A few illegal immigrants might be able to enroll in North Carolina community colleges next year – if there is room, and if they can come up with the $7,700 annual tuition. The policy change adopted Friday by the N.C. Board of Community Colleges is likely to do little to reduce crowding, or to address the larger problem of illegal immigration.
What it will do is anger people who don’t believe the government and employers have done enough to discourage desperate people from crossing the border, and provide more fuel for anti-immigration groups. Meanwhile, some Hispanic advocacy groups say the high tuition all but bans admission.
Lost in the debate are foreign-born children who did not come here of their own free will. They were brought here by parents who took great risks to come to a place where work was plentiful and where even a low-wage job provided a better standard of living.
Those children have attended American schools, learned to speak English and made grades good enough to qualify them for admission into a community college or university.
The policy adopted Friday is an attempt to recognize that those young people were innocent bystanders in their parents’ attempt to make a better life, but also to acknowledge that it is unfair to turn away legal residents who meet all the requirements and give a seat to someone who is in the country illegally.
Under the policy, seats would only be made available to illegal immigrants after all legal residents who meet admissions standards are enrolled. They would be denied financial aid. And they would pay almost five times the price as legal residents to attend a community college.
For that reason, the board estimates that very few illegal immigrants will qualify. Our community colleges are already seeing high demand by displaced workers and other legal residents. There will be little room for those who didn’t come here through legal channels.
The battle over whether or not to admit children of illegal aliens misses a larger issue, and that is what happens to teenagers whose parents brought them to this country as youngsters, who went to American schools, stayed out of trouble and made the grade.
They are here through no fault of their own, and for many the United States of America is the only home they know. Only the most heartless immigration policy would return those young people to a place that is foreign to them without offering an opportunity to work toward legal residency, and then U.S. citizenship.
Although their parents broke the law to get here, the children are not culpable. They were minors, following parents who dreamed of a better life for their children.
Our immigration laws should recognize that fact by permitting them to do what is necessary to earn the right to stay in this country.
The United States can always use another good citizen.
Back off the idea of throwing something else on a teacher please! The women and men in this field should ABSOLUTELY be paid TOP DOLLAR for what they do because:
1. The kids they are teaching are YOUR (and my) future doctors, lawyers, nurses and yes, among these kids somewhere is YOUR man or woman who will win the Nobel Peace prize for discovering the cure to ALL Cancers! Where do think all of this begins...at school!
2. I'd venture a guess as to say half of the kids in school now have discipline problems at home which carries over into Monday-Friday/8-3. How would you like to correct these issues for 20something plus kids, maintain and EOG AND try to teach a Spanish speaking child on what teachers make?
3. How scarey can lock down at school be? How would you like to be a teacher in lock down? Look at their pay check and tell me it's worth it but it's ok to add that Spanish speaking child to the agenda right?
I could go on and on but I'm sure you see my point. I do have compassion by the ton but not for any immigrant or their kids! If the kids parents came into the United States ILLEGALLY then guess what...that means they broke the LAW! "Ok, you broke the law but that's ok you won't go to jail or go back to your country. We'll just add you to our welfare list and our citizens kids and grandkids will pay!" I have never, for as long as I've enjoyed being a citizen of the United States, understood why it is that we as a nation seem to ALWAYS look out for others before looking our for our own.
Please don't give me the life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness thing. Don't do that when we've got enough on our plate as it is!
My problem centers around Americans who do without and our government casually looking over the illegal immigrants who are receiving full benefits such as welfare programs and educational programs.It would be nice for most of the "illegals" from Mexico to be earnest in their endeavors to be productive members of our society,we do need good citizens. Problem is that many come here to deal drugs.They promote violence on astronomical scales,killing our children and friends and also poisoning them with their endless supply of drugs.
Inevitably,I hope the border control is tightened up and I would like to see a 30 ft. wall fom California to Texas.I would like to see stiff prison sentences for those who decide to come into our country illegally and stiffer for those committing violent crimes and drug crimes.Right now,all we do is send them back to Mexico and they ome back within a week to do the same things they have been doing. It is really unfair and seems partial.Americans seem to be the enemy in their own country because we are fed up with the cost of supporting these people.They need to fill out the paperwork and come over here the right way. With a Democrat in office,who knows how much money will be spent to passify these people who should not be here to begin with.