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On Saturday morning, Oct. 8, Gov. Jerry Brown signed California Assembly Bill 131 which brought the California Dream Act to fruition and brought back to life an initiate that has been in debated since 2006. The bill will allow undocumented immigrants in California to apply for in-state college tuition as well as financial aid programs. AB 131 makes it easier for students and their families who meet specialized in-state tuition requirements to pay for higher education. The bill also allows undocumented students to apply for, and receive, Cal Grants to assist in their tuition dues. According to californiaDreamact.org, AB 131 opens up the Board of Governors Fee Waiver to undocumented students, which removes
all fees associated with college enrollment and registration, in addition to Institutional Student Aid administered by the attending college or university. “Many of these youngsters find themselves caught in a Catch-22 situation,” said U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Pa., author of early drafts of the federal Dream Act. “In short, although these children have built their lives here, they have no possibility of achieving and living the American dream. What a tremendous loss for them, and what a tremendous loss to our society.” In order to qualify for the California Dream Act’s benefits, students must meet a list of specific requirements. Undocumented students must first have attended at a California secondary school for a minimum of three years. Of
those three, one year must have been at the high school where they graduated. Students must also guarantee they will apply for legal residency. The California Department of Finance predicts that Cal Grants will be granted to 2,500 new students through the passing of the bill at a cost of $14.5 million annually, or one percent of the Cal Grant’s $1.4 billion annual budget. In July, Gov. Brown signed the first half of the California Dream Act, which makes undocumented students available for specialized financial aid programs and funding. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed the Dream Act all six times it was presented to legislature. Q9FA;8A%1/'+,&/%1+*$&,/5%;A !"#$%&'()"*+),
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The U.S. House Appropriations Committee has released a draft funding bill that would tighten eligibility requirements for students receiving Pell grants. If passed, the new conditions would take effect on July 1, 2012. The federal government awards Pell grants to low and middle-income students. In the 2010-11 school year, 4,234 De Anza College students received Pell grants. The actual amount received is based on the number of classes a student is taking, the student’s income and the cost of tuition. Currently, the maximum a student can
receive from a Pell grant is $5,550. On average, De Anza students were awarded $3,396. The draft bill proposes several changes to existing eligibility criteria. Students would be ineligible for Pell grants if they attend school less than half time, qualify for less than 10 percent of the maximum grant or do not have a high school diploma or GED. Current law has several exceptions that allow non-diploma students to receive Pell grants. At De Anza, students can become eligible for federal aid by either passing a placement test or earning six units of college level courses with a C grade or better. The draft bill would only maintain an exception for students that are home
schooled under guidelines approved by their state. De Anza Director of Financial Aid Cindy Castillo said that this could pose a problem for students. “You don’t get a chance when you’re 32 to go back to high school,” Castillo said. “Then your only option is the GED. You could have been Steve Jobs in the meantime, get a passing score, earned other things, but you can’t get aid.” According to the California Department of Education, the average cost of taking the GED is $150 with prices varying according to the test center. Current placement tests at De Anza are provided for free. Though the Appropriations
Committee’s online summary of the bill claims that the maximum grant of $5,550 will not be changed, there is language in the bill that would lower the maximum to $4,860, should the dollar amount that students are eligible for exceed an as of yet unidentified limit. The draft bill comes at a time when increases in Pell grant applications might be expected. The number of Pell grants awarded to De Anza students increased 13 percent from 2010 to 2011. The bill, introduced by U.S. Rep. Denny Rehberg, R-Mont., would also cut the maximum number of semesters covered from 18 to 12 and decrease Income Protection 3)==%-'"(/4) Y%!;<=%Z3
When De Anza College’s Eco Passes began to pile up in the De Anza Associated Student Body office in view of students who had not yet received their passes in the mail, rumors of the initiative’s failure began to circulate across campus. While some students have encountered delays obtaining the pass, a DASB senator condemned rumors that Eco Passes have been piling up in its office. Vivian Nguyen, chair of marketing with the DASB Student Senate, offered suggestions for students who have applied for an Eco Pass but have not yet received it. “If students aren’t getting their Eco Passes then they should go down to the Office of College Life and ask,” Nguyen said. Because most issues with students receiving their passes were a result of incorrect addresses, students should verify their address is correct on their receipt, she said. The DASB Senate has been mailing the passes from school to the student’s addresses to avoid fraud and fake passes, Nguyen said. “It also makes the Eco Pass more affordable to students,” she said. “If the Office of College Life became a pick up service, there would be a back up to no end.” De Anza started supplying students with Eco Passes at the start of fall quarter. An Eco Pass allows students to ride all Valley Transportation Authority buses and light rail cars for free. The DASB and the mandatory quarterly Eco Pass fee provide this service to all De Anza students. Nguyen said she believes the program has been highly successful with more than 4,300 Eco Passes mailed to students. Q9FA;8A%$#,.%-+**+5+%;A !"#$%&'()"*+),
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