To the editor:

I was with more than 100 students, parents and teachers who gathered in Topeka on March 18 to celebrate the educational aspirations of immigrant students and to ask legislators to support legislation that would provide all Kansas students with educational opportunities. Specifically, we support House Bill 2145, legislation that would allow immigrant students to be eligible for in-state tuition at Kansas colleges and universities if they have attended school in Kansas for three or more years and graduated from a Kansas high school or earned a state-issued GED.

It was inspiring to see so many bright, motivated young people spending their spring vacations learning about government and the legislative process in Kansas. I was appalled that State Sen. Kay O’Connor brought one young student to tears with her anti-immigrant stance. These are precisely the kind of students we need to be encouraging to continue their education and stay in Kansas. I support these students and their dreams, and I support HB 2145.

Raymundo Eli Rojas,

Lawrence