Austin, Texas, is by most definitions a beautiful college city which also prides itself on it's inclusiveness, progressiveness, and all around liberal propensities.
Unless you're a Marine, I guess.
Carl Basham, a Marine who spent two tours in Iraq, who has maintained his Texas Driver's License, who has remained registered to vote in his Texas district, who has kept up all requirements to maintain his residency in the Republic of Texas, now cannot go to school at Austin Community College at the resident rate because Military Duty is not a valid excuse for being away from one's primary address.
What kind of crazy law is that? Was some Provost or admissions geek afraid he'd contaminate the classroom with fumes of Duty, or Honor? Maybe housekeeping needs that extra 400% per semester to sweep up the sand from the cuffs of his BDU's.
Yes. 400% more because a Texan was declared a non-Texan by a committee.
Posted by Mamamontezz at August 17, 2005 09:20 PM | TrackBackThe Berkely of Texas should give this Texan a grant instead of gouging him as a non-resident. He's another victim of liberal bias towards the military. If I were him I'd go to a school that would appreciate my talents as well as my money. Non-residency opens the doors outside the liberal bastions of Austin which obviously prefers 'mouldable mush' over a more mature student. He should have registered under a false Hispanic surname, from south of the border, he'd probably have qualified for all the perks too. I wish him the best.
Posted by: Jack at August 17, 2005 10:32 PMI hope this is just some sort of temporary SNAFU; and not some sort of 'the-military-is-evil' moonbat in higher education who has taken it upon him/herself to 'stick it' to the military.
Hopefully that this story is coming out in the news will cause it to change.
Posted by: Charles at August 19, 2005 07:14 PMI wrote both the community college and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board about this situation. I received this email from THECB.
"Message:
We have received your email concerning military veterans and their eligibility to pay resident (in-state) tuition at the state’s public colleges and universities. Unfortunately, some recent news articles did not fully describe the circumstances under which this student was classified as a non-resident, and federal privacy laws prevent us from providing more specific information about this particular case. In general, if a person has established Texas residency at the time of entering military service, time away from Texas due to service does not in any way affect that claim to residency. Texas has a basic set of laws that govern how people qualify to pay resident tuition, and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and the colleges and universities do not have the authority to overrule those laws. The state has many special programs to help members of the military, their families, and veterans qualify to pay the resident rate. The state also has provisions to help people leaving the service become classified as residents for tuition purposes. For an official message from the President of Austin Community College further explaining this situation as it appeared earlier this week, please go to the following link: http://www.austincc.edu/pres/Message.htm.
The good news is that Austin Community College recently announced that the issue involving this particular student has been resolved after he provided the appropriate documentation to qualify for in-state tuition. For an official message from the President of Austin Community College regarding this, please go to the following link: http://www.austincc.edu/pres/Message2.htm.
We strongly believe that every effort should be made to treat service members, their families, and veterans fairly. As a matter of fact, our Commissioner of Higher Education is a Vietnam veteran and is personally committed to ensuring that service members get the benefits to which they are entitled.
Sincerely, Linda Battles Assistant to the Commissioner Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board"
Excellent, Suzi. Thank you for sharing that with us. I had read an update on WorldNetDaily, and was delighted to see that a waiver was granted and that he will be enrolled as a Texas Resident.
Ah, the power of the People. It's not just for moonbats anymore.
Posted by: Mamamontezz at August 20, 2005 09:40 PM