Sandra Perez says it felt like her world stopped when she heard the news. She’s not undocumented, but her mom is, and a couple of friends are; friends who now have to rethink their college plans.
“It was just genuinely like they couldn't stop thinking about what they could do next in order to continue," she said. "Some of them took gap years or stayed away from education, which is also a terrible thing.”
Perez is the president of We Rise ECC — a student-led immigrant advocacy club at Elgin Community College.
They hold free legal clinics for students and community members without legal status, “know your rights” trainings, undocumented student surveys, and share scholarship opportunities.
Those scholarships are even more crucial now, after a federal judge recently ruled several Illinois laws unconstitutional: the RISE Act, which allowed undocumented students to receive state financial aid through the MAP grant; the Acevedo Act, which qualified them for in-state tuition; and the DREAM Act, which was a privately-funded scholarship program administered by the state.
Not just anyone could qualify for in-state tuition and financial aid. Undocumented students still had to attend an Illinois high school for at least two years before enrolling at a college; graduate or receive an equivalent diploma from an Illinois high school; and agree to file an application for U.S. permanent residency as soon as they were eligible.
But just before classes started, universities rushed out updated award letters telling undocumented students they wouldn't receive the financial aid they thought they would.
“You finally have it figured out, and then all of a sudden they pull the rug under you, and you see that bill like get tripled. It's so unfair," said Jennifer Barraza, another We Rise student with an undocumented parent. She says students and families without legal status live with a sense of dread — so adding even more financial stress is brutal.
It’s already difficult to balance life, work, and school, but it becomes close to impossible when you’re worried you’ll be detained on your way to class.
“Especially with ICE going around, you wonder if you're going to come back home at all," said Barraza.
That happened a year ago right on this campus. ICE arrested a student at the main campus in Elgin. Students were on edge. One told a reporter it felt like a “dystopian nightmare.”
Alejandro is the vice president of We Rise. He says it can make you feel powerless, but he’s seen their club make an impact.
“Some people are scared, of course, to come to our events because it kind of feels like it might be exposing their immigration status, but even just helping one, two, or even three people — that feels like a big difference to me," he said.
Alejandro remembers emails they’ve gotten from students and community members.
“There was a lady who, I believe, was homeless, and she had like a child with her. She was asking for legal advice for immigration," he said.
Their legal clinic had passed, but Perez says they were able to connect her to an attorney and immigration organization.
“We read these emails, and we talk as a group, and we're like, ‘we're definitely doing this next year,’" she said. "We're definitely going to keep going and growing as a club so we can keep giving support to students and the Elgin community.”
We Rise is planning their free legal clinic for later this fall. They’re trying to spread the word on campus and on Instagram about local scholarships students can apply for regardless of immigration status.
It's estimated there are nearly 25,000 undocumented students enrolled at Illinois colleges and universities, with around 3,000 undocumented students graduating high school every year.
According to a report from June 2025, there are just over 500,000 students without legal status at colleges and universities across the United States.
Many of them, likely including here in Elgin, are trying to figure out where to go from here.
