University of North Carolina denies Iraq vet in-state tuition as it mulls giving break to illegals

Fox News ^ | 10-16-2012 | Perry Chiaramonte

[servo1969]

EXCLUSIVE--The University of North Carolina, which is currently considering giving illegal immigrants in-state tuition benefits, denied an Army sergeant the same break even though she owns a home in the Tar Heel state and only moved away briefly because the military stationed her husband in Texas.

Hayleigh Perez, 26, hoped to use her G.I. Bill to attend the UNC’s Pembroke campus near Fort Bragg, but the young veteran -- who served a 14-month tour in Iraq -- was told she did not qualify as a state resident because she had been gone for about three years.

“I got frustrated. When I tried to inquire, they kept putting up roadblocks,” Perez told FoxNews.com. “It’s just disgraceful that life in Iraq, where you could die, is easier than trying to go to school here.”

[servo1969]

Perez enlisted in 2005, and was stationed in Fort Bragg before shipping out to Camp Bucca in Iraq. That's where she met her husband and fellow soldier, Jose Perez-Rodriguez. The pair married and, when their tours ended in 2006, bought their home in Raeford, N.C. They lived there until 2009, when Jose Perez-Rodriguez was assigned to a base in Texas. But they continued paying the mortgage and taxes on the North Carolina property while she accompanied him on his deployment for six months, and Perez has been in North Carolina for the past two years, she said.

Perez was honorably discharged in September 2009, and, after giving birth to daughter Calleigh, and sought to build a post-military career. When her husband won a transfer back to Fort Bragg to rejoin his family, Perez started applying to colleges in the area in hopes of pursuing a master's degree as a physician's assistant. She told FoxNews.com she was accepted to both UNC’s Fayetteville and Pembroke branches and chose Pembroke. But Perez was shocked when UNC-Pembroke officials told her she was not considered an in-state resident, even though the Fayetteville branch said she was. The G.I. Bill Perez hoped to use for school does not cover out-of-state tuition.

"I just figured I could appeal the decision," Perez said. "I thought it would be easy.”

But Perez said the appeal process consisted of appearing before a 15-member panel at the school's vice chancellor’s office, where her request was denied. She said she later learned that the denial was based on the fact that she had not paid income tax in North Carolina in the years in which she was in Iraq and Texas.

“The process was demeaning. They [Pembroke] treated me so poorly I felt like I was a criminal on trial,” she said. “They told me I couldn’t reapply.”

Sgt. Jason Thigpen, founder and president of the Student Veterans Advocacy Group, which is helping Perez make an appeal to the school, said nearly 250,000 other student veterans nationwide have been forced to pay out-of-pocket while using their G.I. Bill due to "adverse and short-sighted changes our federal government made.”

Adding insult to injury, says Thigpen, is the fact the UNC is currently considering granting in-state tuition benefits to illegal immigrants at all 16 of its branches, including Pembroke.

“In North Carolina alone there are more than 5,000 student veterans facing such hardship, while the state [may grant] in-state residency for tuition purposes to illegal immigrants," he said. "That's not the deal we signed up for when joining the military, and surely isn't what was intended in the 1940s when [the G.I. Bill program] began,” he added.

Officials from the university did not immediately return a request for comment on Tuesday as they were scheduled to meet with Perez.

Perez, who started an Internet petition that has garnered support from across the country with nearly 120,000 signatures in just five days, and the Students Veterans Advocacy group intend to sue both the school and the federal government if the school's decision is not reversed.

“It’s so much larger. This isn’t just about me. It’s for every veteran hitting these roadblocks,” Perez said.

No matter what happens, Perez said she won't be attending UNC-Pembroke.

"I’m now attending a private college," she said, declining to name the school. "I don’t want to be associated with an institution that treats veterans this way.”

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From the articles I've read over the years by Mike Adams I have no doubt that if UNC could stop accepting GI Bill students they would - in a heartbeat. I bet every single member of that 15-member panel was a Progressive. I wonder how many were flat-out Communists or Marxists? I bet a good many.

[George from New England]

She’s the wrong color.

[muawiyah]

interesting case ~ but the authorities at the school seem to still be engaged in the issue settled in Queen Anne’s War ~ may be the best course of action to have them rounded up, tried for treason, and disposed of ~ and that could be done by France, England or the USA.

[Right Brother]

She’s the wrong color.

But she has the right last name.

[Jumper]

Similar situation in my family. I have paid taxes in NC since 1988, son was born in 1991 and has paid Fed/NC taxes on both type of tax returns, yet Pitt Community College billed me $3600 out of state since I was working overseas for the US Dept of State.... We should have paid $900 for one half year tuition. Never was able even with all the tax returns to get my money back from these bastards in NC.

[Da Coyote]

“... may be the best course of action to have them rounded up, tried for treason, and disposed of ....”

And indeed this will happen after Revolution II. We’ve had it with these folks.

[douginthearmy]

When you make everything about race you sound as idiotic as the leftist race baiters.

[petitfour]

So they are saying the issue is that she did not pay income taxes in North Carolina for the past few years? I wonder what her taxes would have been compared to Texas. How much of her property taxes went to pay for education in North Carolina? By the time her appeals are done, she will have been a resident for the required amount of time.

I am interested in the comment in the story about veterans having trouble with the Feds paying for their GI benefits.

[Mr. Jeeves]

The University of North Carolina, which is currently considering giving illegal immigrants in-state tuition benefits, denied an Army sergeant the same break...

The proper conclusion is that a UNC degree is now a political award to favored groups and has no academic value - and employers should start treating it accordingly.

[douginthearmy]

Sounds like a problem that needs to be brought up to the governor. I had a similar problem when the GI Bill kicked over to only pay in-state tuition for public schools, but I was very lucky. I had to prove my California residency with a drivers licence, tax return, vehicle registration, and lease for my first apartment and mortgage for my house. I was required to have 1 year of residency and I made the cutoff by a few days. The next year, they upped the residency requirement to 2 years.

As I said, I got lucky, but I was still outraged by having to collect all those documents to prove I was a resident when an illegal who goes to high school for 3 years gets automatic in state tuition.

[FlingWingFlyer]

"I don’t want to be associated with an institution that treats veterans this way.”

There ya go.

[TADSLOS]

Ping.

[GladesGuru]

“When you make everything about race you sound as idiotic as the leftist race baiters.”

May I ask when reality became ‘race baiting’? I asked because the article mentioned that the treasonous in North Carolina Institutes of Academentia are considering giving tuition breaks to the illegal aliens.

[Morris70]

UNC just endorsed Romney by this action.

[muawiyah]

It's not quite about having an hispanic name, but CITIZENSHIP in a Spanish speaking successor state to Spain.

Mexico's treaty with Spain pretty well covers those questions, and it's the same with the successor states to El Centro America, itself a successor state to Spain.

What's going on is the NC school administration sets one standard for American citizens, with or without hispanic surnames, and a different standard for non-citizens.

Those foreigners with hispanic surnames who are here legally as registered foreign students need to keep paying out of state tuition. That's because they are considered toadies who bowed down to American laws.

The foreigners with hispanic surnames who are here as illegal entrants are preferred for in state tuition. That's because they too are in rebellion against the laws of the United States.

This is a case of treason where we have Mexicans, among others, being consciously preferred for cash benefits over Americans.

Maybe the sheriff in that county could get the ball rolling by dragging the administration from its fortress of solitude ..............

[Gamecock]

There are many Universities, State supported and private, that will give Veterans and their dependents in-state tuition if they use the Post 9/11 GI Bill to pay for tuition.

My daughter is using my GI Bill benefit and UNC-Asheville would not allow her to pay the in-state rate. She went elsewhere.

[reg45]

She’s the wrong color.

No! She's a citizen as opposed to being an illegal alien.

[Jumper]

The governor under Beth Purdue did not assist more than to querry the school itself and accept “their” definitation of in-state and out-of-state tuition; this while my other son attends East Carolina University under in-state tuition - the governor’s office told me it was up to each school to decide residency.... Go figure.

[Liz]

Thanks for the headsup. US citzens need to fight these injustices full force. After all, the law is "still" on our side.

NOTE WELL The SEC and IRS would be interested in tax-exempt state/muni bond revenue being used for illegal purposes----purposes that were not disclosed to voters when they promoted education bond referenda.

The ever-vigilant IRS, and the SEC----not to mention banking oversight agencies---- would also be interested:

EXHIBIT A states and munis using proceeds from tax-exempt bond issues to finance illegals would be prime targets---- particularly b/c using tax-exempt dollars for illegal purposes is a crime.

Now, bond issues approved via referendum at the ballot box is a criminal biggie---since full disclosure WRT use of the tax-exempt monies was not made to potential "investors" in tax-exempt bonds---who have now been unwittingly opened to IRS and SEC fraud.

Investors in tax-exempt muni bonds might sue state and municipal perpetrators.

EXHIBIT BThe Bank Secrecy Act----as follows: banks are required to establish, implement and maintain programs designed to detect and report suspicious activity indicative of money laundering and other financial crimes WRT to agencies receiving govt monies.

“The Bank Secrecy Act was enacted to protect the banking public from harm by identifying and detecting money laundering from criminal enterprises, terrorism, tax evasion or other unlawful activities,” explained the the special agent in charge for IRS Criminal Investigations.

NOTE WELL The Bank Secrecy Act was passed to protect the public from harm by identifying and detecting criminal enterprises, money laundering, tax evasion and other unlawful activities.....including terrorism (L/E has proof-positiVe that Mexico is the staging area for the Third World invasion of the US---(composed of global terrorists bent on destroying America).

Ccontact these agencies pronto:

enforcement@SEC.gov

IRS toll free 1-800-829-1040

FBI TIPS PAGE https://tips.fbi.gov/

===============================================

EXHIBIT CAlso culpable are govt regulated bonding agencies who are underwriting (and profiting from) state education bonds. All of the financial transactions of govt regulated bonding agencies who are underwriting education bond issues need to be examined for possible fraud, collusion and conspiracy to collude.

[Carry_Okie]

Education as we know it should be deconstructed, completely.
Here is one way to do it.