'Dreamer' heartbroken by FL Board of Education decision to block undocumented students from colleges

The Florida Board of Education has officially blocked undocumented students from attending state-level colleges.

The Division of Florida Colleges said the admissions criteria were changed to adhere to state law, but opponents are questioning that claim.

Now, all 28 of these schools, including Palm Beach State College and Indian River State College, will have to verify if students are citizens or have legal status before they can enroll.

"I didn't expect to be this emotional, but I physically felt like my heart hurt because it was. That's very, very personal to me," Alexander Vallejos said.

Vallejos came to Florida from South America with his parents when he was just a year old and is a Dreamer under the federal DACA program.

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Now, he's a first-generation immigrant college student at the University of Central Florida studying computer science.

But he first earned his associate’s degree from Palm Beach State College, something he said wasn’t easy.

"We come from almost nothing and limited opportunities. When you graduate high school, not only are you already limited from all these government-funded scholarships, you don't get financial aid, and now there's no in-state tuition, and you're already fighting, right? And on top of that, you don't really have much guidance," Vallejos said.

He worked two jobs to pay his way at PBSC, also supporting his family in the process.

He said he empathizes with current students at state colleges and their families now grappling with this decision.

"I would think it's taking away their whole life. I'm sure that everything they're working towards that's like really the only path, especially when you're undocumented. Like you're already so limited in what jobs you can even do, like even more in education now. So now you're taking away the one thing that they had," Vallejos said.

Now, as Vallejos works towards graduating from UCF next year, he said he worries these new rules could expand to state universities and wants state leaders to give him and other students like him a chance.

"I feel like we proved ourselves that we don't have the same opportunities, we don't get any aid from the government, we don't get almost anything. But no one — none of us complain. We still, you know, go through. We show resilience. We show how determined we are. We showcase our skills," Vallejos said.

Gulf Coast News sister station, WPBF 25 News, reached out to Palm Beach State College for comment and received this statement in response:

"Palm Beach State College will comply with all applicable state and federal laws and with the requirements set forth by the Florida Board of Education.

"At this time, the College is unable to quantify the number of students who may be affected because we have not previously been legally required to collect that information. This new rule will change our processes, and we are currently working to determine the most effective and appropriate way to implement the new requirements.

"PBSC has always operated in compliance with the law and will continue to do so. Our focus remains on carrying out these changes responsibly and in a manner that supports a smooth transition for our students, faculty, and staff."

WPBF 25 News also reached out to Indian River State College about this new ruling, and a spokesperson said they had no comment.