LOS ANGELES — Mayor Eric Garcetti July 29, announced a grant program for qualifying Los Angeles community college students going through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals or DACA application process. The grants will cover both initial and renewal application fees, allowing hundreds of young Angelenos brought to this country as children to file petitions to remain here without financial hardship.
In partnership with the Mayor’s Fund for Los Angeles, the Foundation for the Los Angeles Community Colleges, and the Los Angeles Community College District or LACCD, 500 LACCD students will receive a one-time grant to pay the $495 DACA application fee.
To qualify for this grant, students must be enrolled at one of the nine LACCD colleges, demonstrate financial need, and attend virtual workshops that provide in depth information about the program and immigration resources. Students who qualify are also eligible to receive legal representation provided through the Central American Resource Center or CARECEN and the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights or CHIRLA to assist them in filing the DACA application.
The grant program will also serve as an incentive to those submitting their applications to do it as soon as possible. While the decision by a U.S. District Court in Texas stopped the processing and granting of initial applications, initial applications can be filed and current DACA recipients are able to continue submitting requests for renewal and advance parole.
Details: For more information, students can contact the Dream Resource Center at any of the nine LACCD campuses.