UGA Names Decatur High Grad an 'Amazing Student'

The University of Georgia has profiled a Decatur High grad in its "Amazing Students" feature on the school website.

Juan Carlos Cardoza-Oquendo is on course to graduate in 2012 and says he aims to become an activist, working for the rights of workers and immigrants.

He's already started on that path.

For instance, last March he and some other students demonstrated against HOPE scholarship cuts and were escorted from a state Senate session.

“We were disruptive, but on purpose and with a plan,” Cardoza-Oquendo was quoted as saying in a story on www.redandblack.com.

In November, he and others urged the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia to oppose a rule that essentially prevents illegal aliens from enrolling in Georgia's most competitive colleges and universities.

“This policy effectively tells an entire group of perfectly qualified students that they’re not good enough solely because of their immigration status,” he was quoted as saying in the Associated Press story.

In the Amazing Student profile, he says: "There’s no reason UGA should be closed to anyone; that’s what I’ve sought to fight for in these past few years. I only hope that my efforts will contribute to making the university an even better place where all are respected and can benefit from the mind-expanding enrichment that it has provided me."