<p>Any comments?</p>
<p>I think the concept should be incorporated into the residency request form and handled on a case by case basis. In principle I don’t believe in blanket regulations or laws for issues that scream to be handled on a case by case basis taking the circumstances into consideration. Right now UofM says no and that may not be a just answer in all cases, but neither is saying yes in all cases necessarily just.</p>
<p>I’ve only lived away from Michigan for nine months, and because of that I’ve had to jump through a number of hoops to prove residency. Given my experience, I would guess this will be dealt with on a case by case basis and will probably require a lot of documentation to prove the families have been paying Michigan taxes for years. </p>
<p>Personally, I think it’s a wonderful move and I’m glad to see it’s on the table. Unfortunately, I do think U of M will see a lot of backlash for this from Michigan voters.</p>
<p>absolutely ridiculous. Sure let’s fund dead beat illegal immigrants and their offsprings.</p>
<p>As a future OSS student who has to pay full tuition, this article angers me. I’m an American Citizen with parents who pay federal taxes! Why should an illegal immigrant receive access to one of AMERICA’s best schools for half the cost, when American Citizens have to pay full costs? It’s not right.</p>
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<p>Which has what to do with UM? It’s about as relevant as someone saying that they are a Chinese citizen and have to pay Chinese federal taxes. </p>
<p>Incidentally, illegal immigrants pay taxes. For obvious reasons, they pay sales tax. It’s also very common for them to pay income taxes, usually under false social security numbers. They cannot claim social security or most other state services, so they actually are tax positive in comparison to the typical citizen.</p>
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<p>Because they live in Michigan, and you don’t.</p>
<p>wolv67, I agree with what you’re saying, but I do think that during an election year, and with our current state administration, the blow back will result in some sort of political action against U of M. That may mean further reducing the already meager funding. We may be talking about a very small percentage, but I’m sure that will still mean real consequences for U of M. That’s not to say that I’m against it. As I’ve said, I’m all for it. As a leader of progress, U of M will be taking a lot of risk, but there will also be rewards for U of M and for the state of Michigan. The state of Michigan is woefully undereducated and the idea of not giving a bright Michigan resident a chance at an education is just ensuring they stay uneducated and underemployed their whole life. That attitude only hurts our economy. The state of Michigan also benefits from educating students who might actually stay in Michigan. </p>
<p>I also think that schools provide better educations when there is a wide range of diversity in the student body. Not just racial or economic, but also diversity of experience. And the experience of a person who has spent nearly his/her entire life in the US living without the legal protections of citizenship would certainly add to the diversity of the class.</p>
<p>I feel bad for the kids but we can’t reward illegal behavior. Name another country that would be as kind as the US to illegals.<br>
Try living in Mexico illegally. First off you would probably be shot as you snuck across the border. If Mexico offers (I know nothing about their University system) a discounted rate for its citizens there is no way in hell they would give it to illegals or their children.</p>
<p>Name another country where just because you are birthed there, makes you a citizen. It is a totally crazy policy.</p>
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<p>The state annually contributes $11,700 a year for every instate student (About 42,000 students, about 65% instate, about $320M funding a year). That’s not practically private. Not even close.</p>
<p>As a LEGAL immigrant who paid boatloads in lawyers and fees and spent years legitimately immigrating to the US – and Michigan specifically – more than 7 years prior to my son’s attendance at UMich, and STILL having had to supply a whack of evidence to satisfy residency, I am frankly floored they would consider giving IS to children of illegals.</p>
<p>If they want to cut those kids a break, then give them scholarship out of their endowment to make it affordable. But don’t reward illegal behavior, particularly at my expense!</p>
<p>PS The irony is that the kid in the story actually DID IT RIGHT (he should have been awarded the green card to begin with). Getting a UMich degree and NOT having a green card is frankly SHORT SIGHTED, at least if you plan to put your degree to WORK ;)</p>
<p>Follow the leader?<br>
[UC</a> Berkeley Financial Aid and Scholarships Office: Undergraduates Types of Aid Dream Act Frequently Asked Questions](<a href=“http://students.berkeley.edu/finaid/undergraduates/dreamfaq.htm]UC”>http://students.berkeley.edu/finaid/undergraduates/dreamfaq.htm)</p>
<p>I agree the article is interesting. I think I will refrain from political commentary but wish Mr. Morales the best of luck in his studies at U-M. Perhaps he will go to law school and become a better immigration lawyer than the one his parents hired.</p>
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<p>The children of illegal immigrants have not done anything illegal themselves, or committed any crimes. In any case, their behavior isn’t being rewarded. They simply meet the standard which UM seeks for reduced tuition - having lived in the state.</p>
<p>I won’t bother with the rest of your ignorant screed, but I can’t resist this one:</p>
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<p>Canada.</p>
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<p>I am also a legal immigrant who has gone through the same process. It took almost 15 years for me and my family to ultimately gain citizenship. I don’t see why children of illegal immigrants who live in Michigan like any other family should be treated differently because of the supposed misdeeds of their parents.</p>
<p>I can’t believe this discussion is even happening with the Board of Regents at U of M. Do they need to add more students on their waiting list?</p>
<p>Illegal is illegal–why aren’t the people who are discovered to be here illegally being deported, let alone given tuition breaks at ANY publicly funded school, especially one for which there are legal citizens lined up at to get in?</p>
<p>Do these illegal immigrants also qualify for Perkins and Pell grants?</p>
<p>It’s a shame that this situation WILL turn into a political one, instead of a simple “what’s right and what’s wrong” with this picture decision on the part of the Regents. With all of the students we have being turned away from universities like U of M, what should be discussed on a Federal level is outlawing the attendance of illegal immigrants into ANY of our schools. Let them attend the schools in the country in which they are a citizen, or come here LEGALLY to attend our schools as many thousands of international students do every year!</p>
<p>FAFSA parent, it isn’t that easy. Receiving citizenship can be a long and grueling process, and many “illegal” immigrants simply are still in the process of doing so, or moved here at a young age and never saw it as a necessity. In these situations you have students who have lived in the state of Michigan (or wherever else) for a decade, yet still do not have the status due to their own lack of citizenship and the difficulties of acquiring it. Oftentimes parents will expect to move back to their own country, yet end up staying in the states and have children that never thought they would need to be a citizen. In these situations, when the kid finally realizes that citizenship is necessary, they still have to go through the whole process (which can take years) and cannot finish by the time they apply for colleges.<br>
In addition to this, these same students generally come from lower income families, and need the aid of in-state tuition more than the majority of applicants (IS or OOS). Claiming that it’s “wrong” for these students to get a tuition break seems very idealistic at best, because these applicants absolutely would be citizens if the system worked better. Denying these kids who for years have been living in the state with tax-paying parents their chance at affordable education simply perpetuates lower-class income levels for immigrants, and will continue to make legally becoming a citizen difficult as these same people will struggle in the job market which now all but demands higher education.
All this being said, this movement does have incredible capacity for backlash. It will be very difficult to determine whether or not these students have been in-state for years, leading to far more paperwork etc. Additionally, UMich is skeptical of many students who have been documented as living in-state for years and actually are citizens (I have encountered this with numerous students from my high school, as well as students on campus). Because of this, I believe that if this policy comes to fruition many students may end up upset at the fact that non-citizens got the in-state tuition that people who went on sabbatical did not.</p>
<p>TL;DR : There’s really no winning here.</p>
<p>You don’t need to be a citizen. All you need to qualify is to be a permanent resident (green card). The children who are minors are only “illegal” if the parents don’t have any legal status to stay.</p>