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BULLARD HIGH VALEDICTORIAN FACING DEPORTATION
CBS 47
June 3 2008
CA
He's graduating at the top of his class, but a Fresno honor student
is facing deportation.
Arthur Mkoyan is a valedictorian at Bullard High School. He's just a
week away from graduation but he may have to head to Armenia instead
of college.
17-year-old Arthur Mkoyan is a straight 'A' student, caught in a
bureaucratic and legal mess that is threatening to force him out of
the country where he grew up.
He's preparing to graduate from Bullard High School, where he has
achieved a 4.0 grade point average.
Fellow students at Bullard High don't think he should be forced to
leave this country.
Arthur's family has been seeking political asylum here since they
fled the old Soviet Union in 1992 but the US government told them
there is not enough evidence to grant asylum; no proof that they'd
be persecuted if they returned.
Students at Bullard think the rules should be changed for a person
who works so hard to succeed.
Arthur is being allowed to go through graduation ceremonies and
receive his diploma, and ten days later he is scheduled to be deported.
His principal said the school is proud of what he's done and they're
honored to have him as a graduate.
Congressman George Radanovich is now getting involved in the case to
see if there is a way to help keep Arthur and his family in America.
CBS 47
June 3 2008
CA
He's graduating at the top of his class, but a Fresno honor student
is facing deportation.
Arthur Mkoyan is a valedictorian at Bullard High School. He's just a
week away from graduation but he may have to head to Armenia instead
of college.
17-year-old Arthur Mkoyan is a straight 'A' student, caught in a
bureaucratic and legal mess that is threatening to force him out of
the country where he grew up.
He's preparing to graduate from Bullard High School, where he has
achieved a 4.0 grade point average.
Fellow students at Bullard High don't think he should be forced to
leave this country.
Arthur's family has been seeking political asylum here since they
fled the old Soviet Union in 1992 but the US government told them
there is not enough evidence to grant asylum; no proof that they'd
be persecuted if they returned.
Students at Bullard think the rules should be changed for a person
who works so hard to succeed.
Arthur is being allowed to go through graduation ceremonies and
receive his diploma, and ten days later he is scheduled to be deported.
His principal said the school is proud of what he's done and they're
honored to have him as a graduate.
Congressman George Radanovich is now getting involved in the case to
see if there is a way to help keep Arthur and his family in America.