Va. Won't Enroll Illegal Immigrants

Virginia's attorney general has taken steps to curb the number of illegal or undocumented students in the state's higher education institutions.

Attorney General Jerry Kilgore has asserted that the public university and community college systems of Virginia should not allow illegal alien students into their institutions, and starting this semester, undocumented students are required to pay out-of-state prices for tuition, said Randy Davis, Kilgore's spokesman.

Virginia colleges and universities have accepted the tenets of Kilgore's stance on illegal aliens, said Del Stewart, assistant chancellor for Virginia's community colleges.

Allowing illegal immigrants into the state's higher education system means using taxpayer money to fund the educations of people who are not U.S. citizens, Davis said. He added that the tough economic times the state is facing make Kilgore's stance even more justified.

Stewart said that though the mandate goes against his judgement, he and the rest of the officials in Virginia's higher education system are yielding to the attorney general because he is the chief law adviser.

But other states are reacting differently to the issue of undocumented students in higher education.

"It seems that other states are going in the opposite direction," said Tisha Tallman, legal counsel for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund.

Tallman said some states are looking at providing assistance to undocumented students. She added that California, New York, Utah and Texas are trying to pass legislation on the issue.

"Texas finds it more economically viable to educate undocumented students," she said.

Illegal immigrants in higher education also have attracted the attention of federal lawmakers.

The U.S. Congress is targeting legislation to provide education for undocumented students and has bypassed the debate on whether to allow illegal immigrants to enter state universities and colleges, Tallman said.

She said the Dream Act and the Student Adjustment Act, which are both in Congress right now, are intended to better the situation for immigrant students.

The Dream Act was proposed by Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah.

The bill would repeal provisions of laws that discourage states from providing in-state tuition to undocumented immigrant students. It also would permit certain immigrants to obtain legal resident status once they graduate from a high school in the United States.

A companion bill, the Student Adjustment Act, also has been introduced in the House of Representatives.

The Student Adjustment Act was introduced by two California Democrats and a Utah Republican. The bill is on hold, awaiting a decision from House leadership on whether it will be included in future legislation.

But no matter whether legislation passes Congress, one of the main problems at hand will persist, Davis said. It still will be difficult to identify how many illegal immigrants are enrolled in higher education if access to U.S. identification -- like driver's licenses -- is not more closely monitored, he said.

However, Tallman said, the issue does not encompass a large number of people. Most of the people affected are first-generation children of illegal immigrants with financial barriers.

She said that as other states look to incorporate undocumented citizens into higher education, Virginia remains an anomaly.

The State & National Editor can be reached at stntdesk@unc.edu.