Two sides to this issue:
Law before compassion or
Compassion before law
There is actually virtue to both sides of the argument
But there is no law that prohibits colleges from admitting undocumented immigrants’ kids. Admission is just that. It won’t be able to keep the student in the country if by law they will be removed let alone enroll them in their school. “Compassion”? Maybe depending on how you see it. “Before law”? Hardly. 'Causes there’s no law that’s broken by the college.
@bhs1978 Yes!
Sorry @mainlinePenn but there are no federal laws prohibiting admissions to undocumented students. And the UT student is here legally.
No, it’s courageous to face hate and envy. Which these young women are seeing a lot of these days.
Future voters of the correct type.
Can employers hire these eventual graduates? Or would that be hiring illegal labor…and thus against the law?
No, it’s courageous to make themselves vulnerable to attacks like yours. They knew the hatred would be directed right at them. Incredible bravery, especially at such a young age.
@mainlinePenn Any valid points are being lost in vitriol. Fortunately you aren’t representative of the majority of posters who seem to be able to disagree with a little more respect and maturity.
^Sinners aren’t getting into Heaven, they shouldn’t expect to get into Harvard…
Hmm…there’s a reason I always leave these threads after a few pages.
Yale does not only offer admission to Americans, so your point is moot. Yale accepts internationals with full rides on a yearly basis, so why not an undocumented immigrant?
I understand why people wouldn’t want illegal immigrants receiving government services like welfare and such, but Yale is a private institution and doesn’t get any tax money. She didn’t game the system; if she was excellent enough to get accepted to Yale in the US, she would probably get accepted to Yale if she was in Mexico.
http://finaid.yale.edu/award-letter/understanding-your-award
I have read multiple time on this thread that Yale is a private university and takes no government funds…so maybe I do not understand why on their FA page they would include information on government grants?
May I ask those with the knowledge if Yale covers those grants with private funds so they do not then use “government grants” they list?
Why are we spending so much time ragging on the students? They were brought to this country as young children - elementary aged. Yes, they made a speech that drew attention to themselves; teenagers of all nationalities make shortsighted decisions. These students didn’t commit any crimes, their parents did. At least one of the students applied for citizenship seven years ago and her application is still pending. Both students have spent most of their lives in the US; they are as American as I am. If the choice is between gaining two highly productive citizens or tossing them out on their ears when they’ve made the absolute best out of their opportunity, I’d choose the former.
Hoosier, Yale doesn’t award those, the government does. Did you read the info yourself? Only American citizens and permanent residents can be awarded Pell and other Federal grants, regardless of what university they are attending.
It says right there at your link “Gift aid awarded by federal, state, or local government agencies, usually based on criteria such as federal need or city or state of residence. Government grants are generally considered entitlement grants. Examples include federal Pell Grants (link is external) and Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants (link is external) (SEOG).”
International students don’t get federal aid. When Yale gives them aid, it’s 100% private money rather than the mix that U.S. Citizens get.
This sounds like the same discussion as in the “2 valedictorians announce they are undocumented” thread.
I do not think this is a pointless thread. I am also in the camp of not giving benefits, which would include college education and free public school education, to illegal immigrants. In NY state, people under certain income (legal or not legal) are eligible to get pregnancy medical care, diaper and formula for the first 2 years, well baby care, and then free education. I was not eligible for those benefits when I was pregnant. We only had 2 kids because we couldn’t really afford to have more. Illegal immigrants can’t pay taxes, therefore their earnings are all tax free. With all of those great benefits, why shouldn’t people from third world countries risk their lives to get to the US. If there is no carrot at the end of the road, then there would not be as much incentive for people to get to this country illegally.
I feel for the undocumented kids in this country already. I don’t think abandoning them is the best thing to do right now, but by continuing to offer those benefits without a cut off point we are just enabling and propagating the situation.
There are many legal immigrants in this country. They are going through the proper channels, waiting for their turns, and that sometimes could take years. Many of those people do get sent home if they couldn’t get a visa to stay.
By publicizing those 2 undocumented students getting full FA will just have more illegal immigrants buzzing about how anything is possible in the land of gold. This is like winning a lotto, everyone dreams and think it could happen to them, so they keep on buying. In this case, not sure who are the winners and who are the losers.
Folks who are NOT citizens or green card holders cannot get government grants…which total a rousing $5800 this year.
If I were an illegal immigrant, I would definitely want to move to a state like Texas where my kids could get a fully funded college education. I am sure immigrant community is very well informed on what’s available at each state. What would this mean for Texas tax paying residents?
Or, I would hope that my kids were outstanding students who were able to get acceoted to a place like Yale.
It’s such a difficult issue. The rub is…many of these kids came here as toddlers or young children…with their parents. The kids didn’t make the choice.
I would hope that at age 18, they would independently seek citizenship here.