Educated Illegals Can't Find Jobs

Date: Wednesday, April 27, 2005 6:35 PM

JOB DESTRUCTION NEWSLETTER

by Rob Sanchez
April 27, 2005 No. 1243

Illegal aliens that attended our schools are now griping that they
can't find jobs:

Distressed students are knocking on the door of Tito
Guerrero, president of Stephen F. Austin State University
in Nacogdoches, Texas. "We have been living blissfully for
four years," he says. "Now these kids are graduating, and
I don't know what to tell them."

The first thing Tito Guerrero should be telling these immigration
scofflaws is to voluntarily deport themselves because they violated our
laws. Instead, he along with other clueless open-border advocates claim
that Congress should pass the "Dream Act" so that illegal aliens can
get amnesty. After they become citizens they will be on an equal
footing with all other U.S. citizens.

HOW DUMB IS THAT?

These so-called advocates for illegal aliens are setting illegals up
for being replaced with H-1B visa holders just like most educated
Americans. What kind of favor is that?

It could be argued that these illegals shouldn't be complaining about
their joblessness, especially since US taxpayers foot the bill for
their educations. They could go back to their home country to find jobs
with their fancy dancy American college degrees. According to FAIRUS,
it costs about $7.4 billion to put these kids though our schools, and
then $454 million to subsidize their in-state tuitions.

The last paragraph of this article sounds more like a threat than a
complaint - these crybaby illegal alienss that used public tax money to
attend our schools are saying that they are going to make more babies
if they can't find good paying jobs.

"So many kids without papers just stop studying and have
babies," says Ms. Garibay, who is scheduled to graduate
this summer from the University of Texas at Austin. "We
have studied and want to be productive, but we have no
prospects."

The learn more about how much it costs to educate illegal aliens, go
http://www.fairus.org/Research/Research.cfm?ID=1631&c=55

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

http://online.wsj.com/article_email/0,,SB111447898329816736-IVjfYNnlaZ4m52ua4KIaqyDm5,00.html

Illegal Immigrants'
New Lament:
Have Degree, No Job

By MIRIAM JORDAN
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
April 26, 2005; Page B1

Suffering from a severe shortage of nurses, U.S. hospitals have
recruited thousands of workers from countries such as the Philippines,
Jamaica and Mexico. Meanwhile, Julieta Garibay's nursing degree from a
prestigious Texas university isn't helping her land a job with any
hospital. The most she can do is volunteer.

Ms. Garibay, 24 years old, who came to the U.S. as a child, is an
illegal immigrant. She is part of an emerging class of young immigrants
facing a new quandary: They are educated, but unable to get work
because of their immigration status.

Their dilemma promises to be an increasing problem as more illegal
immigrants attend U.S. colleges. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1982
that all children, regardless of immigration status, are entitled to
attend elementary and secondary school for free. But higher education
is largely a state matter.

In 2001, Texas became the first state to pass a law allowing
undocumented immigrant students who graduated from a state high school
to pay resident tuition at public universities. Since then, eight more
states have passed similar laws, and bills are before legislators in
several other states. In a few states, financial aid is available. For
Ms. Garibay, whose single mother is a cleaning lady, the in-state
tuition legislation opened up an otherwise unaffordable opportunity.

However, as the first crop of students -- about several hundred -- who
benefited from the Texas bill prepare to graduate in coming months,
they find themselves unemployable. Their legal limbo is turning Texas
into the test case for what happens to the new class of educated but
illegal graduates.

"We have this irony -- young adults who are trained and ready to join
the work force but are unable to do so legally," says Josh Bernstein,
director of federal policy at the National Immigration Law Center in
Washington, D.C.

Lawmakers say they anticipated that this problem could arise but hoped
Congress would pass a bill to legalize these students. Such a bill is
expected to be introduced in the Senate in coming months.

Distressed students are knocking on the door of Tito Guerrero,
president of Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas.
"We have been living blissfully for four years," he says. "Now these
kids are graduating, and I don't know what to tell them."

Supporters of the in-state tuition policy argue that it enables
immigrant students to make a bigger contribution to the U.S. economy
and society than if they are deprived of a higher education. Critics
say the policy amounts to a tax giveaway for people who shouldn't be
here in the first place. Kansas, which passed an in-state tuition bill
last year, is facing a lawsuit in federal court from opponents who
charge that such a measure violates the U.S. Constitution and
immigration law. The first hearing is scheduled for May 10.

Come May 20, Carlos Hernandez, 22, will have a degree in petroleum
engineering from the University of Texas at Austin. One reason Mr.
Hernandez, the son of a waitress and a construction worker, chose the
major is that the university proclaims a high rate of job-placement for
graduates of its program. But during a recent job interview with oil
giant ChevronTexaco Corp., Mr. Hernandez says an upbeat recruiter
turned sour on hearing about his immigration status.

Companies sometimes sponsor foreign workers with specialized skills,
making a case for permanent residency, or a green card. But laws that
apply to undocumented immigrants make it impossible for businesses to
sponsor these youngsters because they have been living in the country
illegally.

"There is very high demand for petroleum engineers in the energy
sector," says Don Campbell, a Chevron spokesman. But there is no way
around the legal requirements for working in the U.S. "We follow
immigration law," he says.

Mr. Hernandez hasn't even been able to get a paid internship. "I have
enjoyed every minute of my studies," he says during a break from his
senior design project. But, "I am really bummed out."

Immigrant advocates say the only solution for students like Mr.
Hernandez and Ms. Garibay is passage of the so-called Dream Act, which
would allow those who came to the U.S. as children at least five years
ago to get temporary legal residency upon completion of high school.
Those who attended college or joined the military would become eligible
for permanent residency.

Congress recessed last year without taking action on the Development,
Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act. The bill, which has
bipartisan support, is expected to be re-introduced by Sen. Orrin Hatch
(R., Utah). "The federal government needs to pass the Dream Act so
these students can get on with their lives," says Mr. Bernstein of the
immigration advocacy center.

Amid the national furor over illegal immigration, the fate of the bill
remains unclear. "Current politics are making this radioactive right
now," says Travis Reindl, director of state policy analysis at the
American Association of State Colleges and Universities, a nonpartisan
group.

Opponents say they are determined to stall it and still are angry about
giving illegal immigrants in-state tuition. "We can't hold taxpayers
accountable to providing discounted education to people in this country
illegally," says Congressman Steve King (R., Iowa). Mr. King
acknowledges that the students are likely to pay more taxes as
professionals than as blue-collar workers if they remain in the U.S.
But, he says, "we can't make economic arguments" in favor of illegal
immigration.

About 1.7 million illegal minors reside in the U.S., according to the
Pew Hispanic Center, a Washington think tank. Although there are no
official statistics, it is estimated that a very small number of
students are taking advantage of the in-state tuition program in most
states.

In California, undocumented immigrants benefiting from in-state tuition
account for less than 1% of the two million students at community
colleges and state universities. In Kansas, only 30 undocumented
students availed themselves of the program at state institutions last
fall; the state had predicted 370. "Opponents' fear that our colleges
would be flooded with illegal immigrants should be assuaged," says Kip
Peterson, spokesman for the Kansas Board of Regents, which oversees
higher education in the state.

Most of the illegal-immigrant students are from Latin America, but
Asian, African and European students are also benefiting.

Many immigrant students are ill-prepared academically for college or
can't afford it, even with in-state tuition. (Most states, including
California, don't offer financial aid to illegal immigrants; Texas,
Oklahoma and New Mexico are the exceptions.) In addition, education
officials say many school administrators aren't spreading the word --
because they are unaware of the law or don't understand it.

Mr. Hernandez, the petroleum-engineering student, didn't hear about the
program from his college counselor at the Galveston, Texas, high school
he attended. His mother learned about it on Spanish-language
television.

Steve Murdock, chief demographer of Texas, says helping any Hispanic
student get ahead should be a no-brainer: "It's not about the
individual," he says. As the Latino population swells, "how well our
Hispanic population does is how well Texas and other states will do."
The Texas labor force, for one, will be less well-qualified in 2040
than in 2000, according to his projections.

Some undocumented students are using the tools of American democracy to
lobby their cause. In February, Ms. Garibay was among a group from
Texas who traveled to Washington to lobby Congress in support of the
Dream Act. They have formed a coalition called Jovenes Imigrantes Por
Un Futuro Mejor, or Young Immigrants for a Better Future, with chapters
at several colleges.

"So many kids without papers just stop studying and have babies," says
Ms. Garibay, who is scheduled to graduate this summer from the
University of Texas at Austin. "We have studied and want to be
productive, but we have no prospects."

Write to Miriam Jordan at miriam.jordan@wsj.com2

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