College of Saint Mary students talk immigration on D.C. trip

By Michael Kelly / World-Herald columnist - 

Seven students from the College of Saint Mary in Omaha spent a week in Washington, D.C., this month as part of a “U.S. Immigration” elective course.

Three were “Dreamers,” people living in the United States illegally after being brought here as children by undocumented parents. Dreamers have been protected by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, the future of which is in doubt.

“We’re living with a lot of uncertainty and fear,” said Dania Cervantes Ayala, a junior with a 3.9 grade-point average who plans to be a nurse practitioner.

She and the other students met with U.S. Rep. Don Bacon and U.S. Sen Ben Sasse, and with staffers of U.S. Sen. Deb Fischer, each time telling their stories.

Born in Mexico, Dania was 6 when she entered the U.S. with her parents. She remembers only getting in a van and being told they were going on a trip. Today her dad is a construction worker in Omaha, and her mom cleans houses.

Each College of St. Mary student paid $200 of the cost of the Washington visit, and the college covered the rest. It was Dania’s first trip to the nation’s capital.

“I absolutely loved it,” said Dania, an Omaha South High graduate. “And the architecture and design are a lot different from Omaha.”

michael.kelly [at] owh.com, 402-444-1132
Omaha World-Herald Story

PHOTO CAPTION: CSM students Elizabeth Vasquez, Dania Cervantes Ayala, and Yesica Lara meet with U.S. Rep. Don Bacon in Washington D.C. 

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