College Tuition

My name is Karla and I am a senior at Ben Davis High School. I am also currently the 2014 Senior Class President and in the top 5% of the class. I am an extremely involved individual and any chance that I get to help in my community, I do so. This June I will be graduating with my Academic Honors Diploma and I want to further my education and attend Ball State University in Muncie Indiana. I want to double major in telecommunications and international business administration with a minor in Spanish. Here is my story; I came to the United States at the age of 3, undocumented. I was raised in Indianapolis IN and I grew up learning English and Spanish. Indy is all I have ever known, and I'm so blessed to have grown up in this country. Each morning for 13 years at school, I have pledged to the only flag I have really known and called my own, the red, white and blue. Thanks to a new policy just two years ago at the age of 17 I was able to obtain my work permit; I'm what the government calls a DREAMER and currently have deferred action. I have been able to obtain a temporary license and social security along with working in the country legally. It has been such a difficult experience, not being able to do the things my friends can, and there has always been a barrier in anything I do. Here is the biggest one yet; I have been accepted into Ball State University with an out-of-state tuition. This would mean that I will have to pay $33,000 a year instead of $17,000. I have been in Indiana for 15 years and they are giving me out-of-state tuition because of HB 1402 which does not allow a student without residency an in-state tuition in any college/university here in Indiana. This law was implemented in 2011 and on top of that, I can not apply to any federal financial aid because once again I'm not a resident or citizen. The only scholarships that I can obtain are community-based scholarships that are usually worth $500-$1,000. I want to go to college; I want to go to Ball State and get the education I need in order to be successful. Please see this as an investment, invest in my education because I know that one day I'll be able to do great things with people not only in my community but nationwide. I have always been put in tough situations and I have tried not to say "why me", instead I say "try me". I know I will succeed but I need all the help I can get to accomplish this dream. I have the grades, a 4.2 GPA on a 4.0 scale. I have the leadership; Senior Class President of 4,000 individuals. And now all I need is the financial support. Anything helps, thank you so much for reading this and please help me out in anything you possibly can.