South East’s Wise Up! members inform themselves and spread knowledge about current immigration reforms in California.
Wise Up!, run by SEHS seniors Omar De Los Santos and Jesse Pantoja, is a school club that promotes equal human rights. “[The club] informs students about current issues on immigration,” said vice president Jesse Pantoja.
The politics behind current immigration reforms such as the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, also known as the DREAM act, and the eligibility for undocumented students to pay in-state tuition are predominant topics discussed at the weekly meetings.
The near failure of the DREAM act stunned the members of Wise Up! Rejection of the bill would mean that undocumented students would access higher education by paying expensive out of state tuition. These students would also struggle to acquire residency since the bill grants citizenship if a two year college degree is earned or two years are served in the military.
Wise Up! focuses on students, regardless of their residency. On November 15, California’s Supreme Court decided that undocumented students can receive lower in-state tuition at California universities and colleges. Daniel Rodriguez, a senior and Wise Up!’s sergeant of arms said, “I was elated that undocumented students have the opportunity to further their higher education. I was really happy because a lot of my friends wanted this to pass, and it passed.”
Many opportunities are also offered to Wise Up! members. They include volunteer work, college advice, and the chance to attend CORE meetings—weekly meetings in Downtown LA in which officers from different Wise Up! clubs discuss their club’s progress and give updates on immigration issues, explained Pantoja.
Wise Up! is held on Tuesdays during lunch in room A201. “In a school that’s approximately 99% Latino, I’m sure that many students could somehow connect to immigration,” said Pantoja. “By informing students [about the issues], we intend to have our word spread even further by having them talk to their peers, parents, relatives, etc.”
Adam Espindola, a senior and member of the club, believes many SEHS students can start practicing equal human rights by simply joining Wise Up! Espindola said, “People who attend the club obtain knowledge about immigration reforms. This is passed onto others, bringing more awareness to these dire social issues.”
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Illegal immigrants can qualify for in-state college tuition
On Monday, Nov. 15, California’s Supreme Court unanimously decided that illegal immigrants, who graduated from state high schools, can receive lower in-state tuition at California’s public universities and colleges.
California is one of 10 states that allow undocumented students to receive in-state tuition. This vote can save undocumented students, who are also ineligible for government financial aid, approximately $23,000 a year at UCs, according to Maura Dolan and Larry Gordon, staff writers for the LA Times.
Although more conservative officials disapproved of the ruling, some saying the case will only cost California more than $200 million annually (LA Times), others believe that there is more importance in gaining citizens with degrees.
Sofia Campos, 20, is co-chair of a UCLA organization that helps undocumented students at the university. She called the ruling "a victory" and says undocumented students "would have been pushed out of higher education" if the law was overturned in an interview for the LA Times.
Cal State and community college officials agree that illegal immigrants are students that also deserve a higher education.
California is one of 10 states that allow undocumented students to receive in-state tuition. This vote can save undocumented students, who are also ineligible for government financial aid, approximately $23,000 a year at UCs, according to Maura Dolan and Larry Gordon, staff writers for the LA Times.
Although more conservative officials disapproved of the ruling, some saying the case will only cost California more than $200 million annually (LA Times), others believe that there is more importance in gaining citizens with degrees.
Sofia Campos, 20, is co-chair of a UCLA organization that helps undocumented students at the university. She called the ruling "a victory" and says undocumented students "would have been pushed out of higher education" if the law was overturned in an interview for the LA Times.
Cal State and community college officials agree that illegal immigrants are students that also deserve a higher education.
No More Paper or Plastic
On Tuesday, Nov. 16, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors passed a plastic bag ban said to take full effect in July, according to the LA Times. Supermarkets and pharmacies will no longer provide disposable plastic bags. To stop shoppers from resorting to paper bags as an alternative, a 10-cent additional charge will be placed per paper bag.
Plastic bags are nondegradable; they pollute streets and accumulate in storm drains. This endangers wildlife when the bags are passed into the ocean, one of the world’s most popular environmental and economic resources. In an interview with the LA Times, Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky said,” Plastic bags are a pollutant. They pollute the urban landscape. They are what we call in our county urban tumbleweeds.”
The LA Times reports that approximately 6 billion plastic bags are used each year in Los Angeles, and government figures show that only 5% are recycled. The plastic bag ordinance will guide California to serve as a model that preserves the environment, and ultimately, our planet.
Plastic bags are nondegradable; they pollute streets and accumulate in storm drains. This endangers wildlife when the bags are passed into the ocean, one of the world’s most popular environmental and economic resources. In an interview with the LA Times, Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky said,” Plastic bags are a pollutant. They pollute the urban landscape. They are what we call in our county urban tumbleweeds.”
The LA Times reports that approximately 6 billion plastic bags are used each year in Los Angeles, and government figures show that only 5% are recycled. The plastic bag ordinance will guide California to serve as a model that preserves the environment, and ultimately, our planet.
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