ICE Threatens To Deport International Students If They Don't Attend In-Person Classes

While schools consider their options for reopening in the fall, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced changes to their policy regarding international students.

Under the new ruling, international students whose colleges opt for online-only classes will not be allowed to stay in the US, and they will not be issued student visas for the fall semester.

An estimated 90% of current international students chose to stay in the US following the 2020 spring semester, and many are now being forced to choose between leaving the country and transferring to schools with in-person learning.

“It was my dream to come to the US to study this. It's really high-quality education than the one that I could find at any university in India,” Northeastern University student Smit Kiri told NPR. “I just feel that it's really unfair that we have to risk our lives and go to the university even if we are at a higher risk of contracting the virus or dying from it.”

According to The Chronicle of Higher Education, about 8% of schools are planning for a completely online semester, and for about a quarter of schools, the fall semester will be a hybrid of in-person and remote learning For example, Harvard University will be welcoming only first-year students in the fall semester, then sending them home in the spring to prioritize bringing seniors back to campus for their final semesters.

Some see the ICE policy as a way to pressure colleges to reopen their campuses for in-person instruction, and it has the potential to seriously impact the number of enrolled international students. It’s also a major issue for college budgets, as a lot of institutions depend heavily on the full tuition rates paid by most international students. According to NAFSA: Association of International Educators, international students contributed $41 million to the US economy in the 2018-2019 academic year.

“I was all set to start sophomore year,” UCLA student Loay Alem told The New York Times. “I realized that I might be deported back to my home country. It was so absurd, so insane.”

Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have filed a lawsuit against ICE, arguing the legality of the policy. Other top schools like Columbia, Brown, Stanford, and NYU have spoken out against the policy, saying they plan to protect international students however they can.

Students and campus organizations are also showing their support for their peers impacted by the policy, including a movement at UCLA to swap limited spots in in-person classes with international students. One petition demanding the protection of international students already has over 260,000 signatures.

Copy/paste this email and send it to your school administrators to advocate for international students.

Subject Line: Protect International Students

Dear [ADMINISTRATOR’S NAME],

The safety of the student body is at risk with the announcement that international students participating in online-only curriculums will be denied student visas and deported.

Some schools have already taken action: NYU and others announced they will work with international students to ensure they meet the qualifications to stay in the US.

In this time of uncertainty due to a global pandemic, it is imperative that you prioritize and take action to protect the wellbeing and safety of your international students.

Sincerely,

[YOUR NAME]