Immigrant DREAMs: English Learners, the Texas 10% Admissions Plan, and College Academic Success

Abstract

English learners (ELs) are facing unique issues in higher education that remain largely unexplored. This research focuses on college choice, enrollment, and graduation among high-achieving ELs who were eligible for automatic admission to any public higher education institution in Texas by having graduated in the top 10% of their high school class. We found that large enrollment gains for ELs were not observed until revised Texas DREAM (Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors) legislation stipulated that immigrant students fulfilling reformulated residency requirements were entitled to in-state tuition rates. The majority of top 10% ELs enrolled at border institutions, were largely first-generation college students, and experienced generally higher cohort graduation rates at Texas flagship universities.

Keywords:

• English learner students
• college admission
• educational policy
• higher education
• diversity
• enrollment trends
• selective admission

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

A previous version of this paper was presented at the 2009 conference of the American Educational Research Association.

Notes

¹The comptroller of public accounts (comptroller), the state's chief financial officer, book keeper, and economic forecaster, performs many functions important to the state budget (Senate Research Center, 2009).

²Students whose language status was unknown were added to the monolingual category for all analyses.

Hopwood v. Texas, 78 F.3d 932 (5th Cir. 1996).

Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act, Pub. L. No. 104–208, Div. C, 110 Stat. 3009-546 (1996).

League of United Latin American Citizens et al. v. Richards, 863 S.W. 2d 449 (Tex. S. Ct. 1993).