DACA lawsuits show universities fear loss of tuition revenue
The lawsuit includes similar concerns regarding universities in Washington, North Carolina, and Oregon, echoing complaints voiced in a previous lawsuit filed by the University of California system.
University of Connecticut President Susan Herbst recently explained that the school fears losing tuition revenue if President Trump follows through on repealing DACA.
The University of Connecticut’s president recently admitted in a legal affidavit that her school will “lose tuition revenue” in the event that DACA is cancelled.
According to The Hartford Courant, UConn recently joined other state universities in a lawsuit against President Trump over his decision to end the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), with UConn President Susan Herbst writing in an affidavit that “UConn will lose the tuition revenue” from DACA students who are forced to withdraw, leave the university, or face deportation.
[RELATED: California to provide $30 million to DACA students]
“If DACA students are deported, forced to withdraw, or leave the university, UConn will lose the tuition revenue that these students contribute,” she wrote, saying, “this is a significant impact on the university.”
According to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Connecticut has nearly 11,000 DACA enrollees, while the nation has nearly 788,000, though it’s unknown precisely how many are currently enrolled in institutions of higher education.
Washington, North Carolina, and Oregon, however, all expressed similar concerns about lost tuition revenue in statements included in the lawsuit, saying that repealing DACA would “damage the educational mission of [Washington’s, North Carolina’s, and Oregon’s] institutions of higher education and affect their tuition revenues.”
Such comments echo the concerns expressed by university presidents in other contexts, as well, such as the University of California System’s Janet Napolitano, who sued the Trump administration for similar reasons.
[RELATED: 'Dreamers' sue Trump over DACA, allege 'bias against Mexicans']
Her lawsuit likewise expressed apprehensions about losing “the benefits it derives from their (DACA students) contributions.”
“If these students leave the University before completing their education, UC will lose the benefits it derives from their contributions, as well as the value of the time and money it invested in these students with the expectation that they would be allowed to graduate and apply their talents in the United States job market,” the UC lawsuit states.
Follow the author of this article on Twitter: @KylePerisic
