Noncitizen students at City College of San Francisco could soon be able to vote in the school’s board elections after the Board of Trustees unanimously approved the proposal last week.
Although City College of San Francisco endorsed the policy Friday, it still has to be sent to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to be considered as a potential charter amendment and ballot initiative.
San Francisco City College Board President Alan Wong suggested the policy after the First District Court of Appeal decided that the California Constitution allows for it, he said.
“Allowing noncitizens enrolled in City College classes the opportunity to vote for their college board would give students a voice in their education and how their school is managed,” Wong said. “It would get students invested in their education and increase participation and involvement.”
The policy proposal would allow all noncitizen City College students who enrolled in classes in the previous or current academic year of an election to vote. Noncitizens would still need to meet the other requirements for the election, such as being a San Francisco resident and being over the age of 18.
“I have seen so many recent immigrants in my ESL classes working hard to become contributing citizens of this country,” said Marlene Tran, who taught City College ESL and citizenship classes for 37 years. “Many of them wanted to have stronger input on their education. Allowing them to get their first experience voting for their college board will encourage them to become more invested in their school and community and become an active part of the American Democratic process.”
“All enrolled students regardless of national origin should have a say in their school governance. I don’t think foreign governments are looking to enroll and infiltrate our community colleges just to vote for the college board.” Alan Wong, San Francisco City College Board President
Wong said groups like the United States Justice Foundation oppose the policy, believing that allowing Chinese citizens to vote would not solve the college’s problems.
“All enrolled students regardless of national origin should have a say in their school governance,” Wong said. “I don’t think foreign governments are looking to enroll and infiltrate our community colleges just to vote for the college board.”
City College had over 53,000 students as of the 2019-20 academic year, more than a third of whom they estimate were born outside of the United States.
“Many students at City College are newly arrived immigrants seeking skills and opportunity in a new country and encouraging them to participate in our democracy adds a new dimension to their education,” Wong said.
Joshua Ochoa, a youth empowerment organizer, said students who aren’t citizens make a large contribution to campus and should have a say.
“Noncitizen students attend classes, join clubs, eat in the cafeteria and have as huge of a stake in local school governance as everybody else,” Ochoa said. “Noncitizen students now have a chance to get a vote for their leadership.”