Let’s protect international students from unjust threat

On July 6, the U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agency issued a chilling new rule that threatens many international students with deportation — a threat that extends directly to the colleges and universities that host them.

The change is unjust and unrealistic, and not even the most generous interpretations can wash it of the stench of xenophobia. Connecticut’s congressional delegation and its attorney general must intervene to prevent its implementation.

For some time, nonimmigrant students on visas to pursue academic or vocational coursework were restricted from taking only online courses. But in March, the agency suspended its online course rules to accommodate changes necessitated by the coronavirus pandemic as campuses were cleared to stem the spread of the virus. Of course those international students should be allowed to continue their coursework online. And for a while, they were.

But the new rule upends that reasonable accommodation. It states that those students can be deported if all of their courses are online in the fall — and with many universities, including Harvard, going fully online to protect the health of their students, staff and faculty during a deadly pandemic, the threat extends to thousands.

It also hits universities hard, as the loss of tuition revenue from international students would be a devastating blow in an already fraught financial situation. Some have read it as an attempt by the federal government to force universities to open fully in the fall.

In Connecticut, the rule threatens international students at colleges including Yale, Wesleyan, Trinity, Quinnipiac, the University of Connecticut and any college where a hybrid or online-only plan for fall instruction is being contemplated.

The decision whether to open classrooms to students and faculty absolutely must be handled at the university level. The changes required to accommodate in-person instruction are unique to every school, to every classroom, to every dorm and dining hall. Some facilities may be more prepared to make those changes based simply on existing infrastructure. Others might face insurmountable challenges. University administrators have been working feverishly to craft plans that best preserve education and the health and safety of their faculty, staff and students. It makes no sense for the federal government to swoop in and issue such blanket restrictions on online learning.

There is no good reason — none — to rescind reasonable accommodations for online learning at a time when the coronavirus pandemic is still raging out of control across much of the nation. While we in the Northeast have managed to tamp down its spread in recent weeks, the influx of students from across the country is going to make things more of a challenge on campus come September. The ability of students to take online-only course loads must be preserved.

International students are a vital and rich presence at universities across the country. They diversify classrooms and campuses, and their financial impact is huge: According to one economic analysis, international students contributed $41 billion and supported 458,290 jobs during the 2018-2019 academic year at U.S. colleges and universities. At Wesleyan, for example, international students account for about 15% of the student body, according to President Michael Roth. At the University of Connecticut, international students account for more than 13% of the student body.

We want and need international students in our colleges and universities. They contribute so much, in brains, talent, culture and finances.

“These students often become immigrants who allow our nation’s economy to grow and thrive,” Connecticut Attorney General William Tong said in a press release. “That’s particularly the case in Connecticut, where thousands of immigrants have come to study at our world-class universities and stayed to work in advanced manufacturing and other high skill jobs.” That’s the right sentiment.

On Wednesday, Mr. Tong said he is coordinating with other state attorneys general to file suit.

That quick action is commendable. It shows how much the international students and our universities matter — and how important it is to stand up to injustice.