Community College Showdown: "Undocumented" Students

This case study from the League for Innovation is abstracted from its forthcoming publication, Student Services Dialogues: Community College Case Studies to Consider by R. Thomas Flynn and Gerardo E. de los Santos.

During recent years, the issues surrounding the presence of undocumented immigrants in the United States have had daily political and media coverage. They generate very disparate responses, depending on the political persuasion of the observers. One group of undocumented immigrants has special issues with respect to community college student services: young people whose undocumented parents brought them to the United States as children and who have received some or all of their formal education in American public schools. Many of them aspire to continue their education at a community college. A critical question arises regarding their residential status for purposes of tuition determination. They may have lived in the community for a dozen years and graduated from a local high school. Many states would require that they register as nonresident out-of-state students since they are not documented immigrants. Many of these potential students cannot afford that level of tuition, and they are ineligible for federal financial aid. Much of their economic and career future may depend on their ability to access the community college.