The following is a special contribution by outside blogger Lynn Woolley, a Texas-based radio talk show host. Opinions expressed a solely those of Mr. Woolley.
Texas Governor Rick Perry famously signed a bill granting in-state tuition rates for children of illegal aliens. Now, some school districts in the state are taking that as a mandate to go the extra mile to encourage illegals to continue breaking our laws.
“Si se puede! Si se puede!” says a flyer from the Temple Independent School District (TISD) in Central Texas. In Spanish and English, the handout asks Hispanic students and parents if they need money to go to college – then, makes it clear that even those in the country illegally should apply:
“Tu residencia legal no es problema.”
The flyer offers several freebies to those who attend a College Vocational Night for Hispanics:
• Free snacks
• Free child care
• Food vouchers to feed a family of four for a week
• Assistance in filling out paperwork for scholarships and financial aid
And, of course, everything is presented in Spanish as well as English to be sure to cater to an expected crowd that not only flouts our federal immigration laws, but also refuses to learn our language.
You can blame school officials for being politically correct and non-judgmental to the point of being ridiculous, but they shouldn’t get all the blame. The food vouchers, which can be renewed each month, are federally funded through a 21st Century Community Learning Center grant. And, since Texas is one of about a dozen states that provide in-state tuition rates, local school districts, like TISD, have decided to encourage as many illegal aliens as possible to take advantage of this generous taxpayer subsidy..
The flyer lists the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) and three area colleges as co-sponsors. You’d expect LULAC to support such activities – but why would American educational institutions aid lawbreakers, and even go out of their way to reward them?
We asked Temple Superintendent Dr. Robin Battershell. “Facts are that TISD and other districts have had limited success in parent involvement,” she said. “We along with others continue to seek ways to involve parents in improving discipline, educational opportunities, etc. Experience has shown that the more involved the parent, the better the student does.”
Dr. Battershell’s attitude that “parents are parents” is likely typical of most school district heads. She makes no distinction whatsoever between parents who are American citizens, those who are legal residents and those who broke our laws when entering this country. It’s an attitude that drives law-abiding taxpayers up the wall, but it flows from the signals that come from the federal and state levels. Dr. Battershell says as much when addressing our coverage of this issue on the radio:
“According to your show’s teaser, you take exception to the ‘Residency’ phrase. Once again, by law, public schools are required to serve any child that comes in the door and thus involve the parents of that child.”
She’s right about the letter of the law. But it is the districts – not the law – that make the decision to hold seminars about how to game the system of financial aid, give out freebies generously provided by taxpayers against their will, and boldly state that residency is “no problema.”
Many Texas school districts, unhappy with the state’s system of school finance, sued the state. But when it comes to redistribution of taxpayer wealth to foreign nationals and their children who are in Texas illegally, they are only too happy to comply. After all, our very conservative governor signed that bill.