NYU Giving Away University Funds to Illegal Immigrants
by Guest Post • January 10, 2015
By John Smyth
New York University (NYU) has initiated a program to offer “institutional aid to undocumented immigrants”. These are their words, not mine. It would be much more accurate, but much less politically correct, if they said that “university funds will be used to pay for students who are criminals because they are in this country illegally”.
As a graduate of NYU’s School of Dentistry (1966), I object to this misguided program. I urge all NYU students, their parents and alumni, to read my response, and then contact the university. After all, NYU is spending your money this way.
Open letter to:
Mr. Martin Lipton
Chairman, Board of Trustees
New York University
Cc:
Beverly Hyman,
President, NYU Alumni Association
Rita Startup
Assistant Dean, alumni affairs
NYU Dental School
Dear Mr. Lipton,
At the turn of the 20th century, my grandparents legally emigrated to America. World War I was ravaging Europe and Russia was being decimated by the plague of anti-semitic pogroms.
It didn’t stop these tough, fearless Russian Jews, even though they couldn’t read or write English and were both poor and uneducated.
Once here, their children’s name was changed from Moskowitz to Morris, they proudly dressed and acted like “real Americans” (that was their description, not mine), and they made sure that their Russian accents all but disappeared by insisting that we only speak English.
However, it didn’t take them long to realize that success in their new country depended on getting a great education. Even though they were citizens now, it was out of the question for this family to ask anyone for a handout. They held second jobs, worked many hours and pooled their resources so everyone in the family could go to school.
This independent trait, this work ethic, this self-reliance and this appreciation of “a job well done”, has been the hallmark of our family ever since.
Even my five young grandchildren, the fourth generation of Russian-American immigrants, are all following their great-great-grandfathers example. What a proud moment it must have been, when my father, was the first in the entire family to attend college (CCNY). I was the first one to attend graduate school (NYU).
What I want to discuss with you now, is his new program of “institutional aid”, being offered to foreign students who are in the U.S. illegally. I still can’t believe that your Board went along with such an outrageous plan of rewarding criminal behavior. He has placed no cap on how much he will give each “undocumented student”, or how many applicants he will accept.
According to “The Chronicle of Higher Education”, John E. Sexton, NYU’s President, has been receiving an annual salary of $1.5 million dollars. When he steps down next year, he will receive a $2.5 million dollar bonus, and a $800,000 yearly pension.
To put this into proper prospective, while Pres.Sexton is being paid his astronomical salary and illegal immigrants will be receiving a free education, the total cost (tuition, instruments, room and board etc) of a first year dental student at NYU, is now an obscene $114,445, $67,404 is for tuition alone! To repeat: That was for the freshman year only! Don’t you see the insanity of this situation?
Why not use these funds to reduce the tuition of our current students or provide scholarships for deserving American citizens? Or, If you feel that this program is so important to you why not raise the money through a separate fundraising drive instead of satisfying some ego-driven political philosophy of a misguided administration.
Lost in your plan is the total disregard for the rule of law. Lost in your plan is the minimizing of what current students and their families have given up to be able to afford attending such a marvelous university as NYU.
Historically, immigrant families like myself, have been in the forefront of philanthropic giving. But in this case, this is totally a misguided venture.
Please reconsider your outrageous decision.
Sincerely,
Editor’s Note: More information on the institutional aid program. It is one more grand invitation to come here illegally and live off citizens and legal residents. The university president doesn’t think it matters if they are here illegally. What does he care, it’s not his money.
