Establishing Change: How Chaffey's Undocumented Students Advocated for Themselves
Furthering one's education is a great responsibility. Moises Rosales, an alumnus of Chaffey College, broke down ways that Chaffey has supported students so far, and why they must be proactive in their assistance.
By Consuelo de Veranó
Moises Rosales marching with the Dreamers club. Photo by Hector Solorzano
Public education has a vital role to play in the uplifting of communities. From learning new skills to advancing one’s credibility, the elevation that education provides people is unparalleled, but its accessibility has left much to be desired. In recent history, groups of undocumented students at Chaffey College have been fighting to get their needs met by the institution. Moises Rosales, an alumnus of Chaffey College, was part of this movement and was asked to share his story.
Rosales met his wife in high school, and her mother was how Rosales became acquainted with Chaffey College as an institution. He was encouraged by her to get involved, and that was how he met Gissela Moya, the president of what was then known as the DREAMers club. Moya had a presentation about undocumented students for her honors program that Rosales had caught wind of and so he attended. Rosales was so inspired by what he heard that after the presentation, he immediately approached Moya to inquire about how he could get involved.
The club primarily acted as a safe space for undocumented students to freely express themselves, “We created a safe space to talk about our experiences, our downfalls, our stresses, even our hopes and our dreams,” Rosales said.
Many undocumented students grow up being told not to talk about their status so as to not out themselves or their families. If for nothing else but to avoid judgment, undocumented students need to speak freely, but that and along with any other assistance set into place can easily fade without institutionalized assistance.
Students need more than a safe space to be themselves in, they need mentors and faculty who will advocate for them and their needs, Rosales understood this. When the time came for Rosales to take the reins of leadership, he fought long and hard to create what he considers the first step: the Undocumented Advocate’s Committee.
The idea was to set up a board of people who would support undocumented students and voice the concerns of said students. This board would not just advocate for changes that the students would need, but also for the systems which must remain in place. Otherwise, it would be left up to the chance that hopefully, the incoming group of students would fight just as hard if not harder than the former.
Passion is key to achieving change according to Rosales, he advises students to develop dedication to that passion to avoid becoming stagnant in frustration. With the collective passion of Chaffey faculty and students alike, undocumented students were able to find the strength to continue their fight.
It took two years of protesting on Chaffey’s campus and showing up to board meetings every month, consistently, for undocumented students just to get an actual room to organize, this is not enough.
Institutions should be proactive when it comes to caring for the needs of their students, not reactionary, like it was for Rosales when he attended.
A proactive approach to student care would improve the quality of life for students by allowing them to focus more on their studies. Undocumented students face roadblocks as it is, educational institutions have a moral obligation to aid them, and the current structures set into place right now are only a start.