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Community colleges OK illegal immigrants

No rush of undocumented students expected, as there weren't many before their enrollment was banned.

By Franco Ordoñez and and Kristen Collins


Central Piedmont Community College expects few students to take advantage of a new state policy that allows illegal immigrants to attend N.C. community colleges.

The State Board of Community Colleges approved the new admissions policy Friday. It allows illegal immigrants to attend any of North Carolina's 58 community colleges, provided they graduate from a U.S. high school, pay the higher out-of-state tuition, and do not displace legal residents from classes.

All but one of the 18 board members present voted for the new policy. The lone dissenter was Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton.

Dalton, a Democrat, declined to speak with reporters after the vote, but released a written statement that said the colleges should use their stretched resources to help legal residents cope with the recession.

“Now is not the time to increase the demands on our already overburdened community college system,â€