Kansas is getting it right by providing its undocumented students the opportunity to pay tuition at in-state rates and obtain a degree at one of its higher education institutions.
The Legislature enacted a law in 2004 that allows undocumented students who are Kansas high school graduates to pay in-state tuition at public postsecondary institutions. The state statute sets out the requirements for enrollment.
Those students must meet the institution’s admission standards. They must also have attended an accredited Kansas high school for at least three years, graduated from high school or earned a Kansas general education degree, and filed or agreed to file an application for legal immigration status or citizenship.
That’s sensible public policy.
It’s also public policy that’s working very well. In the 12-year period of 2010 to 2021, 5,140 undocumented students relied on the 2004 law to enroll at Kansas higher education institutions.
Many of those students who made use of that law enrolled at Kansas community colleges. Statistics developed by the Kansas Board of Regents show that 68% of the 425 undocumented students who enrolled in fall 2021 did so at one of the state’s community colleges.
Those enrollment numbers were highest at Johnson County Community College, with 126 students, and at Kansas City Kansas Community College, with 60 students. In-state tuition is an important pathway to higher education for undocumented students in the Kansas City area.
In addition, in-state tuition rates have also spurred enrollments of undocumented students at higher education institutions that serve rural Kansas. In fall 2021, 148 undocumented students enrolled at Butler County Community College, Barton Community College, Fort Hays State University, Garden City Community College and Seward County Community College.
Other states may be noticing that the Kansas approach to providing in-state tuition rates to undocumented students works.
On Nov. 8, voters in Arizona passed a ballot initiative that would allow that state’s public universities and community colleges to charge undocumented students in-state tuition rates. Supporters argued that granting those students in-state tuition rates would keep talent in the state.
But let’s not kid ourselves. Anti-immigration rhetoric will continue to rule the day in many states.
Developing a sensible immigration policy is much harder work than staging phony media events that stoke fears of “illegals.”
By providing a statutory path to a higher education degree, Kansas has demonstrated to its undocumented students that they can build a future in the state.
That’s great public policy that will benefit the state for years to come.
About the author: Fred Logan is a lawyer in Prairie Village. He served on the Kansas Board of Regents from 2011 to 2015.
