Immigration and Education

Immigration and Education

College Composition Class

Caroline Elias

June 23, 2013

Immigration and Education

Immigrant families are coming to the United States more than ever before. They come not only for a better life, but for their children to succeed and evolve in mainstream society. But for the immigrant students that remain and who thrive in the U.S. education system and would like to have the opportunity to advance, most of them cannot because they lack proper documentation. They contribute to every aspect of their community. Many volunteer at community organizations, at their churches, participate in school clubs and sports teams and many work to support their families, yet they are not fully integrated in our society. Some of these students have grown up in mixed status families, with U. S. citizen siblings and or documented parents that have permanent roots in this country. All these students strive to continue to be with their families (Dream Act, 2009 Talking Points). There are many situations and each story is unique.

In the case of Jose Antonio Vargas, he told the story when he came to the United States from the Philippines when he was 12 years old. His Grandfather was able to obtain a fake green card and a fake Filipino passport for him. He attended college after finding a scholarship that did not bother with checking his immigration status. Using his fake passport he was able to obtain a social security card which he modified and later used to apply for an Oregon state driver’s license. The license was his key to obtaining an internship and a position as a reporter for The Washington Post and later he joined The Huffington Post. After all of this he grew tired and weary and wanted to come “clean” to his employers, he wrote his story for The New York Times. He had been aided by many individuals to obtain his achievements throughout his entire life.

Adriana Sanchez who was born in Mexico and brought to the...