Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund grants UCLA Labor Center $200,000

The largest-ever grant received by UCLA from the Haas, Jr. Fund will support undocumented students via the Opportunity For All campaign

The UCLA Labor Center has received a one-year grant of $200,000 from the Evelyn & Walter Haas, Jr. Fund to support the Opportunity For All campaign, a student-led effort to secure equitable employment opportunities for undocumented students at public university campuses across California.

Supported by the UCLA Labor Center’s Dream Resource Center, UCLA Law’s Center for Immigration Law and Policy (CILP) and the Undocumented Student‐led Network (USN), student leaders began the campaign in October 2022 after immigration law experts at CILP identified a loophole in the 1986 Immigration Reform and Control Act that presently restricts state entities from hiring undocumented workers.

Since then, students have expanded the Opportunity For All campaign to include not just University of California campuses, but the California State University and California Community Colleges systems as well.

This grant is the largest-ever gift received by UCLA from the Haas, Jr. Fund, and is especially noteworthy for its support of undocumented students. The funds will directly support undocumented students who are leading the effort through a worker co-op payment system.

“The Haas, Jr. Fund has been a champion of immigrant rights and supported me and countless undocumented immigrant youth across California. Their scholarship and unwavering commitment made it possible for me to finish my studies at UC Berkeley and has paved the way for so many others to succeed. Now, with this generous $200,000 grant to the UCLA Labor Center, we can continue advancing the rights of immigrant youth to work and thrive,” said Ju Hong, Dream Resource Center director. “This historic gift from the Haas, Jr. Fund empowers us to ensure that every undocumented student, regardless of legal barriers, has the opportunity to continue, grow and dream without limits.”

Founded in 1953 by Walter A. Haas, Jr. and Evelyn Danzig Haas, the Haas, Jr. Fund works to advance equality and justice so every person can thrive and live life with dignity and hope. Inspired by a vision of a society in which every person has opportunities to thrive and to live life with dignity and hope, the fund invests in six key areas of focus: democracy, college success, immigrant rights, leadership, San Francisco’s Crissy Field and the Chronicle Season of Sharing fund.

“Thousands of undocumented students and our families simply want the freedom to study, work and fully contribute to our universities,” said Jenny Kim ’26, a current impacted student enrolled in UCLA’s master of public policy program and a DRC volunteer. “Regardless of the hurdles that undocumented students continue to face, the steadfast support of allies like the Haas, Jr. Fund allows us to keep fighting for what is right—justice, inclusivity and the opportunity to earn a fair livelihood.”

If you are an educator interested in learning more about Opportunity For All, please contact Dream Resource Center Director Ju Hong at jyhong89@ucla.edu. For more information on ways to support the UCLA Labor Center, please contact Development Director Melissa Mooney at mrmooney@irle.ucla.edu.