Tuition aid to illegal immigrants falters
Patrick declines to act on behalf of graduates
Governor Deval Patrick has decided against taking action to allow illegal immigrants to pay resident tuition and fees at state colleges and universities this fall, an administration official said yesterday, crushing advocates who were counting on the governor to deliver on a pledge to support the students.
Earlier this year, Patrick said he was considering ways to offer illegal immigrants in-state rates, such as issuing a regulation, adding that it would be "the right thing to do."
The governor declined to comment yesterday, but an administration source who spoke on condition of anonymity said Patrick decided that there were "significant legal impediments" to that approach. The governor will still support legislation on the matter, but on Beacon Hill the issue is widely viewed as dead this session.
The decision is a blow to church pastors, school counselors, and advocates from Lawrence to Springfield, who had pressured Patrick to act before high school graduations in the next few weeks. Now several hundred seniors are again facing college tuition and fees that are more than double the resident rates, as high as $21,900 a year.
"This would be slamming the door on hundreds of students who are graduating this year," said Loren McArthur, staff director of the Merrimack Valley Project, a group of churches, labor unions, and others who sent Patrick 300 letters this month urging him to act now. "If this is his decision, it's unfortunate. But we will be urging him to reconsider."
Advocates had hoped that Patrick, who often touts his own background as a civil rights advocate whose life was transformed by education, would build support for a relatively small group of students. The Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation estimated that if students could pay in-state rates, as many as 600 illegal immigrants would enroll in college a year, out of 160,000 in the public system, bringing in about $2.5 million in tuition and fees. The group estimated that only about 100 such students were enrolled in 2006.
"We had hoped that the governor would honor his commitments and his promises to make education access fair for all Massachusetts students," said Shuya Ohno, spokesman for the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition. "He understood that it was a question of fairness. What he couldn't articulate is that it actually makes money for the state."
In recent weeks, hundreds of supporters were intensifying pressure on Patrick, peppering him with calls and letters on behalf of the students. Some wanted Patrick to sign an executive order allowing students to pay in-state rates. Others urged the Board of Higher Education to change its regulations to allow it. Patrick considered that option, but the board said it did not have that authority, said Eileen O'Connor, a board spokeswoman.
The push resurrected a debate that erupted on Beacon Hill two years ago and mirrored a national tug-of-war on the issue. Opponents say the state should not make concessions for illegal immigrants, while advocates say charging them prohibitive rates for college wastes the money that the state and communities have spent on their schooling. A 1982 Supreme Court ruling mandates that public schools educate all children through high school, but did not address what to do about college.
Nationally, 10 states have passed laws allowing illegal immigrants to pay in-state tuition, including California, Texas, and Utah.
In 2005, the state Senate passed a measure that would have granted resident tuition and fees to illegal immigrants who have been here for at least three years, but it failed in the House.
Today, lawmakers and others say, the legislation faces even higher hurdles. The state Republican Party has vowed to oppose it; yesterday party spokesman Barney Keller called the plan ridiculous and discriminatory against US citizens from other states who are forced to pay out-of-state rates.
Representative Marie P. St. Fleur, Democrat of Boston and a key sponsor, said that even supportive lawmakers are reluctant to pass any legislation until Congress decides what to do with the 12 million illegal immigrants in the United States. She had hoped that Patrick and the Board of Higher Education would find a temporary solution for students who are about to graduate.
"I'm disappointed in learning that it could not be done," said St. Fleur, adding that she and other lawmakers have asked to meet with the governor on this issue. "I know that at this time there is insufficient support in the House in order to move the agenda forward, particularly in this session."
In living rooms across Massachusetts in recent weeks, illegal immigrants who are high school seniors have been opening college acceptance letters with mixed feelings. Many have been here for years, are fluent in English, and consider themselves American, even if they are not.
Laura, a 17-year-old student from Colombia who spoke on condition that her last name be withheld, beamed at the word congratulations on her acceptance letter from Salem State in her family's apartment in an East Boston three-decker this week. Her parents brought her here five years ago after their business went bankrupt and to flee scenes of war.
In school, she quickly learned English, took Advanced Placement classes, and earned A's and B's on her report card. But non-resident tuition and fees at Salem State cost $12,410 a year, double the in-state rate and more than she can afford.
"It's really sad and really discouraging," Laura said.
Priscilla, a 17-year-old undocumented immigrant from Brazil who is also graduating this year, was accepted to a private college, but it will cost her $24,000 a year. She is considering community college, but that is a stretch, too. Nonresidents pay an average of $10,380 a year, more than double the cost for residents.
"I know people are very disappointed," she said of the inaction so far. "I understand that it's hard for [Patrick], but I didn't choose to come here."
Maria Sacchetti can be reached at msacchetti@globe.com.
