DREAM Act Bill: Will it Pass Missouri House?
joe arce and DEB DECOSTER

Is it right to deny students an education based on their undocumented status? What if these undocumented students have excelled in school, are leaders in their high school and are involved in their community? Should they only be allowed to receive a high school diploma and denied access to a college education?

Undocumented students in the state of Missouri are being told they can’t attend a Missouri university or they must pay out of state rates even though they are a Missouri resident who has graduated from a Missouri high school.

“Imagine the frustration and heartache of those students who work so hard to learn English and to excel in their studies only to find they cannot continue their education after high school because of the high cost of out of state tuition,” said Senator Jolie Justus.

Justus has filed the DREAM Act legislation for two years in Missouri. Last week was the first time that the legislation has been granted a hearing by the Senate Education Committee and students in support of the DREAM Act bill traveled to the hearing to support the passage of SB 783, as the legislation is referenced.

The legislation would make certain students eligible for in-state college tuition regardless of their immigration status. The legislation requires higher education institutions in Missouri that receive state funding to provide in-state tuition to students who meet the following guidelines:

• The student has lived with his or her parents or guardian while attending high school in Missouri.
• They have graduated from high school in Missouri or received the equivalent of a high school diploma.
• The student entered the United States before the DREAM Act was signed into law.
• An individual who is not a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident presents a signed affidavit to a higher education institution stating that he or she will file an application to become a permanent resident.

Will Suarez, a sophomore at Johnson County Community College, is working on a Bachelor Degree in Public Administration, and he finds it heart breaking that Latino students are being denied their dreams to attend college,

“I know how hard it is. Society is closing their doors to them. I decided to become an advocate for these students,” he said.

Suarez along with 30 students from the Kansas City and St. Louis communities traveled to Jefferson City, Missouri last week to give a voice to the undocumented students. The undocumented students did not have a voice when they were brought as infants or toddlers to the United States. Their parents made the decision to cross the border into the United States to give them a better life and the opportunity to achieve their dreams.

“The students didn’t put themselves in this situation, it was the parent’s decision to come to this country and the students have to pay the price for it. The students are frustrated by a broken immigration system and they are certainly being punished by this system that we currently have. Parents shouldn’t be blamed for wanting their kids to have a better future but we shouldn’t punish the children,” said Suarez.

Expecting to testify in front of the Education Committee, the 30 students came prepared but due to time constraints did not get the opportunity to speak. They were surprised when they saw only supporters of the bill. Not one organization was there in opposition. The hearing was well attended by immigration advocates and DREAM Activists. The Missouri Immigrant Refugee Advocate (MIRA), Missouri National Education Association (MNEA), Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and Catholic Charities and students from Kansas and Missouri DREAM Alliance stood in front of the committee showing support for the bill.

Yahaira Carrillo, KS-MO DREAM Activist was not able to travel to Jefferson City last week, but she told Hispanic News that the students who did, received resounding support from community members.

“No one was there to testify against the bill so that is a highlight of our work that happened last week because that doesn’t usually happen,” said Carrillo.

Justus has heard from high school guidance counselors in Missouri that the students need to have hope that they will be able to attend college and receive help with scholarships, financial aid and in-state tuition.

“They want the bill to pass because they are telling me we have kids who are at risk of dropping out of school, at risk of joining gang activity, but if we can keep them engaged and in school then we are going to be able to put them on a path to becoming the next generation of doctors, lawyers and tax-paying citizens,” said Justus.

Suarez has spoken with counselors who work in the Missouri school districts and like Justus has heard the same information. “The counselors who work with undocumented students in Missouri tell me that students are really discouraged of even finishing high school right now because of their immigration status. They know that it is almost impossible to attend a college or university in Missouri. They are really discouraged,” he said.

The undocumented students that are able to attend a college are driving across the state line into Kansas, which has passed the DREAM Act, to attend school. The students are hard working individuals who are working either part-time or full time while attending college, but are determined that they will get a college degree.

“It is amazing to see that they are not letting a law in Missouri stop them from achieving their goal and they are willing to drive the distance and pay whatever rate they have to pay to go to school,” said Carrillo.

Justus told Hispanic News that it is unlikely that the DREAM Act bill will pass this year. The next step for the bill is to get enough votes to advance the bill out of the Education Committee. According to Justus, any bill in the Missouri Legislature takes a while to travel through the system. In the four years that she has been at the Capital, she has introduced bills each year and she is still working on them.

“I look at this as a long process. We are going to have to continue to educate, we are going to have to continue to contact our Representatives and Senators and ask them to support the bill. I am in for the long haul and as long as I am down here I will continue to keep fighting for it,” she said.

The alternative for undocumented students who are not able to afford college on their own is that they will either drop out of high school or they will be employed at minimum wage jobs. “We have to look at that from an economic standpoint as well as a humanitarian standpoint.

When you deny someone the opportunity to educate themselves, you are not just hurting that person, you are hurting the community where that person lives,” said Carrillo.