UNC President Kay Norton Issues Statement on DACA
September 5, 2017
University of Northern Colorado President Kay Norton sent this campus memo today:
Dear UNC Community Members,
I write to you today to express my profound disappointment at the administration’s decision to phase out the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Now Congress must act. I will be urging the Colorado delegation to support immigration reform legislation.
Kay Norton
It has long been and it remains our position that all members of our UNC community are entitled to due process of law and every lawful protection prior to any action that would affect their status as members of our community. We uphold this principle through our words as well as through our actions.
We will continue to comply with all Family Educational Rights Privacy Act (FERPA) regulations, which includes the vigilant safeguarding of our students’ personal information.
As you know, I have been a supporter of the executive order creating DACA and of the BRIDGE Act, a bipartisan bill recently introduced in Congress that addresses the legislative reform required to fix our broken immigration system. These efforts dovetail with our values that welcome all UNC students to take advantage of the opportunity to succeed here.
Last spring, I joined hundreds of my colleagues around the country in signing a public statement of support for the continuation of DACA after our Board of Trustees adopted a similar resolution. I continue to support such efforts. Congress must take action, and I’m an advocate of calls such as those issued by the Association of Public & Land-Grant Universities to do so.
At this stage, details are lacking on what the pending change will mean for campus community members who, through no fault of their own, find themselves in an uncertain situation. Whatever the change turns out to be, we will continue to support all members of our campus community affected by this issue.
On Friday, Vice President for Campus Community & Climate Dr. Katrina Rodriguez shared resources with campus for those who are interested in learning more about the situation. I will reiterate what she stated, and encourage anyone who needs information to start here. In the coming days, we will be identifying other resources and updating the site to include them. Dr. Rodriguez will follow-up with campus once we have more information.
Please know that the decision on DACA does not change our commitment to being a welcoming and inclusive community that supports all students who have come to UNC to pursue the American dream.
Sincerely,
Kay Norton
