Dreaming of College: A Path to Higher Education for Undocumented Students

http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/20...a_web.h28.html


From U.S. Rep. Michael M. Honda, D-Calif., is a former teacher, principal, and school board member, and is the chairman of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus.

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            Second, we are missing an opportunity to provide undocumented immigrants with a chance for substantial upward mobility, a pursuit only possible with legal status. The more upwardly mobile immigrants are, the more taxes they pay, and the more capable they are of contributing economically to society. The DREAM Act makes these financial returns possible by enabling undocumented immigrant youths, brought into this country years ago as children, to obtain legal permanent-resident status if they graduate from high school and go on to college or military service.<br />

Studies consistently show that undocumented immigrants who receive legal status move on to significantly better jobs, thus broadening the tax base. In one example, the U.S. Department of Labor found that the wages of immigrants legalized under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 had increased by roughly 15 percent five years later.

While there is a host of moral reasons why we should help undocumented students legally pursue their dreams in college and beyond, the financial benefits alone seem sufficient to warrant a serious discussion on the merits of the DREAM Act. And at a time when our economy is desperately seeking solace in every possibility of stimulus, the gains here are too inviting to ignore, and these students’ dreams too promising to pass up.