent in 2009 was 350,000 (Pew Hispanic Center, 2011).

Illinois Statistics 2010 Pew Hispanic Center estimates that 525,000 undocumented persons reside in Illinois, or that about 4.1 percent of all Illinois residents are undocumented (Pew Hispanic Center, 2011).

Chicago Statistics Available research suggests that 20,103 undocumented students live in Chicago, that 3,000 to 4,000 undocumented students graduate from high school each year, and that most undocumented students came to the U.S. at a young age with their parents (IBHE, 2002; Mehta & Ali, 2003).

Challenges Faced Legal status Issues of federal/state support Financial Resources Lack of knowledge about higher education in U.S. I had to educate them in high school, because my mom doesn t know English. My dad knows a little bit. But I went to a college fair and I was just watching what things my classmates were doing. So I told my mom, oh I have to [do] this and that... So that s how I did it. I told them I have to do this; this is how the system works. (Jackie)

Legal Status Undocumented students may assume that they cannot legally attend college in the United States. This is not true. There is no federal or state law that prohibits the admission of undocumented immigrants to U.S. colleges and universities, public or private.

Counselor s role Legally, K-12 school personnel cannot inquire about the immigration status of students or their parents. Therefore, you may learn that a student is undocumented only if he chooses to share this information. Undocumented students may not even be aware of their legal status.

Federal support Undocumented students cannot legally receive any federally funded student financial aid, including loans, grants, scholarships, and work-study programs. Some private scholarships are available to undocumented students.

State support Many state institutions charge undocumented students out-of-state tuition fees (even if the student is a longtime resident of the state). However, Illinois passed a law, HB 60, that permits undocumented students to pay in-state tuition with provisions.

Illinois DREAM Act State Bill 2185, the Illinois DREAM Act was signed into law on August 1, 2011. The Act includes: -Overseeing fundraising for the fund (including establishing a separate non-profit organization to aid with fundraising) -Publicizing the scholarships and handling applications -Training for high school counselors and college personnel -College savings programs (Go to http://icirr.org/ for more information)

Private institutions Private colleges/universities and community colleges set their own financial aid policies. Some are willing to give scholarships and other aid to undocumented students.

How Counselors and Teachers can help Undocumented Students: If a student tells you he or she is undocumented, validate the student s experience as significant and listen. Reach out as early as possible to all students and encourage them to envision themselves as college material, explore career options, and prepare academically for college. If the opportunity arises, let students know that undocumented status is not a legal bar to attending a U.S. college.

Know your state's laws regarding undocumented students and stay up-to-date on changes in the laws Advocate for clear communication of policies to faculty, staff, students, and parents. Do not provide legal advice, but do connect students to community organizations that can. Connect students to on-campus advocates, student groups, and resources; support those groups.

Don't ask students to make up information or misrepresent themselves. ITIN is for tax purposes only and not intended for any other purposes. Don't encourage students to do things that may later jeopardize their ability to earn permanent residency (if a pathway to legalization becomes available) such as applying for FAFSA.

Christina Gómez Associate Professor of Sociology, and Latino & Latin American Studies Northeastern Illinois University Phone: (773) 442-4161 E-mail: C-Gomez@neiu.edu María E. Luna-Duarte Interim Director Northeastern Illinois University-El Centro Phone: (773) 442-4084 E-mail: M-Duarte@neiu.edu