Recently, the California Community Colleges held a week of activities to offer resources to undocumented students, following the DACA ruling in court.
The California Community College System has approximately 70,000 undocumented students. This represents more students than the California State University (CSU) and University of California (UC) systems combined. Undocumented students in California can access university or community college and even receive private or institutional scholarships, even if they are not eligible for state tuition or the California Dream Act, for example.
In this sense, the 16 California Community Colleges (CCCO) play a very important role for undocumented youth in California. For this reason, they carried out the Week of Action for Undocumented Students from October 17 to 21, in which they promoted support for students and helped them connect with resources that benefit them, after the decision made in court that determined the illegality of DACA .
“The court's decision on DACA does not change our mission to welcome and serve all students. This is what we have always done, and we will not give up. Undocumented students can continue to rely on the support of California's 116 community colleges and know they are safe on our campuses,” explained Dr. Daisy Gonzales, interim chancellor of the CCCOs.
Likewise, he called on undocumented students, explaining that the CCCO system allows DACA beneficiaries or undocumented youth to enroll in their schools. “Our system offers several opportunities to make college more affordable and accessible,” she said.
Likewise, the purpose of the Week of Action is also to mobilize students and staff from all CCCOs to make visible the need for a permanent solution for Dreamers, which depends on Congress.
On the other hand, from November 1, the UndocuLiasion organization will have a space in each CCCO campus, in which they will offer accompaniment, legal services and support for undocumented students.