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Who are the Dreamers in Higher Education?

fernandoFernando Acevedo, an NVC Student Success certified advisor and adjunct faculty member, will be presenting “Who are the Dreamers in Higher Education” at the UTSA Academic Advising Conference on Oct. 21 at the Norris Conference Center-San Antonio.

The presentation will provide an overview on the undocumented (Dreamers) student population in higher education. Undocumented students who qualify for Deferred Action for Childhood
Arrivals (DACA) are commonly referred to as Dreamers.

The term Dreamers stems from the comprehensive immigration reform bill known as the Dream Act. Various forms of the Dream Act have been introduced to the
U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate numerous times but the bill has never been passed.

The presentation will cover three main topics:

1)      A general overview of the Dreamer population in the higher education system.

  1. a) Laws/Policies that affect this student population
  2. b) Economic impact of this population in the state of Texas
  3. c) Challenges Dreamers face in gaining access to Higher Education

2)      Working with the Dreamer population from an Advising perspective

  1. a) Holistic Advising approach
  2. b) Intuitional mission statement
  3. c) Student Success Values and Principles

3)      Resources available for Dreamers

  1. a) DACA
  2. b) TASFA
  3. c) Scholarships

Fernando adds as higher education staff, it is important we are aware of this information because according to the U.S. Department of Education, the undocumented student population is one of the most underrepresented student populations in higher education. The presentation stresses the various reasons advisors should be familiar with the laws, policies, and resources available for Dreamers:

  • from a holistic advising approach
  • from an institutional mission statement perspective
  • from a student success values and principles perspective

 

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