Supporting Dreamer Students

Recently, I was interviewed by a graduate student in the College Student Services Administration Program at Oregon State University. Asked to write about an issue related to equality or civil rights on a college campus, the student chose to research Metropolitan State University of Denver’s decision to significantly lower tuition rates for undocumented students. The following Q & A is based on this interview.

Q: What was the beginning? What generated discussion about the need for lowering tuition for undocumented students? Were there any significant events that moved this idea forward?

A: MSU Denver primarily serves the Denver Metropolitan area—home to about 30% Hispanic or Latinx people. About 2010, MSU Denver leadership began seeking the Hispanic-serving designation to compete for federal funding to better support the university’s diverse student body. In 2018, for instance, MSU Denver students identified as 28.4% Latinx, 44.7% students of color and 49.1% first generation to college. When gathering data on current and prospective students, along with drawing from personal experience, MSU Denver leadership identified a population of students who struggle to access higher education due to their undocumented legal status. In 2012, evoking MSU Denver’s 1963 founding as a “College of Opportunity,” the Board of Trustees approved a discounted tuition rate for undocumented students and advocated for similar state legislation in the form of Advancing Students for a Stronger Tomorrow (ASSET). Former Deputy Provost Luis Torres, a passionate advocate for undocumented students’ rights, said that it was our responsibility to protect the most vulnerable parts of our population, and DREAMer students were it.

Q: Would you be able to break down some basics about the Dream Act, ASSET Bill, etc.?

A: The DREAM Act was introduced to the U.S. Senate in 2001, but it never passed. In a 2012 response, former President Barack Obama signed DACA, or Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. DACA is an executive order that allows some individuals who were brought to the United States illegally as children to receive a renewable, two-year period of deferred action from deportation and to become eligible for a work permit in the U.S. While the DREAM Act ultimately failed, the moniker “DREAMers” stuck. ASSET is a Colorado law allowing state institutions of higher education operating in Colorado to offer reduced tuition rates to undocumented students who have completed a high school education in Colorado with several other stipulations. In 2017, President Trump challenged DACA and instead recommended a legislative solution in the form of a federal law. The PROSPER Act was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives in December 2017, but stalled.

Q: What are you seeing at MSU Denver today as a result of efforts to support Dreamer students?

A: In addition to seeing hundreds of Dreamer students pursuing their educational goals, the sense of community that has been created to provide resources and support has heightened MSU Denver’s commitment to serving at-risk students. I often tell friends and family that I not only work on education policy, I work on civil rights policy. The social justice component of this work is a huge morale booster for students, faculty and staff, and has created a shared sense of pride and positive energy on campus.

Bloggers: Questions for further consideration—

How does your organization support Dreamer or other first-generation students? What additional info on this topic might be helpful? What policies or related resources does your organization have on advocacy, lobbying and political activity?