Alondra Orozco laid out her post-high school plans early. The Ritenour High School graduate was introduced to nursing through a certified nursing assistant class she took at North Technical High School her junior year.

Despite having a clear career plan at a young age, nothing prepared her for the roadblocks that lay ahead. Orozco is a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals or DACA recipient. She and her family moved from Chihuahua, Mexico to the region of St. Louis, when she was only five years old. She grew up in St. Louis along with her siblings and chose to successfully enroll in the nursing program at St. Charles Community College because it was close to her family’s home in O’Fallon. After passing her exams and graduating, Orozco was blindsided by devastating news – she can’t get her license in Missouri because of her citizenship status.

This was a blow to Orozco and her entire family, especially her parents.

“I’m the first person in our family to go to college and that’s all they really wanted. To see me go after what I want,” Orozco said St. Louis in the air. “And the deeper I got into nursing school, the deeper I would find out that I really loved it.”

She said that during her two years at St. Charles Community College, none of her professors or counselors indicated that the Missouri Board of Nursing would not allow her to take the National Board Licensing Exam in her home state. According to the chief of staff of St. Charles Community College, no one was available to comment on how non-US students are being advised.

Undaunted by Missouri, Orozco decided to move to another state that would allow him to take the exam. She chose Kansas, one of the 42 compact nursing states along with Missouri. “My initial thought was, ‘I’m going to move, test there and get my multi-state license.’ Then I could also practice in Missouri,” Orozco said. “Then shortly after I got my license in Kansas, I tried to apply for an endorsement in Missouri. They said no again because they didn’t have a green card or US citizenship.”

The Missouri Board of Nursing said they are required by federal law that prohibits non-US citizens from obtaining certain professional licensesincluding registered nursing licenses. Kelly Gillespie, professor of health law at the University of St. Louis, said that while such a law exists, there is room for Missouri to make a change if they want, like Kansas, Illinois, Arkansas and other states across the country.

“(The Missouri Board of Nursing) refers to some legislation from the late 1990s that says people who are not authorized to work or are not here legally are not eligible for certain public benefits, and those public benefits are defined for to include the professional license. Gillespie said. “However, part of the story and the reason many states allow people in these situations, such as DACA recipients, to be authorized is that there is a subsection of that law that says a state can waive that ban. They can take affirmative action to opt out. That’s what the states where it’s allowed have done, and they’ve done it in a few different ways.”

Orozco has taken extra steps to get licensed for herself, even going so far as to get her license in Illinois, where she plans to work as a nurse. And she wants to shares her story as a cautionary tale and pushes Missouri to reconsider banning DACA recipients and other non-US citizens from professional license. She started a Change.org petition that has over 16,000 signatures in support of her cause, especially while Missouri is facing a severe healthcare shortage.

Orozco’s roadblocks to becoming a nurse in Missouri, along with the growing number of supporters of her petition, strengthened her resolve.

“It shows that I’m not the only one who wants to make the change. A lot of people came up and said, “This is ridiculous. Absolutely, I will sign in a heartbeat because this is not right,’” she said. “My biggest wish is that this never happens to anyone.”

To learn more about how US states allow DACA recipients like Alondra Orozco to become nurses, how she plans to continue her campaign, and the journey she took to get her license in Illinois, listen St. Louis in the air on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or click the play button below.

“St. Louis in the air” brings you stories from St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is produced by Miya Norfleet, Emily Woodbury, Danny Wicentowski, Elaine Cha and Alex Heuer. Jada Jones is our production assistant. The audio engineer is Aaron Doerr.

Copyright 2024 St. Louis Public Radio