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After state-wide controversy over an undocumented Kennesaw State student paying in-state tuition, the Georgia Board of Regents has agreed to find a way to check the citizenship status of all students.

Existing Georgia law allows undocumented students to attend the state’s colleges and universities but requires they be charged out of state tuition.  Until now, schools have taken students word that they are legal residents of the United States. 

In the wake of the controversy, the board approved two new measures that will change their procedures for potentially undocumented students.  First, university presidents are now expressly barred from granting in-state tuition waivers to undocumented students.  Second, universities will now have to review and verify the status of all newly admitted students. 

Though some students are likely to be upset with the decision, the Board was likely acting to stave off more attacks on its policies.  The Cobb County Sherriff already asked the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to investigate whether the regents are violating the law by admitting undocumented students at the outset.

More from the Atlanta Journal Constitution