Very small percentage of students in US illegally

OKLAHOMA CITY: A new study shows that only a fraction of 1 percent of Oklahoma's college students are in the country illegally.

The report approved by the Advancement of Hispanic Students in Higher Education Task Force found that only 272 of the nearly 230,000 Oklahoma higher education students are not legal US residents. That's about one in every 845 students, or 0.11 percent.

The task force set up in 2004 predated the passage of House Bill 1804, which limited state aid to students who were in the country illegally.

``There is so much misinformation out there, that these students are taking resources away when that's not the case,'' said task force member Isabel Chancellor, the president of Oklahoma City-based business technology company IngenuitE.

``It's good to have this all in black and white. By using this information, I hope it makes a difference.''

The task force was created to examine how state policies affect students who are not U.S. citizens and held its final meeting. The report includes no recommendations on policy changes or how to improve education access for undocumented students.

Sen. Debbe Leftwich, another member of the task force, suggested any proposed changes would not be implemented because the Republican-controlled House and Senate have focused on anti-illegal immigration measures such as House Bill 1804 in recent years.

``Under the current administration, it seems discussion of those policy changes would just be stifled,'' said Leftwich, D-Oklahoma City.

Over the last five years, the report shows an increase from 215 to 272 undocumented students in college.

Armando Pena, assistant vice chancellor for the State Regents for Higher Education, said students already enrolled in an education aid program when HB 1804 took effect in November 2007 were allowed to continue in their education.