Parent Center in Old Town will Handle Requests for School Documentation Needed for Deferred Immigration Program
To help smooth the hundreds of requests it is receiving for documentation of school attendance, the district has designated its Ballard Parent Center in Old Town as the location for requests under the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program beginning Tuesday, Sept. 4.

The center will only serve current and former students of the San Diego Unified School District and is located at 2375 Congress St. in Old Town. There is onsite parking available and it is served by the San Diego Trolley and MTS buses.

At the center, former students can apply to receive the documentation needed to apply to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Department for the program.

This service will not be available from the San Diego Unified School District until the office opens Tuesday, Sept. 4. The hours are 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The process will not be conducted at schools or other district locations.

According to the department, residents without documentation “who came to the United States as children and meet several key guidelines may request consideration of deferred action for a period of two years, subject to renewal, and would then be eligible for work authorization.”

One of the guidelines is showing proof of school attendance. San Diego Unified staff will make every effort to provide former students with the documentation that may help them achieve this status with Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Applicants must bring an original birth certificate and photo identification and complete an application for the information. If the application is being made for another person, all the identification material must be presented, along with a letter from the individual authorizing the release of information.

Applicants should also know what years and the schools that they attended in the San Diego Unified School District. A list of those schools is online at http://www.sandi.net/schools.

There is no charge for processing and district staff will make every effort to provide the information the same day. For more information on the Ballard Center process, call (619) 209-4533.