{"id":3085,"date":"2011-11-17T12:43:17","date_gmt":"2011-11-17T17:43:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/florida\/?p=3085"},"modified":"2012-05-01T22:09:00","modified_gmt":"2012-05-02T02:09:00","slug":"colleges-still-cant-consider-dream-act-student-a-resident-for-college-purposes-in-shamirs-words","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/florida\/2011\/11\/17\/colleges-still-cant-consider-dream-act-student-a-resident-for-college-purposes-in-shamirs-words\/","title":{"rendered":"Shamir Ali Update: He’s Free, But College Wants Him to Pay Out-of-state Tuition"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Courtesy of Shamir Ali<\/p>

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Shamir Ali of Bangladesh made national headlines<\/a> after StateImpact Florida<\/a> and others described his plight: He was being deported, even though the Obama Administration’s policy was to allow college students like him to stay in the U.S.<\/em><\/p>\n

Now, he’s been released from a Florida immigration detention center<\/a> and given temporary legal standing in the country.\u00a0<\/em>But he says college officials are calling him an out-of-state resident for college tuition purposes<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

That’s put a wrench into his plans<\/a> to enroll in college full-time.\u00a0<\/em>Here’s an update from Shamir:<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m trying to sign up for full-time spring 2011 classes at Miami Dade College.<\/p>\n

They acknowledged that I\u2019m legal but want evidence that I’ve been in Florida for at least 12 months, which I have. This has nothing to do with ICE. It has to do with the State of Florida requiring strict evidence of residency to qualify for in state tuition.<\/p>\n

I want so badly to enroll as a full-time student but out-of-state tuition is three-and-a-half times more expensive.<\/p>\n

The Department of Motor Vehicles granted me a Florida driver\u2019s license with two proofs of address. But sadly Miami Dade College isn’t accepting it. So even with a work permit and a Florida license, I can’t pay in state tuition until I’ve had both for at least a year.<\/p>\n

That’s what they told me [yesterday]. They’re very strict on what they want. I need to have one of the following, but it has to be for 12 consecutive months prior to the day I’m claiming Florida residency:<\/p>\n

Primary Requirements:<\/strong><\/p>\n