6 DECEMBER 26, 2019 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Advocates call on NYC school staff to be
better educated in the Dream Act process
BY ALEJANDRA O'CONNELLDOMENECH
ADOMENECH@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@QNS
Advocates want more New York
City school staff to be better educated
in how to guide undocumented high
school seniors through Dream Act
application process.
The Dream Act grants undocumented
students access to state grants
and scholarships, like the Excelsior
scholarship, to help fi nance higher
education. The act was signed by
Governor Cuomo into law in April
aft er state legislators passed the bill
in January. The bill was introduced
by state lawmakers every year since
2013 and was fi nally aft er to pass aft er
Democrats took control of the state
Senate, which had not been done in
over a decade.
“Applying to college has been a roller
coaster of an experience for me,”
said Jessica Garcia, from Make the
Road, a nonprofi t focused on fi ghting
for immigrant rights causes. Garcia
read a statement from named Anais
Fierros who was undocumented
during her high school years during
a rally on the steps of Tweed Courthouse.
Fierros wrote during the college
application process her dreams
of becoming a nurse were repeatedly
crushed when she fi rst learned that
her status would prevent her from
taking the state nursing board and
the selection of scholarships for undocumented
students was a fraction
of the amount that her Native New
Yorker classmates could apply to. The
idea of applying for jobs so that she
could support herself through school
was “out of the question.”
The Dream Act was fi nally opening
a door, though. But Fierros has
not gotten more information on the
fi nancial support available to her
because her guidance counselors “are
not fully informed.” The application
is a two-part process where students
have to fi rst prove their eligibility.
Then students need to fi ll out an a
New York state Higher Education Service
Corporation Process application
to then be able to apply for individual
grants and scholarships.
According to Schools Chancellor
Richard Carranza, since the passage
of the Dream Act coaches at 150 high
schools were trained in the Dream
Act eligibility and the New York state
Higher Education Service Corporation
Process. The HESC is the entity
in charge of the application process
and has yet to report on the number
of students taking advantage of the
DREAM Act, according to Politico.
Chancellor Carranza added that the
DOE 1,400 educators from over 300
schools received training on the application
processes.
“We look forward to continuing
our partnership and to share resources
on the Dream Act as widely
as possible and we hope that our
students and families will take advantage,”
said Carranza. “College is
for everyone.”
Richard Carranza File photo
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