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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
CONGRATULATING DREAMER AND ALLIES RUN (DAR)
WHEREAS, Back of the Yards residents and local leaders, guided by the vision of Hugo Dominguez and the support of Holy Cross/IHM Parish, founded Dreamers and Allies Run (DAR) in 2012; and
WHEREAS, DAR is an all-volunteer scholarship fundraising effort whose purpose is to raise funds to assist undocumented college students from the Back of the Yards and surrounding communities as they pursue higher education; and
WHEREAS, when DAR was created, undocumented students in the County of Cook were not eligible for local, state, or federal financial aid for college; and
WHEREAS, undocumented students' inability to pay for college tuition and expenses was and continues to be a near unsurmountable barrier to accessing post-secondary education opportunities; and
WHEREAS, DAR was created to address the impact of unjust, unreasonable, and unconscionable financial aid laws, regulations, and policies for undocumented students - students who many times do not know any other country but the United States and were raised in our American educational system; and
WHEREAS, the Back of the Yards has a rich tradition of supporting, encouraging, and accompanying youth in their education, particularly through college scholarships; and
WHEREAS, guided by that rich tradition, DAR set up a system by which it raises funds for its scholarship through the Chicago Marathon and other organized runs; and
WHEREAS, DAR invites community members to join Team DAR, fundraise, and represent Team DAR at runs; and
WHEREAS, DAR awards 100% of the proceeds of the donations to the DAR scholarship recipients; and
WHEREAS, DAR has raised $100,000 in college scholarships since 2012; and
WHEREAS, while there have been efforts to assist undocumented students on the state and city levels, DAR is committed to continuing its scholarship fundraising efforts until undocumented students are offered the same opportunities to access college...
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