Around New England

Latino Dartmouth Alumnus Resigns Over College’s Refusal To Declare ‘Sanctuary Campus’

February 14, 2018

A 1998 Dartmouth College graduate is cutting all ties with the school, including as vice president of the Dartmouth Association of Latinx Alumni, because he is fed up with what he describes as the college’s inadequate response to his calls for protecting students who are illegal immigrants.

Unai Montes-Irueste and other Latino activists have called for Dartmouth to declare itself a “sanctuary campus,” to declare a safe zone against Immigration and Customs Enforcement and border patrol agents, and to free illegal aliens at the school from having to pay for their education since they may have trouble getting a job once they leave the college.

Instead, college officials have said they are lobbying for an extension of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, have paid for affected students to have one-on-one consultations with lawyers, are offering financial assistance to students to help pay for DACA-related fees, and meet the “full need” of all students for financial aid based on their means, according to The Dartmouth, the student newspaper.