Student residency statuses are under investigation by state offices in order to confirm financial aid claims.
The Georgia Board of Regents’ Residency Verification Committee has ordered all campuses to review admissions processes and determine whether undocumented students are receiving local or federal aid.
Georgia Southern already has a policy in place regarding the disbursement of federal aid to students.
“Only legal, documented students can receive federal aid,” said Teresa Thompson, vice president of student affairs and enrollment management.
“For Federal aid, students have to verify their citizenship or alien registration with a FAFSA Form,” Thompson said.
The issue was ignited by Jessica Colotl, a Kennesaw State student who was found to be paying in-state tuition as an undocumented student.
“That is the incident that brought the situation to our attention,” said Willis J. Potts, Jr., the chair-elect of the Board of Regents.
The purpose of the residency verification committee is to be sure that undocumented students are not allowed to receive any benefits from in-state tuition, according to Potts.
“The law prohibits any such financial aid,” he said.
Dedric Levines, international studies major and a native of Germany thinks the policy is unfair.
“I really don’t agree with it, because there are some students who weren’t born here… They came here when they were very young, due to their parents,” he said.
Levines believes in some cases, that parents are ultimately at fault.
“I don’t think you should pass the parents’ sins to the children, and allow them to suffer,” he said.
A resident of Georgia for seven years, Levines also believes there are other reasons undocumented students should be eligible for federal aid.
“If you’ve been here for years… everything that applies to us should apply to them as well,” he said.
Levines said the policy could cripple a student’s financial situation.
“Not only does it affect them financially, it has a major impact on their education. Some people wouldn’t be able to go to school if it wasn’t for federal money,” Levines said.
Potts made clear that “the federal law indeed allows undocumented students to attend higher education” and said the board was “in compliance with the law.”
The regents were not alone in their interpretation of the law, according to Potts.
“Forty-nine of the 50 states agree with where Georgia is on this,” said Potts. “The only state that has passed a state law prohibiting undocumented students from attending higher education at a public institution is the state of South Carolina.”
Potts also believes this is a debate that needs to occur at the national level.
“I think that the United States of America needs to decide what it wants to do regarding immigration and citizenship,” Potts said. “When they do so, I’ll be happy to do everything I can to make sure we’re in alignment with that.”