On November 7, 2007, Daniel Sullivan, chief legal counsel of the North Carolina Community College System (NCCCS) directed the state’s 58 community colleges to begin admitting illegal immigrants. In defense of the policy, Martin Lancaster, outgoing president of NCCCS, issued a press release on December 3 reiterating his support for a policy he said is “not only the right law and policy, but is the right thing to do.” Among other things, Martin justified the policy by referring to the low number of illegal immigrants currently enrolled in the community college system. Downplaying popular opposition to this new directive, Martin stated: “Only 340 undocumented students out of more than 271,000 curriculum students have chosen to enroll. This is hardly the inundation of our colleges predicted by the talk show hosts, bloggers, e-mailers, and phone callers.”
Our analysis of U.S. Census data, however, suggests that thousands more illegal immigrants are already enrolled in the community college system as in-state residents. Our estimates suggest that taxpayers provide an annual subsidy of more than $36 million to illegal immigrants enrolled in the community college system.
Illegal Immigrants Enrolled as In-state Residents
In-state Tuition: The Real Agenda
- A majority of voters oppose granting in-state tuition to illegal aliens. An April 2007 Civitas Institute DecisionMaker Poll indicated that 70 percent of voters oppose giving illegal immigrants in-state tuition rates.
- Federal law requires that if the state grants in-state tuition to illegal aliens, the state must also extend in-state tuition to all U.S. citizens, regardless of state residency. Currently, out-of-state tuition is six times the rate of in-state tuition. Given current tuition levels, the proposed change would result in an annual net loss in tuition revenue of at least $36 million for the community college system.2 If, as UNC President Erskine Bowles has suggested, UNC also extends in-state tuition to illegal immigrants, costs will be even higher.
- Expect enrollment by illegal aliens to explode if the state grants in-state tuition to illegal aliens. The implementation of a similar policy in Texas led to a 900 percent increase in enrollment between 2001 and 2005. In Kansas, the policy change brought about a 500 percent increase in enrollment after only one year.
- Likewise, if in accordance with the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, the state also grants in-state tuition to legal U.S. citizens, then we can expect enrollment and costs to increase dramatically.
On the face of it, admitting illegal immigrants to North Carolina’s higher-education system is absurd because illegal immigrants cannot legally work in the United States. In reality, this new policy is nothing less than a pathway to amnesty.
Editor's Note: For additional information, see the following pie chart: "Higher Education Enrollment in North Carolina by Non-U.S. Citizens"
2. The $36 million figure derives from the following assumptions: (A) Enrollment is 10,000. (B) Population is 2/3 Part-time (6,700) and 1/3 Full-time students (3,300), Net tuition revenue loss is the sum of: (1) full-time out of state tuition x # of students - full-time in-state tuition x # of students + (2) part-time out-of-state tuition x # of students - part-time in-state tuition x # of students. That is, net tuition revenue loss = (1) + (2). Full-time student assumes 16 credits per semester. In-state tuition is $39.90 per credit. Out-of-state tuition is $233.40 per credit. Full time out-of-state tuition is $7,465 per year. Full-time in-state tuition is $1,277 per year.
Your quote: "We estimate there are approximately 10,000 noncitizens enrolled as undergraduates in public higher education in North Carolina...Given that the state subsidizes 75 percent of in-state instructional costs, if 10,000 students are illegally enrolled in NCCCS as in-state students, taxpayers are providing an annual subsidy to illegal immigrants of about $36 million."
Why do you continue to conflate "non-citizen" with undocumented? There are a myriad of LEGAL immigration statuses that a person may have which make them neither undocumented nor citizens. For example...a green card! People with green cards are not citizens, but are completely lawfully present. And have you ever heard of a...student visa? They are not citizens. They are lawfully present. Not to mention the many other statuses people might have...asylee, refugee, VAWA self-petitioner, K-visa holder, T-visa, S-visa, U-visa, J-visa, M-visa...
Your conflation of "non-citizen" with "illegal" or "undocumented" is not misinformed - I know that you are educated enough to realize that many non-citizens are here lawfully. Rather, it is a deliberate conflation meant to confuse the less-educated public and exaggerate the numbers of undocumented students in the system. Shame on you for this deceitful use of "statistics."