Sam was able to get an unpaid internship at a law firm. But because Texas, like most states, doesn’t allow undocumented individuals to apply for a driver’s license, she had to give it up. “I can’t ask my friends for a ride every single day. I can’t afford to take an Uber every single day, and the public transportation in Houston is not good, efficient, or reliable.”

“If you can’t work, you can’t contribute to your education. One way that a lot of students pay for their education is by having a job on campus or by doing work study,” said Russell. But undocumented students also face barriers to taking out loans and cannot apply for scholarships that require applicants to be US citizens or legal permanent residents. “We know that the biggest barrier to higher education for people in general is the cost. Now, here’s a group of folks who cannot access federal financial aid, along with states that don’t provide undocumented students with access to in-state tuition rates,” said Russell.

In 2021, undocumented students made up less than 2 percent of the population of students enrolled in post-secondary education programs, compared to around 6 percent in 2019. “The only university that was giving really good financial aid [to undocumented students] in Texas was Rice,” said Luis, who completed two years at a community college before transferring. Outside of Texas, the schools that offered substantial aid were private schools or Ivy Leagues. “My brother is also undocumented. He’s a freshman in high school right now,” said Luis. “I feel worried because what if he doesn’t get into these colleges? We have to be perfect students in order for us to get opportunities.”

The problem, as Russell puts it, is that “DACA itself was never a permanent fix.” The policy was a result of the Obama administration’s taking unilateral action because Congress did not pass the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, which would have granted similar protections to undocumented individuals brought into the US as minors. President Biden has voiced support for DACA and moved to expand federal health insurance programs to current DACA holders, but has not moved towards an update of the policy.

Now, according to Russell, we need to turn back to Congress. The American Dream and Promise Act, which would expand DACA protections for millions, was introduced again last June. The bill previously passed the House in 2019 and 2021 but has yet to pass the Senate.

But an expansion won’t apply to any undocumented individual brought in as a child in perpetuity. “Under the American Dream and Promise Act, you have continuously lived in the US since January 1, 2021, and it would be great if we could get it into law,” Russell said. “No policy is going to be perfect. This one is not perfect, but it is good.”

As a former undocumented student herself, Russell said she had no autonomy over her life. “I couldn’t drive, I couldn’t get a driver’s license, and I couldn’t get a job on campus, even though I needed one terribly,” she said. “Probably all the things that I’m doing, or the things I’ve accomplished, I would not have done without this policy.”

Sam, who came to the US at 3 years old, recently spoke to a lawyer about her situation. “They told me that my only true pathways to citizenship would be: Congress intervenes and passes something, I get married, or I return to my country of birth for at least 10 years and try to get in the so-called ‘right way,’” she said. “Hearing that—I always knew these things were true—but hearing that spoken out loud by a legal professional broke something in me.”