PCC unveils program for DACA recipients, undocumented students

The newly announced program will be housed at the Rock Creek Campus, north of Beaverton.

Portland Community College has announced the creation of a program, housed at the Rock Creek Campus north of Beaverton, that will focus on services for undocumented immigrants and recipients of the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, program.

DACA allows young people, brought to the United States illegally by their parents to get two-year waivers freeing them from the fear of deportation and allowing them to go to college or work. The program, begun under President Barack Obama, could be rescinded by President Donald Trump.

Portland Community College his fall will launch the DREAM Center within the Multicultural Center at the Rock Creek Campus, 17705 N.W. Springville Road.

DREAM stands for Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors. The DACA program came about after Congress failed to pass the DREAM act. DACA recipients also are known as "Dreamers" or "DREAMers."

"The PCC Board of Directors believes in our DREAMers," said PCC Board Chair Kali Thorne-Ladd. "Community colleges are open-access institutions whose mission is to educate and empower students to achieve their academic and career goals. DACA is an important asset that facilitates this mission, providing stability and economic opportunity."

The new center is the first of its kind at any Oregon community college or university, according to PCC officials. It will provide outreach, education, advocacy and community resources, bilingual materials, and funding for urgent and emergency services for undocumented and DACA students and their families.

The program is funded through the Oregon Immigrant and Refugee Funders Collaborative. The Meyer Memorial Trust awarded the Portland Community College Foundation a $50,000 grant to help launch the program.

There are an estimated 800,000 DACA recipients in the nation; more than 11,000 in Oregon and, according to the Migration Policy Institute, some 5,000 DACA-eligible youths in Washington County as of 2016.

The news from PCC comes as mixed messages flare out of Washington, D.C. Earlier this month, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said DACA would be phased out in six months on President Trump's orders. This week, both Trump and Congressional Democrats said a deal might be in the offing to save the program. Many Trump supporters cheered the end of DACA and have spoken out against a deal to save it.

"The Administration's actions have triggered unprecedented challenges for our

undocumented students," said Liliana Luna, Rock Creek Campus Multicultural Center coordinator who led the effort. "At PCC, we recognize that DREAMer students face unique barriers that require additional mental, emotional and financial support. The new DREAM Center would focus on the empowerment, support and retention of DREAMers and their families."

Established in 2001, the campus' Multicultural Center is designed to provide a welcoming environment to support, retain, and empower diverse students to achieve academic excellence and become leaders who challenge and dismantle systems of oppression. In recent years, the center has grown from serving 2,500 students in 2013-14 to 7,200 in 2016-17. Each of the four PCC comprehensive campuses has a multicultural center.

For students who are undocumented, the uncertainty of Trump's policies has been challenging, according to PCC. In addition to family concerns and deportation risks, uncertainty over what scholarships these students qualify for, and whether they can find work to pay for school, weighs heavily on them.

The Times ran the stories of several DACA recipients in the Sept. 14 edition. Several of those interviewed are PCC students.

Last December, the college's Board of Directors declared PCC a "sanctuary college," to aid and protect undocumented students. In announcing the designation, College President Mark Mitsui emphasized concerns about the impact of potential changes in federal immigration policy on PCC's undocumented students.

To address such urgent concerns, the Rock Creek Multicultural Center worked with college leadership to develop a DREAM Center and base it on successful models and best practices from the U.S. Department of Education's "Resource Guide on Supporting Undocumented Youth in Postsecondary Settings."

The new PCC DREAM Center plans to serve 20 families and 20 students per academic term through the college's community resource hub. It will have legal services, assist in facilitating and processing initial DACA applications and renewal applications, provide workshops on student support and college navigation resources, and conduct academic/career advising sessions. In addition, the center will partner with local community organizations Adelante Mujeres, the Hillsboro School District, Momentum Alliance, Centro Cultural, and the Hispanic Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce.

"Many of these organizations are well established within the community as sources of support and empowerment for DACA and undocumented youth," Luna said. "Partnering with these organizations on outreach and promotion will help students and their families become aware of the proposed DREAM Center services more quickly and effectively."

The Oregon Immigrant and Refugee Funders Collaborative, a partnership between The Collins Foundation, MRG Foundation, Oregon Community Foundation and Meyer Memorial Trust, aims to highlight the importance of refugees and immigrants to Oregon and the joint commitment to address the need for their successful integration into the local community. The Meyer Memorial Trust is a private foundation that works with and invests in organizations, communities, ideas and efforts that contribute to a flourishing and equitable Oregon.