Los presente UNIDOS: A Chaffey College Club
The emphasis on communities within the dreamer community circulates back to the present time here at Chaffey College's very own UNIDOS club and its present resources for undocumented students.
By Salma Calderon
A community college's responsibility is to provide empowerment for its undocumented students to pursue higher education in a supportive and diversified campus that dedicates itself to a safe space regardless of status. Chaffey College's UNIDOS club has been established to uplift education for undocumented students.
UNDIOS, the United Network of Immigrants & Dreamers Organizing for Students, is a student club run on the Chaffey College Rancho Cucamonga campus that provides empowerment to immigrants and DREAMER students through the advocacy of their community, education, and understanding by providing a secure space in the institution.
The UNIDOS club faculty advisor and faculty tri-chair for the undocumented advocates club, Professor Neil Watkins, mentions, "The community college mission in California is to serve 100% of the students, so regardless of immigration status – regardless of anything – community colleges serve anyone who comes here".
Undocumented students share a general anxiety about sharing their status, but now Chaffey undocumented students are able to discuss their status more safely with many of the new laws and policies created in the state of California, and across the United States, undocumented students are protected while pursuing higher education.
Back in 2017, the Chaffey College Governing Board passed its 2017 resolution when former President Donald Trump enacted to end DACA, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. Superintendent and President Dr. Henry Shannon issued a statement that resulted in the resolution to remain to their commitment to providing access to education to all students in the community regardless of their immigration status.
Chaffey College's Resources for Undocumented Students page runs in-depth on various statements for Dreamers and DACA recipients to understand what Chaffey has committed itself to. Highlighting their statements on the classified senate, which allows classified professionals to voice their participation in the college's mission, and the academic senate, which provides the access, the opportunity, and the services required to support all of their DACA students on their campuses.
Today, not only does the college provide information regarding the website's aim, but the resource page also lists everything a student will need whenever they need it. Undocumented students can see and schedule an appointment with the Undocumented Support Team with team members such as Residency Advisor, Lorie Vazquez, or Spanish-speaking counselor, Fabiola Espitia, or even schedule an appointment for Extended Opportunities Program (EOPS) services with Counseling Faculty, Myra Andrade through the ConexED card plugin.
Students can also find anyone in any of the categories to contact in the Undocumented Advocates Committee, which provides a list of faculty, names, positions, emails, and phone numbers to reach through.
Although everything is online, there are on-campus resources available.
Maria Barragan, the college's former Undocumented and LGBTQIA+ Student Liaison, confirms that Chaffey if working on something new, stating, "We are in the process of opening up a center for both populations so that would be the space they could come and meet with me, but that is also the space that would be housing the different programming for both populations but it is still going to fall under student equity and engagement".
While the institution is providing all its current resources through its college website and community outreach with the latest news or updates, there is a chance to improve the quality of the resource access to those who prefer other options. While on a mission to succeed in reaching out to a community of undocumented students of all kinds, there is still room for improvement. Easier access means a better quality education for everyone and that starts with what comes next now that there is everything here right in front of them.