Message from Chancellor Parnell regarding DACA
The U.S. Supreme Court announced today that the White House may not shut down the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. DACA was established in 2012 to provide work authorization and protection against deportation for people who were brought to the U.S. as children, also known as “Dreamers.” At State Center Community College District, we are pleased with today’s ruling. We remain steadfast in our commitment to equity and justice and our desire to create an inclusive community where all persons are welcome to learn and grow regardless of where they were born or how they arrived.
On September 5, 2017 the Trump Administration announced the rescission of the DACA program effective March 5, 2018. This rescission was challenged in several courts. The U.S. Supreme Court justices ruled the Trump Administration failed to give adequate justification for ending the DACA program in its 5-4 decision.
Today’s decision is part of a temporary solution and we will continue to advocate for a permanent solution, because SCCCD understands that the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are endowed upon all persons without regard to immigration status, or any other label that wrongly distracts from seeing the humanity in one another.
We have witnessed how DACA has helped enable countless persons succeed with those who have proudly served in the U.S. military and those who have graduated from college and are contributing to our economy as well as enriching our communities.
SCCCD is committed to Resolution 2016.33 passed by our Board of Trustees in 2016. It assures that all students feel welcome and safe on our campuses, regardless of immigration status and stands in strong support of DACA and other programs that support undocumented students. On October 1, 2019, the Board of Trustees voted to join more than 100 other institutions of higher education to file a friend of the court brief urging the United States Supreme Court to keep DACA in place. During the same meeting, the board passed Resolution No. 2019.25 declaring October 14 through the 18, 2019, as Undocumented Student Action Week.
Our Dream Resource Centers on campus are a great resource for anyone with questions. You can contact the counseling department to access the Dream Resource Liaison.
In closing, at State Center Community College District we stand behind our mission to provide safe, inclusive, and supportive learning environments for all students including our DACA students.
