BULLARD HIGH VALEDICTORIAN TO BE DEPORTED
By Vanessa Colon

Fresno Bee

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