Should illegal alien students be allowed to attend college at the same tuition rate as American students?

Illegal immigrants seeking in-state tuition rates hold 'teach-ins' at Capitol, White House

WASHINGTON (AP) — They can't get citizenship or in-state tuition rates, so they're taking the next steps — the Capitol and White House steps, that is.

A coalition of student immigrant advocacy groups in Massachusetts, Colorado and California on Wednesday launched a makeshift school in the nation's capital, reminiscent of the "teach-ins" of the 1960s, to encourage a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants through college enrollment.

The first class at "Dream University" — a school with informal classes and volunteer professors from around the country — was held Wednesday outside the White House, with more planned in the weeks ahead. Students don't get credit for the classes — but they're free.

The school could allow undocumented students who can't afford in-state tuition rates in some states a chance to attend classes, said Carlos Saavedra, national coordinator for a Washington-based group called United We Dream.

The Dream University plan calls for students, regardless of immigration status, to attend classes of 20 in history, civil rights, science, music and other subjects taught by professors from Washington's Georgetown and American universities.

Tom Shields, a doctoral student at Brandeis University in Waltham, Mass., said he and two of his colleagues also have agreed to teach classes soon, and organizers say more professors from elsewhere will join.

The idea for the school came about after the Massachusetts-based Student Immigrant Movement group held a 19-day around-the-clock vigil outside of the Massachusetts Statehouse to protest a measure that would have imposed greater restrictions on illegal immigrants.

That vigil drew support from activists around the state and ended after the amendment failed.

"We got really inspired by what happened in Massachusetts ... and how successful it was," Saavedra said. "We brainstorm that if we really wanted to make a point about education ... we needed to literally build a university in different parts of D.C."

Dream University also acts as a vigil of sorts to push a federal bill, known as the DREAM Act — standing for Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors — that could grant legal status to some immigrants who attend college or serve in the military.

State laws vary on allowing illegal immigrants access to in-state tuition rates. California, Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin allow it, but others, such as Massachusetts, require out-of-state rates — something a number of illegal-immigrant students say they can't afford.

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