Undocumented Kansas High School Graduates Find Themselves Increasingly Targeted
Kansas could be the next state sued for its in-state tuition program for undocumented students.
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For 22 years, Kansas leaders protected a law allowing some undocumented students to pay in-state tuition to attend the state鈥檚 public colleges, universities and technical schools.
Those days are over.
During the recently ended session, the GOP-dominated state legislature passed overturning the policy that has allowed thousands of young Kansans to pay for and earn a college education. Only the veto of Gov. Laura Kelly, a Democrat, saved the law from repeal.
National challenges are also looming.
The has begun systematically suing the more than 20 states that have such laws. The Department of Justice argues in-state tuition laws incentivize unauthorized immigration and favor immigrants over U.S. citizens.
On June 3, , which is similar to the one in Kansas. Nebraska鈥檚 Republican governor had agreed to a consent decree to end the law after being sued.
Kansas Attorney General warns that Kansas could be next.
鈥淚f Kansas were to be sued by the federal government over this statute, Kansas would likely lose the lawsuit,鈥 Kobach said in given to state legislators.
Other GOP legislators are pressing the same message.
Sen. Mike Thompson, a Johnson County Republican, led efforts in the last legislative session to reframe in-state tuition as a public benefit, arguing the Kansas law is out of sync with federal law, a view that Kobach also holds.
鈥淭he DOJ is watching Kansas closely and if we allow this to continue, we will be sued, and we will lose,鈥 Thompson said in a social media post.
Targeting Dreamers
Since 2004, thousands of immigrant Kansas high school graduates, often called Dreamers, have used the law to earn degrees by paying in-state fees instead of far higher international student rates.
Republican legislators have targeted the law each session, trying to overturn it.
Supporters have long pushed back, including the Kansas Board of Regents, the Kansas Association of School Boards and immigrant rights advocates.
Rep. Louis Ruiz, a Kansas City, Kansas, Democrat who is retiring at the end of this term, fears what the future holds for the state鈥檚 undocumented K-12 students.
Ruiz has long supported the students, knowing that many were brought to the U.S. as young children by their parents. They view Kansas as home.
鈥淪ome people, especially some Republicans, try to claim that these students are getting a free tuition,鈥 Ruiz said. 鈥淣o, that鈥檚 not accurate. They are paying a rate as residents of the state.鈥
Qualifications include graduating from an accredited Kansas high school after attending for at least three years.
An Obama-era program has also aided undocumented immigrant students. But it also is under heightened .
offers temporary protection against deportation for those who qualify and undergo vetting, including biometrics.
DACA recipients can get a work permit and often begin putting their degrees to work in chosen professions.
New applications to the program are on hold while federal court challenges play out.
DACA approval must be renewed every two years.
by the administration are causing people to lose their status. And some have been deported.
The Trump administration says extra vetting is behind the lengthened wait times.
鈥淚 was terrified that it wouldn鈥檛 be a quick renewal,鈥 said one Kansas City area DACA recipient of her renewal, which was granted in August 2025.
Still, her concerns linger. She requested to remain anonymous. Similar to several people interviewed for this story, she is protective of extended family and other immigrants in her social circles.
鈥淓ven if you鈥檙e a permanent resident, you鈥檙e not safe,鈥 she said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e looking for anything to detain you and deport you without giving you your day in court.鈥
There were 505,940 active DACA recipients in the nation as of Sept. 30, 2025, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Kansas had 4,230 DACA recipients at that time. Missouri, which does not allow in-state tuition rates for undocumented students, had 2,490 DACA recipients.
Also, a Board of Immigration Appeals decision in late April found that holding an active DACA status is not sufficient alone to protect against deportation. The decision conflicts with rulings in federal courts that have upheld the program鈥檚 constitutionality.
The is trying to calm DACA recipients鈥 fears, releasing detailed information about the ruling. The center emphasizes that DACA still offers protections from deportation. But the situation can become more complicated if a person is detained by immigration officials.
鈥淚 feel like every day I wake up and it鈥檚 something else, something new,鈥 said Maria, a former DACA recipient and a graduate of Olathe East High School.
Last year, Maria completed the process to become a legal permanent resident through marriage to her U.S.-born husband.
Maria grew up in Olathe, with no memories of her native Puebla, Mexico.
She immigrated at 2 years old with her mother, reuniting with her father who had migrated earlier.
Maria fully understood her legal situation as a 16-year-old.
She wanted to study abroad, along with some of her classmates. Her mother explained that it would be impossible for Maria to leave the country and safely return, because of her lack of legal status then.
The Kansas in-state law made college financially feasible. She earned an associate degree at Johnson County Community College, then a bachelor鈥檚 degree in business administration and a minor in psychology from the University of Kansas.
Undocumented Kansas students, even with the in-state tuition law, cannot receive public federal or state grants and scholarships or subsidized student loans.
鈥淗ad it been out-of-state tuition, even for Johnson County Community College, I would not have been able to graduate at all,鈥 Maria said.
A mother鈥檚 plan to protect her U.S.-born children
Karina Valtierra prepared her four sons for the possibility that she could be deported.
Valtierra鈥檚 DACA status lapsed for eight tense weeks this spring.
A native of Durango, Mexico, she鈥檚 lived in the U.S. since the age of 11 and applied for her DACA renewal early. But it didn鈥檛 arrive by her February expiration date.
As a result, she couldn鈥檛 legally drive, or work, and had to step away from her job teaching young children at a school in Wichita.
She gave an aunt power of attorney. She arranged for house payments to be covered for the family home. She spoke to her oldest child, a 17-year-old, about assuming the role as head of the household.
The youngest, at 13, struggled to understand.
鈥淛ust having to have that conversation with them was awful,鈥 Valtierra said. 鈥淎nd trying to explain, 鈥業鈥檓 protecting you guys, making sure you鈥檒l be OK if anything happens.鈥 鈥
Valtierra鈥檚 renewal was approved in late March.
She鈥檚 resumed teaching, putting the early childhood/leadership degree she earned from Fort Hays State University into practice.
DACA was never intended to be a permanent fix. It was a stopgap for a generation of immigrants who had been brought to the U.S. without documentation as children.
Obama instituted it by executive order in 2012.
Congress, despite periods of strong bipartisan support, never passed the DREAM Act, which would offer a route to permanent legal status for some undocumented students.
DREAM stands for Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act. The act was first introduced in 2001.
Most of the original DACA recipients, and many former students known as Dreamers, are now in their 30s or older.
鈥淲e consider this our country, even though we don鈥檛 have a piece of paper that says this is our country,鈥 Valtierra said. 鈥淣ow we have kids, and we鈥檝e built a life in here.鈥
鈥業n their crosshairs鈥
Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach has been a leading critic of in-state tuition laws and DACA. He has either filed or joined lawsuits against both, in Kansas and through national networks.
鈥淐ongress declared that no state may give in-state tuition benefits to illegal aliens unless the state extends the same tuition benefits to out-of-state U.S. citizens,鈥 submitted during the last legislative session.
More than two decades ago, the law鈥檚 authors took care to , ensuring that undocumented students had a higher burden to meet than native-born people, who can often establish residency for the purposes of tuition, in a year.
Early predictions of thousands of Kansas immigrant students enrolling using the in-state law each semester never materialized.
Enrollment peaked at 670 undocumented students statewide at institutions in 2015 and then again in 2017. The low was 169 students in 2006, according to state enrollment data.
The enrollments have been steadily declining for nearly a decade, with 310 in 2024.
Advocates worry that students aren鈥檛 being told by some colleges or academic advisers that the law still exists. Also, young people might be discouraged, given highly publicized crackdowns on undocumented immigrants by the current administration.
So far, the Justice Department has settled lawsuits with Nebraska, Texas, Kentucky and Oklahoma, ending in-state tuition programs in those states.
Lawsuits are pending in Democrat-led states of Illinois, Minnesota, Virginia and California.
If Kansas is sued, the legal action could reignite conflicts between Kobach, a Republican, and Kelly, a Democrat, or possibly her successor.
As attorney general, Kobach would need to defend the state鈥檚 law. Kobach is seeking reelection. Kelly is barred from doing so by term limits.
The two have wrangled in court recently over their respective legal lanes.
, alleging that he was failing to defend the state against the overreaches of the Trump administration.
In March, the Kansas Supreme Court issued a narrow decision that dismissed Kelly鈥檚 petition. Both sides claimed victory.
Kelly said that if Kobach continued to 鈥渞efuse to stand up for the state, Kansans can be assured that I will,鈥 according to
Advocates for immigrant students are preparing for the possible court challenge and other headwinds.
鈥淭he environment has definitely changed around the issue,鈥 said Alejandro Rangel-Lopez, campaign manager for New Frontiers, Loud Light鈥檚 project in southwest Kansas. 鈥淏ut I do believe we still have a really good law in place.鈥
Rangel-Lopez, of Dodge City, helped organize some of the pushback during debates on , the bill that sought to end in-state tuition.
Planning continues, including gaining insights from states that have already been sued. And national organizations such as the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, also known as , have also been contacted.
鈥淲e know the fight isn鈥檛 over yet because of the national environment and that we鈥檙e probably in their crosshairs,鈥 Rangel-Lopez said.
This first appeared on and is republished here under a .
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