you are right

Sincerely,
anonvmous

Hi E, I am a resident of Hawaii. I pay taxes here and have been paying tuition at Â鶹´«Ã½for several years. I am not a “BOR” person, but am an advocate for this policy. Similar initiatives have been passed in several states, providing for access to education.

I am not here to bicker or belittle anyone in the discussion. I do not understand how providing access to education to a small group of people is hurting anyone. These young people are already contributing to Hawaii and will continue to. They’re not being exempt from tuition. They simply get to pay the in-state rate.

Good substantive argument, Kristina. Thank you.

The recent comments appear to be a collection of BOR people or advocates for this unfair proposal. I will stand by my conviction that it is unfair and so far, none of you, including the little ʻarticleʻ you tout have provided an intelligent response to concerns.

I respect the comments posted by all, but please read this report to really understand the facts and not the myths that have been expressed.

“Undocumented students in higher education are not seeking handouts or entitlements. On the contrary, they just want the same opportunities as other students who have also earned them by studying hard and preparing themselves for college. Despite facing unique financial obstacles in pursuit of a college degree unlike their American citizen peers, they remain resilient. Helping them pursue their dreams of a higher education proves that the United States is still a country that values hard work and rewards that hard work with earned opportunities.”

This policy is not about blocking anyone else’s access to higher education. The policy is simply helping undocumented students (who are undocumented for a variety of reasons) get access to in state tuition. Â鶹´«Ã½used to provide similar assistance to students from certain Pacific Islands, which would be great to re-establish as well, but this policy is a good step in the right direction. Any efforts that go towards opening up higher education to be accessed by more people is a good thing. Please read the policy and educate yourself on the issues.

Fully agreed! This is excellent news for many of the students of the future. Never mind the anti-immigrant noise on the rest of this board. Let those who want to take advantage of higher education take it.

And how long is this “applying for citizenship which means they are in the process to become legal.” which could technically go on forever. If the parents can afford to send them w/o FAFSA, then the parents can afford to pay taxes but usually the situation is they want to stay in U.S., reap benefits they donÊ»t have in their country, go back home and live like lords, while the U.S. suckers pay the taxes for infrastructure…such as schools.

In other words thereʻs a preferential treatment.

The system is too slack and has too many holes in it so things like you are referring to really arenʻt applied- oh, but NOT for kanaka who get slammed every step of the way. We are even using their land which greatly disturbs me.

And Iʻm sorry but I disagree that this process will not clog classroom seating.

Alyssa-Marie,
Thank you for weighing both sides. But please see Anaʻs post: (February 27, 2013 at 1:01 am).

With respect to the un-documented students, we are to assume that their parents already live here? Or will they be given this opportunity as some kind of ʻsister-cityʻ nonsense coming directly from a country of another origin?

Even if they are already here, do you feel it is fair to upstage local parents that are struggling and have fulfilled all requirements to send their children to UH? There is enough overwhelming competition for this set of people, especially from the military families settling down here.

If the undocumented children of undocumented parents residing here, have not felt it necessary to try to be citizens or in some cases, CANNOT be documented, whoʻs kuleana is that?

I believe this is an unfair advantage and the weight of disadvantage falls to local kids and THEIR families.

Please keep in mind, and this is very important: the Â鶹´«Ã½lands are all former Kingdom, government, and Crown lands. The Â鶹´«Ã½has a fiduciary duty/obligation resulting from the usage of those lands to the children of Hawaii.

The Â鶹´«Ã½should have consulted the public without applying their autonomous methods.

However, it is unsettling to know that providing these students with this right comes at an expense to local students’ tuition rates. The university ‘s recent policies on great tuition hikes for in-state students continue to discourage local students from attending the university to seek better opportunities in other parts of the nation. The university should have an obligation to assist these in-state students in need to encourage them to stay in Hawaii, revitalize our dismal economy, and fulfill jobs in areas where their assistance will be so desperately needed.

Courtney, please read the other posts and the points they make. Next time, as well, if you or someone in your family, is signing up for classes and oops no seats in ANYTHING you need towards a degree. What then? You wait til term and itʻs WORSE? Is it still acceptable? There are many facets to consider, not just that it is a ʻnice gestureʻ.
And again, we are talking about National citizen rights.

Youʻre right. 2X. Thatʻs how it works anywhere in the world.

A. Liza,
Very good points. I think The Â鶹´«Ã½Regents should maneuver towards a reconsideration and rescind this uncalled for and discriminatory Ê»act of generosityÊ» at the expense of children who are in dire straits right here in one of the most expensive places on earth.

I believe the Regents got ahead of themselves and delved into something they really have no authority to do. I also believe this is motivated by Neil Abercrombie and his bending over backwards to pawn off Hawaiiʻs land and resources (that includes education of children as a resource) to satisfy agreements and foolish promises made to APEC members(which he had no legal authority to do since these lands are still awaiting disposition of the sovereignty status).

Â鶹´«Ã½Regents need to rescind this. And yes, it is discriminatory because it grants special privileges to one group over the other. The Â鶹´«Ã½is still under the Hawaii State Legislature and I am sorry I wrote testimony on their behalf to retain all monies from tuitions instead of putting it into the state general fund. How soon this happened right after the Legislative session. Must have been in the works.

They need to do the right thing and rescind.

A year ago my husband, a decorated war vet who’s been living here for 5 years, had to jump through hoops trying to prove his residency which revolved around taxes. So, since illegals are considered residents now, does it mean that taxes are no longer a #1 requirement for getting a resident tuition?

It’s not about race or nationality, it is about what’s right. And this whole thing is nothing but a double standard.

Here is one more question to the Board of Regents. What decent company will risk their reputation hiring an illegal college grad?

Thanks E and A for commenting on my posts.

I understand where you guys are coming from but when people think undocumented students are going to prevent residents from going to a university, this is not the case. Undocumented students will not take away any resources from tax payers because they do not have a social security. Guess what that means? They do not qualify for the FAFSA which means no federal grants that many citizens can get (i.e. Fell Pell Grant and Loans). Granting in state tuition makes it affordable for undocumented students in Hawaii who have lived here their entire lives. Why should they pay out of state tuition when they lived in Hawaii their entire lives and graduated from a public high school? Many of these undocumented students need to find the resources to pay for their education and without a social security number they do not get anything from the government.

No one is trying to jump the line here. The proposal that the BOR passed includes that the undocumented student wanting in state tuition needs to file an affidavit saying that they are applying for citizenship which means they are in the process to become legal.