Warrior for Dreamers loses job in Arizona

She fought for the right to their education, and now she is out of a job.
In November of 2006, the always caring voters of Arizona passed a resolution banning undocumented students from qualifying for in-state tuition rates. This law not only wasted away years of investment in a sizable portion of the student population, it also hindered the advancement of some who looked like promising future high-achievers.
Among those affected were 38 of Principal Yvonne Watterson's advanced placement high school students, who could no longer afford to take college-level courses at their local community college. Unfazed, Watterson took the issue into her own hands and sought help in the community. She wanted to stand up against the injustice her students were facing.
Despite ardent backlash of the type that can be expected in the state that brought us Joe Arpaio, Watterson fought on and eventually raised the $83,000 necessary to keep the students enrolled. At the time, she told the New York Times:
She told the New York Times:

“I thought, ‘Here we go again, segregating kids, putting kids on a list,’ ” Ms. Watterson, 44, said recently in her office at GateWay. “It’s that hatred. It’s that separation. Not having to look someone in the eye. It’s a horrible, cowardly — I don’t know what to call it. I wouldn’t have believed I was in America.”

And now, it's hard to imagine that, despite raising academic achievement and inspiring her students to pursue their dreams, she has been fired without being offered a specific reasoning.

"Since I wasn't given a reason and because no one from the college administration ever helped me proactively with the plight of undocumented minors, it did cross my mind that it did have some bearing," she said. "But I'm still at a loss."

The story is strange at best, and certainly unfortunate for a principal that understood her role as a promoter of education, and not an immigration law enforcer. I'll be keeping up with this story and bringing updates as they come along.