Educating immigrants

LAST WEEK, hundreds of students went to the State House and wore signs with large numbers around their necks. Whether it was 207, 58, or 106, they all wanted the same thing: a House vote on a bill that would make higher education more affordable by letting immigrants who are not permanent residents pay Massachusetts state college tuitions at the lower rates that are charged to residents. The numbers represent the 400 students a year who would benefit from the bill.

Without it, these students are in limbo. One recent graduate of Cambridge Rindge and Latin high school who has lived in Massachusetts for 14 years would like to study business and psychology in college, but she can't afford to pay out-of-state tuition. Instead she's living at home and, like many of her friends, works at a restaurant.

''We really can't get any better jobs without a college degree," she explains.

Critics say the bill would reward lawbreakers. But these are often teenagers who have lived in Massachusetts for years. Some are here illegally. Some were brought here by their undocumented parents. Some have legal but not permanent status, so they don't qualify for the lower tuition or financial aid. All of them come from families that live and pay taxes in Massachusetts. And the bill would require students to file an affadavit saying that they are applying to become a citizen or permanent resident.

To some, this looks like an immigrant issue, a matter of solving their problem. But for the students it's a rational, cutting-edge solution to protect our friends and even our teachers, such as Obain Attouoman, the popular Fenway High School teacher who has been fighting a battle to remain in the United States.

The students are right: This is a community problem. The bill would help Massachusetts move more people into higher education so they can fill high-skill jobs, increase their earnings, and boost tax revenues, a key step given the Census Bureau's recent report of a drop in the state's population.

Legislators should act quickly -- the legislative session finishes Nov. 16. Passing the bill would make Massachusetts the 10th state to acknowledge and advance its identity as a home to immigrant students.

Two of the leading Democratic candidates for governor, Attorney General Thomas Reilly and former Justice Department official Deval Patrick, have endorsed the bill. But Ali Noorani, head of the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition, believes it might not have a chance in 2006, an election year. And waiting would be a waste, since each graduation means more students are left without academic futures.

Immigration is a controversial issue. But legislative leadership can change it to a common-sense matter of doing the moral, demographic, and economic right thing.