Education for Dreamers: The Education for DACA Recipients in The Us

Introduction

Immigrant domestic life has its own particularities beyond cultural and language differences. It is not uncommon that immigrant families live together with extended family members, all contributing to surviving harsh living conditions. Many times, families are comprised of mixed legal statuses; some members are undocumented while others are legal residents through marriage, have temporary working visas, are DACA-eligible young adults, or are U.S.-born citizens. Each individual has his or her own legal restraints and privileges, and therefore has unique familial obligations.

Given the constant political, legal, social, and psychological challenges, only a small percentage of undocumented students actually pursue and successfully complete U.S. post-secondary education. Those who do make it to college have overcome great odds, have built above-average resiliency, and pursue education with the dream to better their circumstance.

Promising Practices for Undocumented Student Support

The solution to creating an undocu-friendly college is never just providing access and affordability, but rather, re-imagining and rebuilding a campus culture that acknowledges, accepts, and integrates students from diverse backgrounds. This may require some shifting of campus structures and policies to be truly inclusive, all the while aligning with institutional values and mission. Critical race theory (CRT) can inform culturally responsive and strength-based support for undocumented students by addressing structural racism and bringing attention to students’ various forms of accumulated cultural wealth and life experience.

Tara J. Yosso explains that CRT “shifts the research lens away from a deficit view of Communities of Color as places full of cultural poverty disadvantages, and instead focuses on and learns from the array of cultural knowledge, skills, abilities, and contacts possessed by socially marginalized groups that often go unrecognized and unacknowledged”.

College-bound undocumented students tend to be very motivated, hard workers who honor their families’ sacrifice and hardship, and carry a great weight of responsibility to sustain their family. They are brave groundbreakers, paving their way through forces that counteract their goals. Many are activists who know that their personal fight serves a larger purpose of collective struggle toward social and racial justice.

In consideration of Yosso’s Model of Community Cultural Wealth as a framework, a culturally responsive advisor can help students translate their unique skills and assets to the new college environment, empowering students to navigate with their own capital. An advisor who demonstrates sensitivity to cultural and developmental backgrounds, and who dedicates time to building trust and integrity with these students, can be a life-changing resource and help increase their progress toward graduation and a career.

Create a Welcoming Campus Environment

College campuses can begin to create an undocu-friendly reputation by openly acknowledging and welcoming undocumented students as valued members of the community. It is the responsibility of the institution to generate policies and practices that integrate underrepresented students, allow for their self-representation (rather than a forced identity), and cultivate a greater sense of belonging.

Diversity education and training for all faculty, staff, and students is vital to fostering a spirit of inclusion of all people, regardless of color, gender, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, social or economic class, nationality, and immigrant status. There’s a growing number of U.S. colleges and universities with exemplary undocumented student programs and online resources that promote inclusion and belonging, such as UC Berkeley’s Undocumented Student Program, the University of Texas Austin’s Longhorn DREAMers’ Project, Loyola University Chicago’s Undocumented Student Resources, and Harvard College’s student-led organization, Act on a Dream.

Create a Support System

It is beneficial to establish a cross-campus network of institutional agents to create specialized support for undocumented students. These campus specialists can act as advocates and allies by listening and becoming familiar with students’ needs and goals and provide one-on-one contact at critical points in their academic journey. Specialists also serve as a voice for this marginalized group and have the power to recommend administrative and policy changes that would improve the quality and success of undocumented student education.

In cases where colleges do not know who and how many undocumented students attend, administrative and ally contact information should be displayed in high-traffic campus spaces. Specialists can collect student success data and anecdotal student stories to demonstrate how investing in these students matters and to enhance leadership buy-in.

Foster Safe Spaces to Enhance Support

Colleges can create safe spaces in dorms, student centers, study halls, special events, and even virtual spaces where students, peers, and allies can feel comfortable, build a positive sense of self within a larger community, cope with bias, and work together to improve school climate. It is helpful to identify empathetic faculty and staff members who want to be actively involved in supporting these individuals. Organized safe spaces, ally networks, and faculty and peer mentorship programs contribute to a welcoming campus environment.

Ensure Confidentiality

An undocu-friendly campus can provide accurate, up-to-date knowledge on legal and institutional policies and opportunities while keeping students’ background and legal status confidential and within FERPA regulations. Incoming students should be informed about the institutional agents in their network of support and should always be asked for permission before sharing any information. University administrators can devise crisis planning, including releasing students from financial obligations in the chance that a student or family member is detained or deported. Also consider campus safety protocols and staff training for emergent situations, such as federal enforcement agents coming to campus.

Provide Outreach and Resources

Undocu-friendly recruitment efforts can include welcoming messages to attract the undocumented student population and encouraging students to participate in pre-college programs, campus visits, merit-based scholar programs, and other opportunities. It is important to provide clear information on scholarships that are open to all students, regardless of immigration status. Once the student is admitted, early outreach and support tailored to the student and family can drastically decrease the stress of this transition. A handbook listing of on and off-campus resources may be convenient. For example, UC Berkeley’s Undocumented Student Program uses a green, yellow, and red light coding system to identify the level of accessibility and support of institutional resources and procedures for undocumented students.

Access to legal support is critical for undocumented students and their families. A widespread consensus in immigration law networks recommend that undocumented individuals, including DACA recipients, should undergo a legal screening to understand individual legal options, potential status changes, or other forms of immigration relief. If institutions cannot directly provide legal services, they can guide students to trustworthy, off-campus resources. They can also inform students of special financial assistance programs — such as Lending Circles for DREAMers and Self-Help Loan for DREAMers — that provide small loans or scholarships to cover immigration procedure fees.

To stay informed of constantly shifting policies, advocacy campaigns, networking opportunities, scholarships, and other financial aid resources, advisors and students can consult nationally recognized organization websites such as Educators for Fair Consideration and United We Dream. Advisors can also help students protect themselves and know their rights if approached by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents by providing information such as United We Dream’s deportation Defense Card.

Conclusion

In conclusion, as seen from the essay, the enactment of DACA in U.S. society has had an overall positive effect on our society as a whole. The inclusion of DACA recipients ultimately leads to economy development and community enrichment. As such, better education supports and assistance should be instituted in order to give DACA recipients a fair shot at life in the U.S. By implementing supports such as fostering welcoming environments, making resources and outreach easily accessible, DACA recipients can feel safe enough to contribute everything they have to offer. That benefits everyone.