Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, (DACA), was established in June 2012 by the Obama Administration to provide administrative relief from deportation to specific individuals who applied for and received DACA status from the federal government. The purpose of DACA was to protect eligible immigrant youth who came to the United States as children (1) To receive protection from deportation; and (2) To receive a work permit. Eligible applicants were able to obtain DACA status for two years, which was subject to renewal.

DACA granted employment authorization to undocumented immigrants who:

1. Were under the age of 31 as of June 15, 2012
2. Came to the United States before their 16th birthday
3. Continuously resided in the U.S. since June 15, 2007
4. Were physically present in the U.S. on June 15, 2012, and at the time of making their request for consideration of deferred action with USCIS
5. Entered without inspection before June 15, 2012, or their lawful immigration status expired as of June 15, 2012
6. Were currently in school, graduated or obtained a certificate of completion from high school, obtained a general education development (GED) certificate, or were an honorably discharged veteran of the Coast Guard or Armed Forces of the United States
7. Had not been convicted of a felony, significant misdemeanor, three or more other misdemeanors, and did not otherwise pose a threat to national security of public safety

USCIS will not accept new DACA applications from people who have not applied previously. No first-time DACA applications will be accepted by USCIS.

August 8, 2018: There was no ruling and no summary judgment. Instead, the Judge has requested further briefing. According to attorneys, the ruling is likely to come within the next 15 days. DACA renewal applications are still being accepted. Eligible beneficiaries are strongly encouraged to renew now.

August 2, 2018: There is a preliminary hearing on DACA scheduled for August 8th in Texas. Should the judge declare DACA to be unlawful at that time, the Trump administration may stop accepting DACA renewal applications. Therefore, eligible DACA beneficiaries are highly encouraged to renew now.Resources are available for immediate assistance with DACA renewal applications, and financial assistance is available to cover DHS fees for eligible applicants:

World Relief Southern California World Relief Southern California is hosting FREE RENEWALS for DACA every Thursday in August until further notice. Sign up at http://bit.ly/SoCalDACAThursdays. Financial assistance is available to cover DHS fees for those who qualify. For more information, visit worldreliefsocal.org, or call 714-210-4730.

CHIRLA CHIRLA also offers DACA renewal clinics with possible financial support for the DACA renewal fee. For more information, visit chirla.org, or call 888-624-4752.

GWC Financial Aid Office The State of California has provided limited funds for AB 540 (Undocumented/DACAmented) students with emergency funding to help students afford school. The student must meet the eligibility requirements to request the funding. Note: Submitting the request form does not guarantee funding. For more information, visit the Financial Aid website.

For more information on the DACA litigation timeline, please read this resource created by NILC.

DACA, AB 540 and the California Dream Act are not the same. In the state of California, the unwinding of DACA does NOT impact a students ability to attend college, qualify for exemption from non-resident tuition fees, or apply for financial aid.

Please see the table below to understand the difference between these three programs.

Yes. Click here for a helpful infographic.GWC Financial Aid resources for DACA and Dreamers Students. www.goldenwestcollege.edu/gwcfao/

Advance Parole granted DACA recipients the opportunity to obtain a permit to travel abroad for educational, employment or humanitarian purposes.

The Department of Homeland Security has announced that it will no longer approve any applications for advance parole, although it will honor the validity period for previously approved applications for advance parole. However, it is recommended that DACA recipients do not travel outside of the U.S.

If your previous DACA expired before September 5, 2016, OR your DACA was previously terminated at any time, then you must request DACA as a first-time applicant. This is not to be confused with those that NEVER applied in the past, they may not apply at this time.

Golden West College will not provide student information to Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE). Student information is private and Golden West College will protect all student information to the extent allowable by the law.

The Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) prohibits the Golden West College from disclosing personally identifiable information, including records reflecting a student’s immigration status, unless a FERPA exception applies or the student gives consent.

Regardless of what happens at the federal level, state financial aid for Dreamers remains legal in California. A Dreamer student does not need to be DACA- certified to be eligible for a public education or state financial aid. Losing DACA status will not affect most state financial aid. The information provided via the California Dream Act Application is used solely to determine eligibility for state financial aid and isnt shared with the federal government or used for immigration enforcement purposes. CSAC will protect this information to the fullest extent of the law (Letter from Tom Torlakson, the State Superintendent of Public Instruction California Department of Education and Lupita Cortez Alcala, the Executive Director of the California Student Aid Commission, 2016)

https://www.csac.ca.gov/post/california-nonresident-tuition-exemption

Yes, there are: The Mission Asset Fund is taking applications for scholarships to cover the $495.00 fee: https://missionassetfund.org/daca-grant/ You can also apply for Emergency Funds through the Financial Aid Office at GWC to help cover all, or a portion of the fees associated with your DACA renewal Dreamer Student Emergency Aid Grant:www.goldenwestcollege.edu/gwcfao/. There are also local community organizations you may be able to reach out to regarding scholarships and free DACA renewal clinics: https://www.publiclawcenter.org/
https://www.ociyu.org/
https://resilienceoc.org/
https://www.chispaoc.org/

Yes. All students are welcome at Golden West College as we have an open admissions policy.