Understand your role in working with undocumented students

Magna Publications News Release

Madison, Wis.—September 7, 2010—With much national attention focused on the presence of undocumented people residing in the U.S., it is natural that colleges and universities would be concerned about how to handle undocumented students. For Michael A. Olivas, Ph.D., J.D., William B. Bates Distinguished Chair in Law at the University of Houston Law Center and Director of the Institute for Higher Education Law and Governance at the University of Houston, this begins with defining who is an undocumented student.

Olivas explains that an undocumented student is one “without formal legal status, who either came as a child legally and then violated the terms of his stay, or was brought as a child and then evaded inspection.” Often, these students are unclear about their own status, relying on information from their parents about the legality of their stay in this country.

If a college or university believes it is dealing with a number of undocumented students, it may help to have special policies in place or special training available to help personnel deal with the particular needs of these students. For example, the student’s undocumented status may require special attention at the applicant stage, while applying for financial aid, or at other points of the front end of the college experience. Difficulties may also arise later, such as when the student wants to work on campus; while the student may be able to gain experience while enrolled, it is likely that they will need to find positions, such as research assistant or extern, where the “pay” is in course credit. This would therefore not be employment in the technical sense.

Although university staff need to be aware of the issues these students present, Olivas explains that it is not necessary for all who come in contact with the student to know of his or her status. For example, it is rarely necessary for a faculty member to know of an undocumented student’s status, and the knowledge may impact the way the faculty member advises or interacts with the student. Olivas points out that university personnel should remember that undocumented students are still protected by FERPA. The student’s undocumented status does not remove their right to privacy. He also points out that “colleges are not immigration-enforcement authorities,” and staff should resist the temptation to take on this role.

So why should universities take such care with the undocumented student? The attention at the front end may pay dividends for the institution. “If you are prepared to provide the assistance they need, they are super-achieving students who in all likelihood will gain pathways to U.S. citizenship at some point,” Olivas says. At that point, they will likely become some of the most loyal alumni the institution has.

If you missed the seminar and would like to purchase it for your institution, you can order the program in CD or print transcript format, both of which include the presenters' handouts.

Magna Publications is a leading publisher of newsletters and other information products in the higher education segment. Magna also manages onsite and online conferences on topics of interest to higher education.

For more information please contact David Burns, Publisher, Magna Publications, Inc., at 608-227-8109, or dburns@magnapubs.com.