Thread: Va. to Consider Banning Illegal Immigrants from Pub.Colleges

Va. to Consider Banning Illegal Immigrants from Public Colleges

ZINIE CHEN SAMPSON


9:04 a.m. EST, January 12, 2011

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia legislators will consider whether to bar illegal immigrants from enrolling in state's public colleges and universities.

Del. Christopher Peace's bill would amend state law to explicitly prohibit people who are in the United States illegally from being admitted to Virginia's public two-year or four-year institutions.

Several previous attempts to pass similar legislation in Virginia haven't succeeded.

Federal law prohibits such people from paying in-state tuition at colleges and universities, but they can still pursue a public college education. Virginia's public universities currently have the discretion to decide whether to admit illegal aliens as long as they charge out-of-state tuition.

South Carolina bars undocumented students from enrolling in public colleges, as have some Georgia institutions, and Alabama's two-year colleges.


http://www.courant.com/topic/wghp-story ... 1192.story

GO VIRGINIA!! GO STATES!! GO AMERICANS!!

I had to have a background check ran before I could enter a J C university college and also had to provide proof that I am a legal citizen, so how is it possible for illegal aliens to enroll into U.S. colleges undocumented? Too many laws are being broken in this Country and not enough justice for unlawful activities.

Delegate sponsors bill barring undocumented immigrants from state colleges
By Luz Lazo
Published: January 13, 2011

Illegal immigration promises to be a hot topic at this year's General Assembly session.

Del. Christopher K. Peace, R-Hanover, has introduced legislation that would bar undocumented immigrants from attending public universities and colleges, renewing an effort he started three years ago.His proposal is just one of several that tackle illegal immigration, highlighting a growing sentiment in the state to dissuade illegal immigrants from coming to Virginia.

Peace's bill touches on an emotional subject for many young immigrants and immigrant advocates who have been lobbying for broader access to higher education. Many of them had high hopes about the federal DREAM Act, which failed to pass in the U.S. Senate last month and would have given a chance to achieve legal status to hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants brought to the U.S. as children.

Other anti-illegal immigrant bills include allowing police to determine legal status in the case of an arrest and requiring all Virginia companies to ensure that workers are of legal status using the E-Verify system, which checks eligibility to work in the U.S.

Also, Gov. Bob McDonnell in August asked the Department of Homeland Security for an agreement that would allow Virginia State Police troopers to perform functions of federal immigration officers.

Amid growing sentiment to restrict illegal immigration in Virginia, Peace said he is optimistic his proposal will receive the support it needs. He introduced at similar bill in 2008, which successfully passed the House but died in a Senate committee.

"The federal government has continued to not act in these areas, and as a result, the states are having to across the board look to limit the incentives for people to be here" illegally, Peace said.

Several Virginia colleges have policies relating to the acceptance of illegal immigrants, but Peace said he wants all publicly funded colleges and universities to deny admission to illegal immigrants.

Virginia Tech, for example, does not have a policy, but spokesman Mark Owczarski said the admissions office follows a practice to "base admission to the university primarily upon the academic credentials of its applicants. Proof of citizenship is required only for applicants who wish to receive in-state tuition. privileges. For all other applicants, no further documentation is requested."

When Virginia Tech determines an applicant is neither a U.S. citizen nor a U.S. permanent resident, it is the school's practice to classify the applicant as an out-of-state student for tuition purposes.

Edgar Aranda-Yanoc, president of the Virginia Coalition of Latino Organizations, a pro-immigrant group based in Northern Virginia, said "The General Assembly should work to make colleges more accessible to students who graduate from Virginia rather than create unnecessary barriers," he said, adding that Peace's proposal may discourage these students from pursuing a career or may encourage them to leave the state.

Virginia already has seen an exodus of illegal immigrants. A study released by the Pew Hispanic Center in September indicated Virginia saw its number of undocumented immigrants shrink from 2008 to 2009, declining by 65,000 to 240,000 people.

Isabel Castillo of Harrisonburg said the proposal penalizes students like her who had no choice in their parents' decision to bring them to the U.S. illegally.

"I am a Virginia girl. I started first grade here," said the 25-year-old who has lived in Virginia since age 6, attended public schools, and after graduating with a 4.0 GPA managed to get into a private university to study social work. "We have lived here all our lives. Why not give us the opportunity to pursue higher education?"

Castillo had hoped the federal DREAM Act would resolve her situation and that of thousands of immigrants. Now she and other advocates plan to lobby against Peace's proposal, which she said adds another barrier for undocumented immigrants who want a college education.

www2.timesdispatch.com

Illegal aliens by the hundreds employing and performing work duties at work places such as Virginia Marble Manufacturing Company here in Virginia, Tyson and Purdue, and work as land surveyors, these are not crop and field jobs Americans wont employ for wages of $11.00 and $12.00 hourly. The truth of the matter is there are not any jobs left for Americans to employ because if employers are not seeking and hiring bilinguals for translation, they are stalling jobs for immigrants for cheaper labor. One of the most quickest and easy ways to “nipâ€

Originally Posted by jean

Delegate sponsors bill barring undocumented immigrants from state colleges
By Luz Lazo
Published: January 13, 2011

Illegal immigration promises to be a hot topic at this year's General Assembly session.

Del. Christopher K. Peace, R-Hanover, has introduced legislation that would bar undocumented immigrants from attending public universities and colleges, renewing an effort he started three years ago.His proposal is just one of several that tackle illegal immigration, highlighting a growing sentiment in the state to dissuade illegal immigrants from coming to Virginia.

Peace's bill touches on an emotional subject for many young immigrants and immigrant advocates who have been lobbying for broader access to higher education. Many of them had high hopes about the federal DREAM Act, which failed to pass in the U.S. Senate last month and would have given a chance to achieve legal status to hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants brought to the U.S. as children.

Other anti-illegal immigrant bills include allowing police to determine legal status in the case of an arrest and requiring all Virginia companies to ensure that workers are of legal status using the E-Verify system, which checks eligibility to work in the U.S.

Also, Gov. Bob McDonnell in August asked the Department of Homeland Security for an agreement that would allow Virginia State Police troopers to perform functions of federal immigration officers.

Amid growing sentiment to restrict illegal immigration in Virginia, Peace said he is optimistic his proposal will receive the support it needs. He introduced at similar bill in 2008, which successfully passed the House but died in a Senate committee.

"The federal government has continued to not act in these areas, and as a result, the states are having to across the board look to limit the incentives for people to be here" illegally, Peace said.

Several Virginia colleges have policies relating to the acceptance of illegal immigrants, but Peace said he wants all publicly funded colleges and universities to deny admission to illegal immigrants.

Virginia Tech, for example, does not have a policy, but spokesman Mark Owczarski said the admissions office follows a practice to "base admission to the university primarily upon the academic credentials of its applicants. Proof of citizenship is required only for applicants who wish to receive in-state tuition. privileges. For all other applicants, no further documentation is requested."

When Virginia Tech determines an applicant is neither a U.S. citizen nor a U.S. permanent resident, it is the school's practice to classify the applicant as an out-of-state student for tuition purposes.

Edgar Aranda-Yanoc, president of the Virginia Coalition of Latino Organizations, a pro-immigrant group based in Northern Virginia, said "The General Assembly should work to make colleges more accessible to students who graduate from Virginia rather than create unnecessary barriers," he said, adding that Peace's proposal may discourage these students from pursuing a career or may encourage them to leave the state.

Virginia already has seen an exodus of illegal immigrants. A study released by the Pew Hispanic Center in September indicated Virginia saw its number of undocumented immigrants shrink from 2008 to 2009, declining by 65,000 to 240,000 people.

Isabel Castillo of Harrisonburg said the proposal penalizes students like her who had no choice in their parents' decision to bring them to the U.S. illegally.

"I am a Virginia girl. I started first grade here," said the 25-year-old who has lived in Virginia since age 6, attended public schools, and after graduating with a 4.0 GPA managed to get into a private university to study social work. "We have lived here all our lives. Why not give us the opportunity to pursue higher education?"

Castillo had hoped the federal DREAM Act would resolve her situation and that of thousands of immigrants. Now she and other advocates plan to lobby against Peace's proposal, which she said adds another barrier for undocumented immigrants who want a college education.

www2.timesdispatch.com

good for you Virginia now come on all of the other state get with it