Las Vegas student to be highlighted at State of the Union speech

WASHINGTON — Alan Aleman, a Las Vegas student and one of the early beneficiaries of immigration reform, will have a prime seat during President Barack Obama’s State of the Union speech tonight.

Aleman, 20, will be among the White House guests seated with Michelle Obama in the first lady’s box as the president addresses Congress, officials said.

Aleman is a student at the College of Southern Nevada and an activist for the DREAM Act, which would allow young people brought to the United States illegally as children to remain and pursue citizenship.

DREAM is an acronym for Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors.

Michelle Obama’s other guests have not been identified yet, but a White House official said they would include “Americans from middle-class families whose day-to-day lives would benefit from the policy proposals the president will unveil, victims of gun violence, military families, people championing the cause of immigration reform.”

Obama became aware of Aleman during his visit to Las Vegas last month, where the president launched his latest campaign for comprehensive immigration reform.

Aleman’s story was incorporated into Obama’s speech. In an address to 2,000 people at Del Sol High School, Obama said Aleman was a face of America’s immigrant class that built the country and “whose actions helped make us who we are.”

Aleman was born in Mexico City and grew up in the United States after his parents brought him here.

He was among the first students in Nevada to sign up and obtain a two-year work permit through the “deferred action” program for young undocumented immigrants the Obama administration put in place last year.

Aleman is studying biological science at the College of Southern Nevada and sits on the Latin Chamber of Commerce board of directors. He has said he wants to become a doctor and hopes to join the Air Force.

Contact Stephens Washington Bureau Chief Steve Tetreault at stetreault@stephensmedia.com or 202-783-1760. Follow him on Twitter @STetreaultDC.