Published: Thursday, September 29, 2011 at 3:00 a.m. last Modified: Thursday, September 29, 2011 at 11:23 p.m.
Gilbert Mejia came to California when he was 1 year-old, accompanying his parents who were fleeing a civil war in Guatemala. Now a student at the Petaluma campus of Santa Rosa Junior College, he is studying hard and hopes to one day obtain a college degree in architecture and interior design. like many students, Gil works about 20 hours per week to pay for school, and demonstrates the kind of initiative, intelligence and work ethic that represents California?s best hope for its next generation of workers and entrepreneurs in an increasingly competitive global marketplace.
But Gil faces one significant hurdle that most of his fellow students do not: he?s an undocumented immigrant. As such, Gil is ineligible to receive any kind of state financed aid to pursue his higher education goals.
As with other young immigrants like him, who were brought to this country as children, Gil is hoping that Gov. Jerry Brown will sign the second part of the California Dream Act. The first part, signed into law in July, gave young undocumented immigrants who have lived here for at least five years and graduated from high school the opportunity to receive private scholarships and scholastic financial aid.
The second part, recently approved by the state Legislature and awaiting the governor?s signature, would make public funds, including state grants, scholarships or loans, available to undocumented immigrants who came to the country before the age of 16, attended a California high school for at least three years and graduated.
Some feel that young people like Gil are not deserving of any financial aid for college because they are here illegally. Opponents say this bill will only encourage more immigrants to come to California without documentation, and that paying to educate students who aren?t technically allowed to legally work after they graduate is wrong.
But does it make sense to punish someone who was unable to choose, at such a very young age, whether he should enter the United States without proper documentation? Is it fair to deny Gil Mejia access to higher education because of a decision his parents made almost 20 years ago?
We don?t think so.
Also, depriving good students of the opportunity to get a college education harms California?s businesses and the overall economy that needs a capable workforce to replace millions of workers expected to retire over the next decade. Insofar as residents like Gil have already been through the public school system, denying them the opportunity to obtain a college degree that would better prepare them for future contributions in the workplace and as taxpayers makes no sense.
The Dream Act bill, which is estimated to cost between $23 and $40 million a year, is still less than one percent of the state?s budget for college financial aid. But at a time when state funding for higher education is being cut severely, it is generating significant controversy. Governor Brown is aware of this reality, and is currently exploring ways in which the costs of the bill can be reduced. The legislation is written in such as way as it cannot diminish the total number of programs awarded to eligible students as a result of increasing access to undocumented immigrants.
There is no greater priority for the state of California than to educate its youth. Finding new ways to enhance secondary education funding, either through appropriate tax increases or by redirecting monies from other sources (such as the inflated pensions for state prison guards), is a vital imperative.
Ensuring that all the state?s youth ? even those whose arrival into this country was when they were toddlers ? have the opportunity for a college education should be part of that overall goal.
We hope Gil succeeds in getting a college degree, obtaining U.S. citizenship and starting his own business.
Passage of the California Dream Act will help ensure he achieves that very American Dream.
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