US Education Department Bars Many Students from Emergency Aid

 

Last week, United States officials announced a decision that affects most international students and all Dreamers.

The term "Dreamer" means immigrants who were brought to the United States illegally as children. They are permitted to stay under the government's Deferred¹ Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA.

President Donald Trump²'s administration decided³ to bar these students from getting emergency aid. The aid is part of a nearly $2 trillion government program. The U.S. Congress approved the money to help people and businesses hurt by the coronavirus crisis.

U.S. President Donald Trump addresses the daily coronavirus response briefing as Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue listen at the White House in Washington, U.S., March 27, 2020. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

U.S. President Donald Trump addresses the daily coronavirus response briefing as Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue listen at the White House in Washington, U.S., March 27, 2020. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos put the restriction⁴ in new federal guidelines released last week. These rules tell colleges and universities how to give out more than $6 billion in aid grants. The money is supposed to help students pay for costs resulting from the coronavirus pandemic.

Earlier guidance from the Department of Education suggested schools would have fewer restrictions⁵ on how to give out the monies. But the new guidelines said that only students who can receive other federal student aid can get this assistance.

University officials and immigrant groups denounced the decision. They said DeVos is setting limits that were not included in the congressional legislation. The aid package did not identify which students can get the grants. And many colleges had planned to give the grants to needy⁶ students, whether or not they are U.S. citizens.

Because of the change, some highly respected universities are rejecting the federal money. Princeton University announced that it would refuse its $2.4 million share of the coronavirus aid package. Harvard University is rejecting its $8.7 million in aid.

The Education Department said its guidance is worded like other federal laws. It noted⁷ the Higher Education Act, a law that says only U.S. citizens and a small group of non-citizens can get federal student aid. Angela Morabito, a department representative, said the rescue legislation makes clear that this relief money "should be targeted to U.S. citizens."

But some higher education activists⁸ disagree with that claim. The American Council on Education is an organization of college presidents. It says the rescue package placed no limits on student eligibility⁹.

The guidelines have created misunderstandings about exactly which students can receive the grants, says Terry Hartle, one of the council's leaders. It is clear the Education Department is leaving out immigrants who were brought to the U.S. illegally and international students, he added. But it is unclear how schools should define eligibility. Most colleges do not ask students if they are U.S. citizens, he said, and officials have no easy way to find out. "A college could give an emergency grant to a Dreamer without realizing the person is a Dreamer," Hartle said.

At the University of California, Riverside, officials had been planning to give grants to some of the school's estimated 600 Dreamers. Now, those officials are looking for other ways to help students blocked by the Education Department guidelines.

Student activists see DeVos' action as a major change from her earlier guidance. When DeVos made the aid available in early April, she said colleges would be given the chance to decide how to award the grants. She told college officials to help the neediest students. And in documents that colleges sign to receive the grants, the Education Department says the money is not considered federal financial aid.

That earlier guidance led some schools to believe the grants were not subject to citizenship¹⁰ requirements.

Sara Goldrick-Rab is a professor of higher education policy and sociology at Temple University in Pennsylvania. She says the new restrictions are hard on students who were expecting the grants to pay for food, housing and other costs. It is also unfair to colleges that now must move quickly to amend¹¹ plans for giving out the aid.

Losing access to the grants will likely force some students to leave school, Goldrick-Rab said. She noted this is especially true for students whose families are dealing¹² with unemployment from the pandemic.

Critics say the policy is especially unjust because the students now blocked from receiving grants were counted in the math used to decide on money for schools. The rescue package provided $14 billion for the nation's colleges and universities. Each was offered an amount based on its student population and the percentage of students from poorer backgrounds.

The United We Dream Network, which campaigns for Dreamers, said it was "callous¹³" of DeVos to block so many students from getting the aid. Sanaa Abrar, the group's advocacy director, urged Congress and colleges to find other ways to help students affected¹⁴ by DeVos' directive.

I'm Alice Bryant.

Words in This Story

guideline - n. a rule or instruction that shows or tells how something should be done

pandemic - n. an occurrence in which a disease spreads very quickly and affects a large number of people over a wide area

grant - n. money that is given to someone by a government or organization to be used for a particular purpose

eligibility - n. the state of having the right to do or get something by meeting the appropriate conditions

access - n. a way of being able to use or get something

callous - adj. not feeling or showing any concern about the problems or suffering of other people

1 deferred   

adj.延期的，缓召的v.拖延，延缓，推迟( defer的过去式和过去分词 )；服从某人的意愿，遵从

参考例句：

• The department deferred the decision for six months. 这个部门推迟了六个月才作决定。
• a tax-deferred savings plan 延税储蓄计划

2 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

3 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

4 restriction   

n.限制，约束

参考例句：

• The park is open to the public without restriction.这个公园对公众开放，没有任何限制。
• The 30 mph speed restriction applies in all built-up areas.每小时限速30英里适用于所有建筑物聚集区。

5 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

6 needy   

adj.贫穷的，贫困的，生活艰苦的

参考例句：

• Although he was poor,he was quite generous to his needy friends.他虽穷，但对贫苦的朋友很慷慨。
• They awarded scholarships to needy students.他们给贫苦学生颁发奖学金。

7 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

8 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 eligibility   

n.合格，资格

参考例句：

• What are the eligibility requirements? 病人被选参加试验的要求是什么？ 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 回顾与展望
• Eligibility for HINARI access is based on gross national income (GNI). 进入HINARI获取计划是依据国民总收入来评定的。

10 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

11 amend   

vt.修改，修订，改进；n.[pl.]赔罪，赔偿

参考例句：

• The teacher advised him to amend his way of living.老师劝他改变生活方式。
• You must amend your pronunciation.你必须改正你的发音。

12 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

13 callous   

adj.无情的，冷淡的，硬结的，起老茧的

参考例句：

• He is callous about the safety of his workers.他对他工人的安全毫不关心。
• She was selfish,arrogant and often callous.她自私傲慢，而且往往冷酷无情。

14 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。