“Many students want to regularize their immigration status, so they might be able to leave and return to the U.S. as required by study abroad programs just like many other college students are encouraged to do (and, in fact, do).” spanning across UC campuses raises many questions and logistical and related concerns. The largest unknown was of critical importance: how many undocumented students were attending the various UC campuses? The Office of the President made efforts to estimate the undocumented population on each UC campus, but it remained uncertain what the size of the population needing legal services would be. We now know the answer: several hundred undocumented students are enrolled at each of the campuses of the University of California, despite many financial and other barriers. While many of them are from Mexico or Central America, there are
María Blanco, Executive Director of the Undocumented Legal Services Center
undocumented UC students literally from around the world, including Asia, Africa and Europe. UC Davis served as an important model for the new endeavor. Previously, the UC Davis Immigration Law Clinic had worked with the UC Davis AB 540 Center – named after the legislative bill allowing undocumented students to pay the same tuition and fees as other California residents – to provide legal assistance to undocumented UC Davis students. This single-campus experience offered helpful lessons in creating the new center to serve multiple campuses. Another question was who would lead the center. Who had the
credibility and skill set to establish a legal services center like none other ever seen in a university system? María Blanco, a noted civil rights and immigrant rights advocate, was willing to bring a wealth of experience, as well as a sterling reputation in the immigrant rights community, as the inaugural director. Blanco proceeded to hire several immigration attorneys, including a number of recent law graduates with experience working with immigrant communities and conversant in languages other than English. In short order, she pulled together a highly qualified team to work with diverse populations spread out on campuses throughout California. www.HispanicOutlook.com • 25