Over the summer, Florida International University took a big step forward on an important issue.
FIU decided to grant tuition waivers to students who were part of President Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.
The DACA program granted temporary reprieve from deportation for undocumented youth.
All public universities in Florida are granted discretionary spending money that they are allowed to use on tuition waivers.
The money is there to spend, and it is hard to think of a more deserving group.
It was a courageous move by FIU.
And it’s one that the University of Florida should emulate.
If our trustees agree to this step, UF will join a growing number of universities in 16 states around the country that have similar policies.
This week I am excited to see the class of 2017 join the Gator Nation.
But sadly, the undocumented students among them are getting an unfair deal when it comes to tuition.
Even if they have attended high school in Florida for four years, undocumented immigrants are forced to pay out-of-state tuition costs.
This means they are charged almost five times as much for their education.
According to Student Financial Affairs, the average undergraduate at the University of Florida pays about $6,000 per year in tuition fees.
For out-of-state students, that cost comes to more than $28,000.
Under the current ruling, it is practically impossible for undocumented youth to attend UF without accruing a crippling amount of debt.
We need tuition equity at UF.
All students who have lived in Florida and graduated from high school here should qualify for in-state tuition.
And that’s whether they have documentation or not.
One of the best things about our university is the relative low cost of attendance that makes it accessible to Florida’s working families.
Attending UF should only be based on academic ability and not on the ability to pay.
But unfortunately, this is not the case for the thousands of undocumented immigrants in our state.
Allowing undocumented students to pay in-state tuition would alleviate much of the financial burden felt by these students who are already part of the Gator Nation.
Equal tuition for all would level the playing field and encourage the best and brightest of all students to attend UF — not just those lucky enough to afford it.
As students, we have an important role to play in making sure this change happens.
We need to stand alongside our friends and classmates who are undocumented and push for tuition equality.
Together, we have a chance to enact meaningful reforms that will benefit the lives of young people all over Florida — but only if we get organized.
This semester, Students for a Democratic Society will be working hard to put this issue on the agenda so that when our Board of Trustees meets next they can approve a proposal for tuition equity.
Come join us.
Get involved in the campaign!
UF Students for a Democratic Society meets Mondays at 6:30 p.m. in Anderson Hall, Room 32.
Conor Munro is a UF history and economics senior. This guest column ran on page 6 on 8/23/2013 under the headline "Equal tuition for undocumented students"
