Each year, 25,000 undocumented immigrant students graduate from California high schools. Thanks to Assembly Bill 540, approved in 2002, many, if not most, of these students are eligible for in-state tuition. To be eligible, students must have attended high school in California for three years, graduated or obtained the equivalent of a high school diploma and filed an affidavit with their university stating they have applied for legal status or will be eligible.

The break from out-of-state to in-state tuition is a good start and a much needed step. However, it is not enough. In-state tuition is still too expensive for many undocumented immigrant students and without financial aid, college is out of reach.

The California Dream Act, recently vetoed a second time by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, would have solved this problem. The Dream Act opens community college fee waivers and non-competitive Cal Grants to undocumented immigrant students who meet the requirements for in-state tuition in AB 540.

If passed, the Dream Act would have been that extra step needed to truly make education available to all in California. The Dream Act benefits not only California’s public education system, but also the economy and state’s overall prosperity.

The Public Policy Institute of California projected a shortage of college-educated workers by 2025. Further studies by PPIC have shown that the most effective way of closing the growing gap between job demands and the available work force is to educate those already living in California – as opposed to importing educated workers from other states and nations.

Many of the undocumented students living in California have lived in the state from a very young age. This is their home. They have assimilated, worked hard to graduate from high school and should be given an opportunity to make their dreams a reality. They should not be held back due to their parents’ choices or their inability to weed through the bureaucracy to legal status.

Many against the Dream Act argue that tax dollars should not be spent on illegal aliens. But the money’s already been spent. Tax money pays for undocumented students’ educations from the day they enroll in primary or secondary school. For some of these students, tax dollars have been paid for their entire education.

All children regardless of their legal status are allowed an education in California. This promise should include a college education. If an undocumented immigrant wants to better their life and the future of California – their home – by pursuing a college degree, they should be given every opportunity to do so. It doesn’t make sense to invest money in an individual’s education only until the moment before they have the opportunity to complete it.

The first time Gov. Schwarzenegger vetoed the Dream Act he gave valid reason. If passed, it would have enlarged the pool of candidates competing for competitive Cal Grants.

That was a fair judgment call, protecting those here legally from being passed over for undocumented students. The language of the bill has since been changed to reflect the Governor’s concerns. Yet, it was still vetoed. Schwarzenegger pointed to increasing fees and the already limited general fund as his new reason for vetoing the bill.

Considering the rising cost of fees, access to financial aid is even more a necessity for undocumented immigrant students who cannot afford the cost of college. If they couldn’t afford the in-state tuition in 2002, they certainly can’t afford it today – twice the cost it was in 2002.

As for the limited general fund, the financial aid budget is set each year based on the total number of high school graduates, legal and illegal, expected to attend college. Each year, there is a surplus of unclaimed financial aid money, which goes back into the general fund.

According to the Sacramento Bee, last year’s surplus was 14 million dollars, the year before, 38 million. If something has already been set aside, it can afford to be spent. In the wealthiest state in the nation, money should be the last thing holding young people back from their future.

Undocumented immigrant students are part of California’s fabric and will be here for its future, whether educated or not. California’s economy will hurt if 2025 comes and we truly are short three million educated workers. The state needs to tap into those 25,000 students a year, a resource of talented and driven undocumented immigrant students, if it hopes to continue to prosper and grow.

The California Dream Act would throw the doors of this states public university system wide open, making it available to all. Maybe next year will be the year, in Gov. Schwarzenegger’s year of education, when the Dream Act will pass and all Californians will have an equal opportunity to a college education.

Choquette Marrow can be reached at [email protected].