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FRESNO: Bullard High Valedictorian To Be Deported

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  • FRESNO: Bullard High Valedictorian To Be Deported

    BULLARD HIGH VALEDICTORIAN TO BE DEPORTED
    By Vanessa Colon

    Fresno Bee
    http://www.fresnobee.com/263/story/637728.html
    Ju ne 2 2008
    CA

    Arthur Mkoyan's 4.0 grade-point average has made him a valedictorian
    at Bullard High School in Fresno and qualified him to enter one of
    the state's top universities.

    But while his classmates look forward to dorm food and college courses
    this fall, Arthur Mkoyan may not make it.

    He is being deported.

    Arthur, 17, and his mother have been ordered out of the country. By
    late June, they may be headed to Armenia.

    Arthur hasn't seen Armenia since he was 2, and he doesn't want to
    return. The thin, rather shy teenager doesn't speak Armenian and
    barely understands the language when it's spoken to him.

    "Hopefully, I can somehow stay here and continue my studies here,"
    he said. "It would be hard if I go back."

    The family fled from the old Soviet Union and has been seeking asylum
    since 1992. The appeals ran out this year.

    He and his mother, who did not want to be identified for fear of
    losing her job and income she needs, were given an extension to June
    20 so Arthur could join his class at the ceremony, said Virginia Kice,
    a spokeswoman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

    "Our goal is to enforce these court orders for deportations," Kice
    said. But "if they come to us and they fully intend to respect the
    court order, we will work with them."

    Mark Silverman, director of immigration policy at the Immigrant Legal
    Resource Center in San Francisco, said Arthur Mkoyan's case illustrates
    why Congress should have passed the Dream Act. The act would have
    allowed students who excelled in school and stayed out of trouble to
    become permanent residents and attend college or enlist in the military

    "There's something very wrong with the immigration laws when our
    government is deporting our best students," Silverman said.

    Rick Oltman, national media director of the Santa Barbara-based
    Californians for Population Stabilization, sees it differently.

    The Dream Act "would take away seats from American students, legal
    immigrants and foreign students legally here on visas," said Oltman,
    whose group favors limiting immigration. "There always seem to be
    some excuse why the law should not be enforced. Everybody should obey
    the law."

    Arthur's father, Ruben Mkoian, ran a general store and worked as
    a police officer in the then-Soviet Republic of Armenia, where he
    was threatened by independence supporters as the Soviet Union was
    breaking up, Arthur's mother said. His store was broken into and the
    family home was burned down, she said.

    Seeking a safer life, Mkoian left for Fresno in December 1991 and soon
    applied for political asylum. Mkoian, who spells his name differently
    from his son, chose Fresno because he had a close friend here.

    Arthur and his mother spent three years in Russia before joining
    Mkoian in Fresno in 1995.

    Mkoian worked for a carpet business and later as a truck driver. But
    winning asylum turned out to be difficult. Asylum seekers must prove
    they would suffer severe persecution if they return to their country.

    Mkoian's asylum application, which included his family, ultimately
    was rejected. He appealed the decision to the 9th Circuit Court of
    Appeals in San Francisco, which ruled against him in January.

    Immigration officers picked up Mkoian, now 46, in April at his
    Fresno home, according to his family. He is now in a detention center
    in Arizona.

    The officers left behind Arthur, his 12-year-old brother, who is a
    U.S.-born citizen, and their mother. Arthur and his mother now face
    deportation; the family plans to take the younger brother as well if
    forced to leave the country.

    Arthur said he thinks it's unfair that he has to return to a country
    he hasn't seen since he was 2.

    He already has been accepted to the University of California at Davis,
    where he planned to major in chemistry. He would like to become a
    dentist or a pharmacist.

    Bullard High School Principal Glenn Starkweather said he wasn't aware
    of Arthur's situation but said he had a good academic record. Arthur
    has just over a 4.0 grade-point average, making him a valedictorian.

    "He's obviously a very strong student. I'm proud of him," Starkweather
    said.

    With deportation on the horizon, Silverman said, Arthur has limited
    options.

    Once he is back in Armenia, Arthur could return to the United States
    on a student visa. Or he could ask a member of Congress to introduce
    a private bill on his behalf to grant him legal residency, Silverman
    said.

    Arthur contacted Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein for help weeks
    ago. Feinstein has introduced private bills in the past in an effort
    to grant legal status to individuals.

    Feinstein's office is looking into Arthur's case, said Claire Bowyer,
    Feinstein's deputy press secretary.

    Private bills are rarely introduced and often don't pass, according
    to Feinstein's office. Once a bill is introduced, deportation is
    halted. If it passes, the applicant receives a green card. In some
    cases, the bill allows a parent to obtain legal residency along with
    the child.

    "Arthur Mkoyan represents another reason why Congress needs to pass
    the Dream Act," Feinstein said in a prepared statement. "It is in
    our nation's interest to provide talented students the incentive to
    take this path toward being responsible and law-abiding members of
    our society."

    Arthur hasn't told any of his classmates that he must leave the
    country. He hopes that somehow he will be able to stay. But the
    deportation order has added stress to his final weeks of high school.

    "I can't really concentrate on my studies. It's hard to focus, [but]
    I'm still keeping my grade-point average high," Arthur said.

    From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
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