UC System to continue to support DACA despite Trump’s decision to rescind the program
‘The University of California will continue to stand with Dreamers and their supporters as we fight to keep the program alive.’
This morning, it was officially announced by Attorney General Jeff Sessions that DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) will be rescinded.
The decision will influence about 800,000 previously protected undocumented immigrants (known as "Dreamers") who arrived to the US as minors. About 4,000 of those affected attend UC schools, with the highest concentrations at UCLA and UC Irvine.
UC President Janet Napolitano, who also helped draft the original policy under the Obama Administration, expressed her disdain for this decision. She released a statement today saying she is, "deeply troubled by President Trump’s decision to effectively end the DACA program…This backward-thinking, far-reaching move threatens to separate families and derail the futures of some of this country’s brightest young minds, thousands of whom currently attend or have graduated from the University of California."
The UC System will continue to offer services previously offered by DACA to Dreamers including offering financial aid, legal services and in state tuition.
Napolitano continued by announcing that the University of California system would continue to support DACA and "will continue to stand with Dreamers and their supporters as we fight to keep the program alive."
UC schools including UC Berkeley, UCLA, and UC Davis have supported Napolitano's statements.