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Ronald Muaja, 37 years old, is studying for a bachelor’s degree in business and Marketing at Western Governors University Online College. She is currently in her second semester and she hopes that this time she will be able to finish her classes since with her work and her personal duties, online classes are the best option.
Muaja said that after graduating from high school he entered college, but had to drop out because his financial aid was taken away for not having the required grades.
Now he believes that if the AB Bill 2572 or the Adult Learner grant opportunity were passed California (CAL) would provide you with the financial help you need. California does not currently provide financial aid for adult students attending online colleges.
The AB 2572, proposed by Assemblywoman Blanca Rubio, proposes that the students of California older than 35 years old—regardless of immigration status—who want to go to an online college to earn a career receive financial aid through grants.
The measure estimates that the most benefited would be the first generation immigrant students who need 100% flexibility to take your courses, and financial aid to pursue your higher education, whether at a public university, private university, or community college.
Assemblywoman Rubio said she fully supports this measure because she was an adult learner.
“ I know how hard it was for me trying to get funding and trying to pay for my education,” she said. “So when I saw the opportunity to create the Cal Opportunity grant that would prioritize first-generation students, specifically targeting people who have more than 25 years, it was time to help”.
Rubio said that she knows first-hand that transferring directly from high school to college is not common in the Latino community.
“Some of us work and try to help families before starting some educational opportunities”, he asserted.
The grant program will give priority to California residents enrolled in distance learning courses who have financial need, single parents, former foster youth, living in rural areas of the state, first generation of their family to attend college and are seeking degrees in the state’s most labor-intensive industries.
This measure will provide more opportunities for adult students, since the cost of attending an accredited non-profit online university is much more lower than that of traditional universities.
Rubio said that this month the proposal will be presented in the committee and if approved it will go to the assembly and subsequently to the Senate. She hopes that everything goes well and Governor Gavin Newsom signs the law before 18 in October.
Benefit for all
Regarding the funds to pay for these grants, the assemblywoman hopes that they will come from the general fund. He added that California currently has a surplus and what better way to use it than to educate people so they can contribute in the future and continue to increase the surplus.
“Because now we have people who are paying taxes and are undocumented and have everything that we defenders are advocating for,” Rubio said. “I just want people to educate themselves so that when the opportunity presents itself they can pursue a career.”
Rubio said that at this time many people do not have the opportunity to pursue certain careers due to the stagnation of comprehensive immigration reform in the federal government, but this does not prevent them from having the opportunity to prepare.
“There are three things that I always encourage you to recognize, first to see when a door opens second, be brave enough to walk through that door and third, which is the most important thing, be prepared for when they walk through that door.”
Statistics show that California currently faces a deficit of more than two million titles and certificates that promote the economic advancement of residents.
Supporters of the measure include the California Adult Learner Network and the California Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
Julián Cañete, president of the chamber of commerce, said that they have always supported the development of the workforce and higher education to have a competitive workforce.
“In recent years, we have seen a number of people who were workers who wanted to go back to school, get an education and move up,” Cañete said. “It’s good because when we talk about losing companies to other states, it’s because we need a skilled and educated workforce here in California.”
Assemblywoman Rubio’s office stated that California has more immigrant students enrolled in post-secondary education than any other another US state, of which, 1.35 million, or the 50% of all students are from California.
In addition, a 80% of surveyed first-generation immigrants who were negatively affected by the pandemic are considering going back to college or some form of adult education. However, they agree that increased access to financial aid for online learning will help them return to or enroll in a college program.