Where I Stand — Mike O’Callaghan: Don’t turn a winner into a loser

Friday, Aug. 8, 2003 | 4:48 a.m.

Nevada took a big step forward in 1999 when Gov. Kenny Guinn announced his Millennium Scholarship program. Guinn, once a prominent educator, truly believes that "no child shall be left behind." Too many elected officials and opinion makers spew out those words but don't have the foresight, desire and courage to make them come true. Today we have some people who tell us that the children of undocumented parents should be cast aside when scholarships are awarded.

Guinn's use of some national tobacco settlement dollars for scholarships was applauded by most Nevadans. In his 1999 State of the State address, he said: "It is an idea whose effects transcend party lines, regional differences, and social class. An idea that places at our door, this evening, the chance for all of us to do something truly heroic. To write a great and indelible chapter in the history of our state and in the lives of our children."

Guinn went on to add, "These scholarships will allow every Nevada high school graduate, with a B average or better, to get an education at a Nevada university or community college.

"We will start with the class of 2000, and we will offer these 'Millennium Scholarships' in the fall of that year. I believe every Nevada student who studies hard and makes good grades should be able to continue his or her education regardless of financial status. The Millennium Scholarship will make that possible."

Guinn's words gave new hope to students who have little financial ability but good academic skills and the work ethic needed to succeed. The Legislature also saw this enlightened program as one needed for residents of the Silver State. Very simply, any Nevada resident graduating with the appropriate grades from one of our high schools qualified for the scholarship. The success of these students in college and later in life will add to the financial stability and quality of life for all Nevadans.

This is an excellent scholarship program that is easily administered and has already shown success. Maybe this success has contributed to the recent ugly attempt to deny a certain class of the qualified graduates the chance to participate in the program. At least one editorial in the morning newspaper wants to brand them as criminals because their parents brought them to our country without the proper legal documents.

Allow me the privilege to name a girl, Maria. She, at the age of 5, came with her parents to Las Vegas from Mexico. They immediately found work in hotels and then applied for U.S. citizenship. Like many foreigners, they were easy targets for scam artists and now their citizenship status is in limbo. Nevertheless, they continue working and paying the same taxes that other Nevadans pay. Maria, still not a citizen because of her parents' problems, went through the Clark County School District system and graduated from high school with grades qualifying her for a Millennium Scholarship. Why would anybody want to deny her this opportunity or call her a criminal? I don't have a reasonable answer to that question. The real criminals are those who gave her parents' false hopes of becoming citizens and absconded with their hard-earned money.

Las Vegas isn't the only city where scam artists have taken advantage of foreigners seeking citizenship. Southern California has had thousands of such cases. Los Angeles City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo recently filed criminal cases against 18 immigration consultants. Delgadillo told Patrick McGreevy, a Times staff writer, that "when someone goes through the process of becoming a citizen of the United States legally, he or she shouldn't be subjected to illegal and fraudulent practices along the way."

There certainly hasn't been a move in our country to deny thousands of immigrants the opportunity to enter our armed services, nor did we blush when they died in Afghanistan and Iraq. Has anybody made an issue out of the low cost of fruits and vegetables that immigrants provide for our tables or the less costly services they provide in our restaurants, yards and homes?

In Utah, one of the states that recognize the need to be fair and allow undocumented local high school graduates to attend college at resident rates, Republican state Sen. Howard Stephenson made his colleagues think. The Los Angeles Times reports: "Every citizen who buys a flat of strawberries for $16, or who enjoys a cheap hotel room or an inexpensive restaurant meal is essentially demanding that people come across the border illegally to fulfill their economic request," Stephenson said.

"I just felt strongly that every child who participates in the Utah public education system and does well should not be held back because of their parents' decision to come to the United States illegally," he added.

Nevada has been going down the right path in its handling of Millennium Scholarships. To add an additional burden on successful graduates is not only mean but also not among the acceptable rules of fairness most Americans practice. State Treasurer Brian Krolicki has refused to add a demand that scholarship winners check a box designating them as being a citizen or non-citizen. Our university regents should follow this lead and not ruin a program that is running fairly and smoothly. One of their jobs is to promote and improve access to higher education for every qualified Nevada high school graduate.

This entire issue will be moot if Sen. Orrin Hatch's Dream Act becomes law next year. The Utah Republican says "it repeals a provision of federal law that prevents states from granting in-state tuition to undocumented children." Even without the Dream Act, several states have made allowances for the undocumented to pay in-state tuition rather than out-of-state fees.

Now isn't the time for Nevada to step backward and undo the great good already accomplished by that forward step it took in 1999.