Minnesota should pass the Prosperity Act in 2013 (S.N. No. 723/H.F. No. 875)

The following essay is from Juventino Meza, program assistant at the Citizens League and founding member of NAVIGATE, a network of immigrant youth and allies seeking to widen the path to higher education for immigrant youth.

Young people are hungering for hope and opportunity

After I graduated from Arlington High School, I realized that most of the students I started school with in the ELL program did not graduate. Many dropped out because they had to help their families here in the US and other countries. Many would say, "Why should I graduate from high school if I can't go to college?" Immigration status for many of us defined our opportunities.

Recently, I was talking about college access for immigrant youth at Inver Hills Community College. A young man who emigrated from Kenya as a child approached me. He had found out in his senior year of high school that he was undocumented and thought he could not go to college. He was about to finish two years of college while still in high school! He didn't know where to go, so he never applied to college. There are many stories of youth like him and so few who make it through college.

In 2007, the toxicity of immigration politics had taken a toll on immigrant students and our families. Because of the negativity against immigrants, many lost hope. So a group of immigrant youth and a cross country coach (Linea Palmisano) started NAVIGATE to make sure immigrant students knew their options for college in Minnesota.

Minnesota demographics trends calling us to act

Minnesota has long been recognized for its well-educated, high quality workforce, but current trends threaten that reputation:

The number of jobs in Minnesota requiring some higher education and providing a living wage is growing dramatically faster than jobs requiring only a high school education

In the last decade, the number of high school graduates in Minnesota decreased by 10.3 percent—significantly more than the national average of 4 percent.

While the number of high school graduates is projected to decline in coming years, the number of students of color graduating from high school—and immigrant students in particular—is increasing.

Historically lower college-going rates by students in these populations will contribute to

the decline in post-secondary degrees awarded in Minnesota if action is not taken.

Data from the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce show that 43 percent of employers are

already having issues recruiting qualified employees.

Young people of color – and immigrants specifically – are a growing portion of

Minnesota’s population, especially in lower age groups. Sixteen percent of Minnesotans

are from immigrant families, including 19 percent of children under age four.

According to a new set of MN Employment Projections for this decade, total job openings are 885,600, or about 88,600 per year. By comparison, the labor force is projected to grow by 186,000 over ten years or 18,600 per year.

We cannot afford to lose the opportunity to tap into talent already in our state. That's one reason the Citizens League supports efforts to allow students to pay in-state tuition rates, access state

higher education aid, and allow public universities to use private funding as financial aid for all students, regardless of immigration status.

Even with Federal Immigration Reform, Minnesota will have to pass the Prosperity Act

Even with federal reform looking more likely, it will still likely be left to the states to decide to give in-state tuition and financial aid to undocumented youth who are legalized through federal action. Even if federal reform includes federal financial aid for DREAMers (which is not likely), states will still need to pass legislation to allow some of their undocumented youth (including students who qualify for DACA/federal DREAM Act) to pay resident tuition and/or access state-based financial aid.

Minnesota should be at the forefront of exploring and developing mechanisms that allow immigrant students to access and finance higher education that will keep more students in school, allow them to graduate from high school or obtain their GED, and attend and finish college in Minnesota (and subsequently want to live and work in Minnesota).

According to a study on state-based Dream Acts around the nation:

In-state tuition results in a 31 percent increase in non-citizen enrollment in institutes of higher education.

In-state tuition is correlated with a 14 percent decrease in high school dropouts among non-citizen Latinos.

The benefits associated with in-state tuition do not appear to come at no financial cost to the U.S. taxpayer.

Pass the MN Prosperity Act

By the time a student graduates from high school, Minnesota has already invested significant resources in their success. To prevent that student from pursuing higher education would be to squander our investment. Studies show that over the long-term, immigrants generate more tax revenues than the costs of the public services they use. This impact is powerfully influenced by education level. Undocumented youth who go to college will add $329B to the US economy by 2030. The business community in Minnesota understands and supports reform.

Sen. Sandy Pappas and Rep. Carlos Mariani, along with 35 bipartisan, rural and urban co-authors introduced the Prosperity Act (S.N. No. 723/ H.F. No. 875) that will recognize certain undocumented youth as a Minnesota resident for the purpose of allowing them to be eligible for state financial aid and in-state tuition if they:

Have gone to a MN high school for 3 years; Receive their diploma or equivalent; File an affidavit with the respective college/university saying they will apply to change

their immigration status as soon as they are able.

Minnesota Statute 135A.011 explains that higher education investment is made in pursuit of the objective "to maintain access by providing an opportunity for all Minnesotans, regardless of personal circumstances, to participate in higher education." These bills would give students more secure access to Minnesota State Colleges and Universities schools, private colleges/universities, and the University of Minnesota and make higher education a reality for thousands of students in Minnesota whom we really need as a state to stay competitive and attractive.