Undocumented students at UCB could receive scholarships

The highest amount of financial aid for school ever provided for undocumented immigrants has been granted to students at the University of California (UC), Berkeley. One million dollars will be dispersed as scholarships for college among almost 200 students. Most of the qualifying applicants will be undocumented students who arrived in the U.S. as small children, but only recently became eligible for financial aid for college due to the 2011 California Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act.

Thanks to the DREAM Act, immigrants who arrived in the U.S. when they were under 16-years-old and have lived up to all the necessary standards for grade point averages and test scores can qualify for financial aid. The $1 million bundle of money for college comes from the Southern California-based Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund.

“Against great odds, our ‘dreamers’ have persevered to be here at Berkeley - adding so much to this campus,” Chancellor Robert J. Birgeneau, according to the UC Berkeley News Center, referring to undocumented students. “We are grateful for the courage of these ‘dreamers,’ and also for the courage of those who stepped forward to support them."

Be Sociable, Share!

•