As a teacher of English as a Second/Foreign Language, I have taught college students and immigrant families age 6 to 72, from dozens of countries.

I've seen these newest Americans work hard to achieve the American dream. I celebrate the diversity of our population and encourage all legal immigrants to go through the citizenship process so they can participate fully in our democratic republic.

At the same time, we want to know who is coming into our country, so I support enforcing the laws already on the books and programs such as E-verify that help employers determine a job applicant's legal status.  Washington should not offer incentives to illegal immigrants, such as a driver's license. Congress should increase the number of people who are processing the applications, as there is a backlog so long that it discourages following the rules.

If you are a recent immigrant or a long-time green card holder, I encourage you to become a citizen by July so you can register to vote, and join us in August for the primary election.