TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV\/Gray Florida Capital Bureau) – A pair of oversight boards advanced proposals late last month to force students to prove their legal immigration status to attend universities or colleges across the state.<\/p>\n
That means undocumented students, like \u201cDreamers,\u201d will effectively be banned from the University of Florida, Tallahassee State College and the state\u2019s other 28 colleges.<\/p>\n
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis previously expressed his support for the measure, calling it a \u201cslap in the face\u201d to Florida citizens to allow undocumented students to enroll. On Thursday, a coalition of immigrant rights groups decried the move, saying many colleges and universities actually have declining enrollment.<\/p>\n
Florida politics: <\/p>\n
\u201cI would have not had the opportunity to pursue higher education. I would have not had the opportunity to contribute to Florida\u2019s economy, to create jobs, or now to serve the community that I love so dearly,\u201d said Luis Santos, a member of the Miami-Dad County Public School Board.<\/p>\n
Technically, the Florida Board of Governors, which oversees the universities, needs to hold another vote to make the policy official. However, the State Board of Education, which oversees colleges and other adult education, already had its vote.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt requires the universities to verify lawful presence before initial enrollment of students beginning in the 27-28 academic year,\u201d said Emily Sikes, the vice chancellor for Academic & Student Affairs, State University System of Florida<\/p>\n
For advocates, the new rules amount to a total ban, including for undocumented students seeking higher education. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey took away in state tuition, my scholarship, they brought ICE on campus and all these things affected me tremendously and people don\u2019t realize that it\u2019s more than just a policy, but it changed my life completely,\u201d said Alexander Vallejos, a student, University of Central Florida.<\/p>\n
A community organizer said it\u2019s another loss for students without status.<\/p>\n
\u201cI came to this country from Brazil as a teenager and I lived without status for 15 years of my life. I know firsthand what it feels like to work hard in school to dream big and still be told that my dreams were too big and I needed to shrink and I didn\u2019t fully belong,\u201d said Felipe Sousa Lazaballet, the executive director of the Hope Community Center.<\/p>\n
When asked what \u201clawful presence\u201d would mean under the policy, a lawyer for the Board of Governors said that would be determined by the federal government, but that the BoG would provide \u201csome resources that will be able to work with universities based on their guidance.\u201d <\/p>\n
During the Academic Affairs Committee meeting, the governors discovered an issue. If the proposed policy applied to all students, then wouldn\u2019t it bar online students from overseas since they\u2019re not lawfully present?<\/p>\n
\u201cFor clarification for institutions, if a student is completely online, will they need to demonstrate lawful presence in the United States if they\u2019re completely online?\u201d asked Governor Kimberly Dunn.<\/p>\n
While a staff member initially said it applied to \u201call students,\u201d the committee eventually directed staff to bring back language that carved out overseas online students.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got to get resolved. I don\u2019t think it would be the intent of this board to preclude somebody who lives overseas from being able to access online programs or I think what we\u2019re talking about here is primarily undergraduate and resident graduate degree programs,\u201d said Chair Alan Levine.<\/p>\n
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