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Illegal Immigrants May Get In-State Tuition
By Craig Ledford

The cost of in-state tuition has been at the center of controversy in North Carolina before. Soon, it may not be the rising cost of that tuition, but who’s paying for it, that has people talking.

There’s a movement in the General Assembly to let illegal immigrants pay in-state tuition at four-year schools in North Carolina. State Senator William Martin chairs a committee that’s investigating the issue. He says he supports the idea of giving in-state tuition to illegal immigrants and their children. “These are children who did actually spend most of their time attending school in North Carolina, and graduated from North Carolina. Had it not been for the status of their parents, they would otherwise have been eligible for in-state tuition.”

North Carolina could soon join other states, like Texas and California, that already have laws allowing in-state tuition for illegal immigrants. At the legislature, a bill could be voted on as early as May.

Lisa Underwood is an out-of-state student at UNC-Chapel Hill who says she doesn't think in-state tuition should be a reward for people who’ve entered the country illegally. “One concern of a roommate of mine, who’s also out-of-state was like, they’ll come here and go to college and get it really cheap, then maybe leave. Then it’s like the state is paying for them and they’re not going to be any benefit to them [the state] at all.”

Andrea Manson is with a Latino advocacy group that disagrees. “I don’t think that our youth should be punished for anything that the industries of their parents ... the fact that their parents are here, maybe without documents ... it doesn’t mean it’s the youth’s fault.”

Manson says her group isn’t looking to give illegal immigrants a handout. She says most are hardworking people that are just trying to support themselves and their families.

“North Carolina is the fastest growing state in terms of the Hispanic population in the country. When you’re bringing a whole community that’s providing a much needed work ... we have to be able to provide some resources back to that community.”

With a budget shortfall of more than $900 million, legislators opposed to the idea may have another reason to vote it down.

Census officials estimate more than 200,000 illegal immigrants live in North Carolina. They’re able to attend public universities now by paying out-of-state tuition rates.

 
   

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