A new bill introduced yesterday in the House of Representatives, if approved, will give undocumented students from North Carolina access to university tuition fee rates that are the same as for state residents.

The bill HB904 -that is also sponsored by four Democrats -is the first since 2005 that will allow students who have graduated from a high school and have lived in the state for at least two years, to pay the same rates that residents or citizens pay at community colleges and universities.

This would include those who are covered under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, in which although they have social security cards, work permits and licenses, they do not have a legal immigration status in the U.S. to apply for public grants.

Currently, undocumented students in North Carolina can register in schools but pay more than double the fees for their classes, because they are considered as "foreigners", and are placed at the end of the line in the registration process.

"We are very excited about the project that has come from the hard work by several organizations who lobbied along with the 'dreamers' at the General Assembly. But there is still much work to do to make this a reality," said Jose Torres-Don, of the group "Let's Learn NC".

In a statement, this coalition of organizations that promoted a campaign since February for the equal access to higher education for the "undocumented", urged lawmakers from both parties to "join" the project to move it forward.

In an average, 3,500 undocumented students graduate from high school in North Carolina every year, but very few can enroll in college or at a university because of the high tuition fees.

If the HB904 is passed, North Carolina would join the group of recent states like Maryland, Rhode Island, Oregon and another 16 states that have allowed "dreamers" to pay resident tuition rates at the universities in their state.

Editorial@sandiegored.com

Omar.Martinez@sandiegored.com