< Previous page

Stevens said he asked the Attorney General's Office to consider the federal statute that became the basis of its advice. If the office hadn't issued the letter, Stevens said he would have supported legislation in the upcoming session to expressly bar illegal immigrants from colleges and universities.

Now, he said, that bill may not be necessary.

Advocates, including Bazán, called the advice "extreme." Several states provide in-state tuition to illegal immigrants, and she said that in years of fighting for a similar policy in North Carolina, she has never heard this federal law invoked.

The letter says that the "scope and applicability" of the federal law barring higher education is "unsettled" and cites conflicting legal rulings on the issue. It also says that enforcement of the federal law is the responsibility of the Department of Homeland Security, but that the department has not provided any guidance on how to interpret the law regarding higher education.

'Permanent underclass'

Bazán said that, by denying illegal immigrant students a chance at college, "we are creating this permanent underclass."

"We're not talking about thousands of kids," Bazán said. "We're talking about just a handful of kids who have made it to the top of their class and want to contribute."

Peter Kaufman, a University of North Carolina history professor, works with some of those students. He runs the Scholars' Latino Initiative, which mentors Hispanic high school students who want to go to college.

Kaufman said he has four illegal immigrant students in the program this year, two of whom plan to attend public colleges in North Carolina. He said all are teens who had no choice about moving to the United States, and that all have succeeded despite poverty and limited English skills.

"These are kids who are extraordinarily disciplined and gifted," Kaufman said. "But we can't tell them that achievement is going to mean clear sailing."

< Previous page