WHAT IS THE DREAM ACT?The Development Relief and Eductation for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act is a bill that would affect the approximately 65,000 students who graduate from US high schools each year with no hope for a future, due to a decision that was made for them when they were young children; five thousand of them graduate annually in Florida alone. Because they are undocumented, these DREAMers cannot get a job, go to college, join the military, get a driver's license, or even donate blood. The DREAM Act (Development Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act) would create a pathway for undocumented youth - if they meet stringent requirements - to obtain access to higher education, to have the opportunity to serve in the U.S. military and to eventually establish legal US residency. Currently, no such legal pathway exists, so undocumented young people are stuck in a liminal reality where they officially belong nowhere.
Please click HERE to learn more about the DREAM Act.
Resources for the DREAM Act
Florida Immigrant Youth Network
DREAMActivist
United We DREAM
Scholarship Opportunities & Helpful Websites
MALDEF Scholarship List
Latino College Dollars
UCSB Resources for Undocumented Students
Fast Web
Migrant Scholarships
MN Page Education Foundation
CORE Scholarship
La Vida Scholars
Davis Putter Scholarship Fund
Salvadorian American Leadership and Education Fund
MyUsearch
Western Union Family Scholarship Program
Creative Organizing Conference Scholarships
ScholarshipsAZ
DREAMActivist Education Scholarships
1000 Degrees
February 2012:
IAIJ Campaigns for In-State Tuition for Otherwise Qualified Florida Students
During the 2012 session of the Florida legislature, Gainesville's Interfaith Alliance for Immigrant Justice campaigned for SB 108 which would allow children of undocumented immigrants who otherwise qualified for in-state tuition to attend Florida instititutions of higher education on that basis. They are currently required to pay three times that amount as "international students".
Victor Yengle organized a candlelight vigil at Senator Steve Oelrich's office, where the Gainesville Senator, a staunch opponent of any change, defended his stand.
November 2010
Officials speak in support of DREAM act
Officials speak in support of DREAM act
Dr. Paul Ortiz, head of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, speaks to a crowd at Tigert Hall on Monday about the DREAM Act and his experiences as a teacher working with undocumented students.
Posted: Tuesday, November 9, 2010 12:13 am
With the next session for the U.S. Congress looming, local supporters of the
DREAM Act stood on the steps of Tigert Hall to drum up support for
legislation.
In a statement read by UF professor Paul Ortiz, UF President Bernie Machen
said he supports the legislation because everyone should have equal access to
education.
“By supporting this federal legislation, we are acknowledging that education
is a human right and that these students, regardless of citizenship status,
should have equal access to institutions of higher education,” he wrote.
City commissioner Jeanna Mastrodicasa spoke on behalf of Mayor Craig Lowe in support of the act, which would create a means for undocumented youth to gain citizenship.
Mastrodicasa, who is also an assistant vice president for student affairs at UF, said the act will allow young people who want to contribute to society to be recognized by the country they call home.
She also noted the increases in tax revenue that would ensue.
“They will work more and pay more taxes,” she said.
Local supporters introduced an undocumented 19-year-old Gainesville college student, who wished to remain anonymous, to publicly share her story for the first time.
An aspiring journalist who has been in the country for more than half of her life, she said she just wants the ability to follow her dream, as do many in her situation.
“I think that they deserve to be called an American,” she said.
Allan Brooks, Mica DeJulio, Kimberly Hunter, Vickie Mena
Rev. Eve MacMaster speaking
Jeanna Mastrodicasa speaking
October 2010
City commissioner Jeanna Mastrodicasa spoke on behalf of Mayor Craig Lowe in support of the act, which would create a means for undocumented youth to gain citizenship.
Mastrodicasa, who is also an assistant vice president for student affairs at UF, said the act will allow young people who want to contribute to society to be recognized by the country they call home.
She also noted the increases in tax revenue that would ensue.
“They will work more and pay more taxes,” she said.
Local supporters introduced an undocumented 19-year-old Gainesville college student, who wished to remain anonymous, to publicly share her story for the first time.
An aspiring journalist who has been in the country for more than half of her life, she said she just wants the ability to follow her dream, as do many in her situation.
“I think that they deserve to be called an American,” she said.
October 2010
Interfaith Alliance promotes DREAM Act for undocumented workers
Share your DREAMs
Victoria Mena, program coordinator of the Bob Graham Center for Public Service, speaks about the implications of the DREAM Act at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship on Northwest 34th Street on Wednesday night.
Posted: Thursday, October 21, 2010 12:02 am |
Updated: 12:05 am, Thu
Oct 21, 2010.
They graduated from U.S. high schools. They're students at U.S. universities.
They're fighting overseas for this country. And they're not allowed to be
here.
Undocumented aliens brought to the United States as children may have lived
here for the majority of their lives and consider themselves Americans, but the
law disagrees.
The Gainesville Interfaith Alliance for Immigrant Justice held an educational
presentation Wednesday night to inform community members about a legislative
proposal called the DREAM Act.
The DREAM Act targets the issue of undocumented immigrants, of which there are 12 million in the U.S., and it provides solutions to change the laws that keep them from citizenship.
In a small, quiet room at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Gainesville, hosts Vickie Mena and Kimberly Hunter preached to a group of less than 20 the importance of why they believe this act should be passed.
"We feel like it's something that has a possibility to become a reality," said Hunter, a UF alumnus.
DREAM stands for Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors. It states that if an undocumented alien was brought to the U.S. before the age of 16 has a U.S. high school diploma or GED certificate, has lived in the country for at least five consecutive years, and has no criminal record, he or she can be granted conditional permanent residency.
In order to complete the process, the undocumented alien would have to complete two years of military service or two years at a four-year university.
According to Mena, program coordinator for the Bob Graham Center for Public Service, and her research, passing the DREAM Act would save taxpayers money, aid military recruitment and satisfy needs in the labor force for jobs such as teachers and nurses.
It was unanimous, however, that the largest problem surrounding the DREAM Act is that the public doesn't know what it is.
The act was voted on by Congress a few weeks ago but wasn't passed.
"I got a lot of phone calls that day from kids in tears," Mena said.
She said that the issue directly affects UF students. She could think of six or seven students who she knows are undocumented and struggling to finish their education and plan their futures.
The DREAM Act will be voted on as a stand-alone bill between Nov. 2 and January. Mena said the best way to raise awareness is to sign petitions, spread the word and call congressmen. She and Hunter also hope to speak to campus or community groups who are interested in learning more.
Through their presentations, Mena and Hunter have gathered 679 signatures on the DREAM Act petition since July 27. Mena said it's a great start, but they still have a long way to go.
"It doesn't really end with DREAM," Mena said. "But it's something we can do."
The DREAM Act targets the issue of undocumented immigrants, of which there are 12 million in the U.S., and it provides solutions to change the laws that keep them from citizenship.
In a small, quiet room at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Gainesville, hosts Vickie Mena and Kimberly Hunter preached to a group of less than 20 the importance of why they believe this act should be passed.
"We feel like it's something that has a possibility to become a reality," said Hunter, a UF alumnus.
DREAM stands for Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors. It states that if an undocumented alien was brought to the U.S. before the age of 16 has a U.S. high school diploma or GED certificate, has lived in the country for at least five consecutive years, and has no criminal record, he or she can be granted conditional permanent residency.
In order to complete the process, the undocumented alien would have to complete two years of military service or two years at a four-year university.
According to Mena, program coordinator for the Bob Graham Center for Public Service, and her research, passing the DREAM Act would save taxpayers money, aid military recruitment and satisfy needs in the labor force for jobs such as teachers and nurses.
It was unanimous, however, that the largest problem surrounding the DREAM Act is that the public doesn't know what it is.
The act was voted on by Congress a few weeks ago but wasn't passed.
"I got a lot of phone calls that day from kids in tears," Mena said.
She said that the issue directly affects UF students. She could think of six or seven students who she knows are undocumented and struggling to finish their education and plan their futures.
The DREAM Act will be voted on as a stand-alone bill between Nov. 2 and January. Mena said the best way to raise awareness is to sign petitions, spread the word and call congressmen. She and Hunter also hope to speak to campus or community groups who are interested in learning more.
Through their presentations, Mena and Hunter have gathered 679 signatures on the DREAM Act petition since July 27. Mena said it's a great start, but they still have a long way to go.
"It doesn't really end with DREAM," Mena said. "But it's something we can do."
