Students avoid applying to FAFSA to protect undocumented parents

Evelyn is a senior student at a high school in Los Angeles. As the first student in her family intending to attend college, she applied late last year to several universities. 

She was ready to submit her Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) this semester. However, her plans changed after President Donald Trump announced he wanted to deport all undocumented immigrants from the country.

Evelyn, who asked not to reveal her last name, said she and her four-year-old brother are U.S. citizens, but their mother is undocumented. 

FAFSA is a free government form for students to apply for college financial aid or career school. This financial aid comes in the form of federal grants, work-study funds and loans. Through the FAFSA application, many states and colleges can also determine if the student is eligible for state, school and or private financial aid. 

Students who are dependents of parents or spouses must show proof of income, which usually is through income tax return forms. These forms show if the person has a valid social security number (SSN) or an Individual Taxpayer’s Identification Number (ITIN). The ITIN is provided to undocumented workers for tax filing purposes. 

The 18-year-old student said she is considering rejecting any acceptance to UCs or CSUs so she doesn’t have to fill out a FAFSA application and provide her mother’s income tax information. Instead, she is considering attending a community college and working on the side to pay for her tuition and other school fees. 

“At first, they [counselors] were telling us to apply but at this point, no one knows what could happen if we disclose our parents’ information,” said Evelyn, whose parents are undocumented. 

Evelyn’s mother is afraid to even go to work and panics when she sees police officers on the street. Evelyn said she is also scared because of the possibility of losing her citizenship. 

When Trump took office one of his first executive orders eliminated the birthright citizenship of U.S.-born children to undocumented parents. 

“It is a constant fear that doesn’t go away, I don’t know any other place but this one as my home,” said Evelyn. “I don’t know what I would do without my mom, she is our support.”

This sentiment is shared with different educational institutions. A community college advisor, who asked to remain anonymous, said she has seen a decline in students filling out their FAFSA. 

“At this point, I don’t know what to tell them because I don’t even know if [immigration] will use their information,” said the advisor. 

Several community colleges and four-year universities are working on protocols in case Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers arrive on campus. The California Community Colleges website states that the system does not capture information on undocumented students and the colleges will not release personally identifiable student information related to immigration status unless required by judicial order. 

“The Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges has encouraged local districts to consider the system’s values when creating policies and practices related to undocumented students, leading many of our campuses to create Dreamer Resource Centers and host ‘Know Your Rights’ clinics,” states the website.

Confusing information

While the FAFSA website states that the citizenship status of a parent or spouse of a dependent student is not an issue, it does require proof in the form of tax returns. These forms show at the very top if the person has a SSN or an ITIN. 

Ron Gochez, a teacher at a South Los Angeles high school, said his school has a large percentage of Latino students and many of them are immigrants or children of undocumented immigrants. He has seen the fear on their faces and said he and some teachers try to make them feel comfortable by letting them share their concerns and speak about the issue. 

LAUSD serves an immigrant student body of nearly 30,000 students with one in every four being undocumented. 

Since Trump signed the executive order, LAUSD and other pro-immigrant entities started sharing the “Know your rights” red cards, which help undocumented immigrants know what to do in case they are stopped by ICE. 

Gochez said his school, which serves about 1,000 students, only received about 150 cards. Therefore, he is sharing them with his students electronically. 

He said this atmosphere of fear among the immigrant working community is an indirect consequence of the Trump administration. However, he is teaching his students that they have to turn that fear into organizing and action. 

“It happens in all social movements. It is time for them to stand for their rights,” said Gochez.