When I came to the United States as an Afghan refugee in 2011, my biggest dream was to finish my education. Within three months, I had a full-time job and was taking classes at a local college. Now, Afghan women who came here following the 2021 U.S. withdrawal and evacuation from Afghanistan share this same dream. But they are facing a significant barrier: many cannot access in-state tuition, regardless of how long they are residents in their new state.
The Taliban's recent decision to ban women from attending university puts the importance of this issue into stark relief.
As an Afghan woman and a refugee, access to an education in the United States changed my life. I have been able to pursue a degree in public health, and I hope to start a PhD program. Five years ago, I founded Elena's Light, an organization that helps refugees and other newcomers advance their lives. I work closely with Afghan women who were evacuated here in the wake of the Taliban takeover of our country. Some of these women were teachers, lawyers, or judges in Afghanistan. They survived decades of Taliban rule and limits on their education and public lives. They are eager to finish their education and restart their careers in a country that has offered them a new life. Their contributions to U.S. society can be unlimited if only we unlock access to higher education.
Women who escaped Taliban oppression and a ban on education in Afghanistan should not face new education barriers here in the United States. But in at least 17—or one third—of states, humanitarian parolees (the status Afghans evacuated here hold) are not eligible for in-state tuition regardless of how long they live, work, or pay taxes in their new state. Out-of-state tuition is often three times higher than in-state tuition, making it cost prohibitive for many. Other non-citizens living and working here face this barrier too. In-state tuition laws and policies in 72 percent of states exclude or fail to mention asylum seekers, while 68 percent did so for people with temporary protected status.
We know from new research on measuring integration outcomes for forcibly displaced people in the United States that access to higher education is one of the most important priorities for refugees and other newcomers as they rebuild their lives. Denying them access to in-state tuition is not only limiting, but also is a missed opportunity, preventing a generation of new Americans from truly living to their potential.
A few steps can help remove this barrier.
First, for Afghans who came here amid the U.S. evacuation, we urgently need to pass the Afghan Adjustment Act. That would give Afghan evacuees a path for permanent residency. While humanitarian parole is a critical tool that allowed the United States to bring people here quickly in the wake of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, those who came here through the parole program only have temporary protection and have no path to permanent residency. That leaves tens of thousands of our new Afghan neighbors in limbo.
Second, those helping to welcome newcomers must educate themselves about policies in their states to help navigate this issue or advocate for better policies. New resources from the Refugee Advocacy Lab and the International Refugee Assistance Project are available to learn about in-state tuition policies and eligibility requirements in all 50 states. Caseworkers should know how important access to education is to displaced people and ensure the people they are serving can access opportunities for in-state tuition whenever possible.
Third, and most importantly, states must clarify their policies to include humanitarian parolees and other non-citizen students in their in-state tuition offerings. In doing so, they can look to states like New York, where the State University of New York (SUNY) system offers clear and inclusive guidance on qualifications for residency for in-state tuition. Some states, like Oregon, recognize that the residency requirements are an unnecessary barrier for newcomers and have passed legislation granting in-state tuition to refugees, parolees, and other forcibly displaced people upon resettlement to the state.
Making in-state tuition accessible to displaced people in our communities is not just the right thing to do, it makes fiscal sense. Parolees are eligible for federal financial aid—but that does little to offset the staggering costs of out-of-state tuition. Offering in-state tuition to this small population would come at little to no added cost to higher education institutions. And the economic cost of failing to allow newcomers the opportunity to pursue their education is too great.
For people like me who come here as refugees, an education means everything. Let's make that accessible to all people who come here seeking a new start.
Fereshteh Ganjavi is the founder and executive director of Elena's Light. She came to the United States as a refugee in 2011.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
