over the past few years there has been a great deal of debate as to whether illegal immigrants should have the same educational rights as legal residents. in the past i have been a proponent of denying these individuals such rights. personally i had felt instate tuition costs at institutions of higher education should be given to those whose parents paid into our system and therefore should have a lower cost of education.
my past month has been filled with lobbying issues and debates in preparation for the state senate meetings in the near future. josh michael (director of the cga) and i have been involved in several discussions as to what the sgas stance on certain bills will be.
this past week i overheard a debate on this very topic between david hoffman and another individual whose beliefs are in line with the aforementioned views.
a turning point in my beliefs came when david, playing devils advocate, stated,
'what about minors who moved here when they were 8 years old and had no control of what their parents did?'
'these individuals have paid into our system in other ways- sales tax, etc.'
'wouldn't it be a great ideal to aspire to- if you can work hard enough to get in- you will be able to afford it.'
i began to think- i could be that person that moved here when i was 8 years old and have had to make a choice once out of highschool- provide for myself and quite possibly a needy family or place myself waist deep in debt and deny my family another source of income.
i kinda understand the logistics of it all- USMSC and the state gov. are having a difficult time providing low tuition for md residents as is and they may not be able to support more people. with that said it would be a fantastic aspiration. if you can get in- we can make it affordable.
just some ideas to think about.
god college is making me a hippie, tree hugging, hybrid driving liberal...
illegal instate tuition- a good idea?
Friday, February 15, 2008
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6 comments:
amir and a tree
sitting in a...tree
tree-hugging, hybrid driving liberal hippies are awesome
While it's lovely to want to help everybody, in times of financial strain (like we're experiencing in Maryland right now), the state's priority should be to help people who have established their residence in the state.
This is a really tough issue, and that is why I recommended to the Senate that the SGA take no position on the series of bills that address tuition for illegal immigrants. There is precedent to serve illegal aliens who are minors via education through Supreme Court decisions. In Maryland, we provide public school education for those who are illegal aliens. As Amir notes, how should we approach illegal aliens who have been here since they were children and have established lives in Maryland because of the illegal decisions of their parents? These individuals are stuck in America because of the decisions of their parents.
On a related note, many often consider some form of higher education a necessity in society. You often find me touting a higher education degree or certificate the high school diploma of the 21st Century. Dr. Hrabowski describes higher education a "civil right" in the 21st Century. If this is the case, meaning that higher education is seen as a necessity and a right today, should we not transfer the intent of the Supreme Court case to higher education for illegal aliens?
Further, most of these individuals will continue to stay in Maryland (while unaccounted for, of course) for likely the majority of their lives. If that is the case, we should fight the impending feudalistic society that is developing and ensure that these quasi-residents receive the tools needed to succeed. If we do not invest in our neighbors now, we are only inhibiting our collective future.
Many have heard me outspoken against legislation that would provide in-state tuition for illegal aliens. Yet the majority of this sentiment does not stem from a denial of those rights to these individuals, but a prioritization of our own citizens over the illegal aliens. Yet, I am challenged to redifine "our own." My greatest concern is that the pie of money does not get any bigger for higher education, and we simply cut the pie into smaller pieces to accomodate illegal aliens.
Accordingly, I am supporting efforts to provide illegal aliens with in-state tuition under the following circumstances:
1) a fiscal note (or assessment of the cost) is provided on the inclusion of illegal aliens as those eligible for in-state tuition
2) a commensurate increase in funding for support for higher education matching the fiscal note for adding illegal aliens
3) and a requirement for attempting to pursue residency for those who wish to pursue in-state tuition.
I admit that I have been short-sighted in my views of this issue and have rested on my laurels of representing students who "follow the rules." But as representative of the future leaders of this state, I am poised to advocate on behalf of comprehensive solutions to the problems of our great State.
josh michael, future leader of the state?!
then i quit!
sorry i was on my home computer and was trying to make a sarcastic remark and what do you know- i commented as my mother cause her google account was open. for anyone who is concerned that remark was made by amir. sorry for the confusion.
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