International student policy sparks lawsuit
State sues Trump administration over online class rules
“I’ve met many wonderful people and friends who I hope I can continue to stay with for life.”
Connecticut, along with 16 other states and the District of Columbia, filed a lawsuit Monday over a Trump administration policy that would prevent international college students from remaining in the U.S. if their classes are held exclusively online.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in
Massachusetts against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, challenges what the attorneys general call the federal government’s “cruel, abrupt, and unlawful action to expel international students amidst the pandemic that has wrought death and disruption across the United States.” It seeks an injunction to stop the rule from going into effect nationwide.
“We’re talking about thousands of students across Connecticut … who are getting ready for school right now,” state Attorney General William Tong said at a Monday news conference. “Colleges and universities are preparing their plans to reopen right now, and
it’s hard enough in the middle of a public health emergency … to make those plans. To launch this attack in the middle of those inmotion preparations for the school year is utterly cruel and pointless.”
ICE announced the policy change in early July, reversing previous guidance issued in March, which the attorneys general said “recognized the COVID-19 public health emergency, provided flexibility for schools, and allowed international students with F-1 and M-1 [student] visas to take classes online for the duration of the emergency.”
“The Trump Administration abruptly reversed its previous guidance with zero explanation or rationale, with complete disregard for the dire public safety consequences in the midst of a raging pandemic,” Tong added, in a news release. “Universities must be free to make decisions about the health and safety of their students, faculty and staff without fear of arbitrary and punitive immigration consequences.”
Wesleyan senior Bryan Chong, 20, said he was shocked by ICE’s announcement and worried for his peers who rely on American schools for stable income, housing and food. Chong, who double majors in government studies and psychology, moved to Connecticut six years ago from Hong Kong to study at the Kent School. Since then, he said he’s grown to love the state. He recalled the residents who introduced him to so many new experiences growing up, like visiting a diner for the first time or having a backyard bonfire.
“I’ve met many wonderful people and friends who I hope I can continue to stay with for life,” he said. “It’s just so tragic, I think, that the culmination of all these experiences could be something like this.”
Chong said his family in Hong Kong is worried for his safety and he has not seen them in six months.
“If I go home now, there really is a chance that I might not make it back here to continue my education and finish up my degree,” he said.
Because of his studies, Chong noted he was at a unique advantage in having an overall understanding the American political system. With the help of other students, Chong created templates for calling and emailing Congress. Connecticut’s congressional delegation has urged the federal government to rescind the ICE policy.
The lawsuit is being led by Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, and joined by the attorneys general of Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Maryland,
Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Wisconsin. It includes declarations from more 40 institutions affected by the new rule, including UConn, Yale University and the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities system.
“This is just wrong, this is not fair and it’s another matter of bias by the Trump administration,” CSCU President Mark Ojakian said.
Educational institutions are expected to tell the federal government by July 15 whether they intend to offer only remote courses in the fall semester. They must also certify by Aug. 4 for each international student that the student’s upcoming coursework in the fall will be in-person or a “hybrid” of in-person and online learning in order to maintain their visa status.
Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology already filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Boston seeking a temporary restraining order to block the policy for two weeks. Other schools, including Columbia, New York University, and Brown recently shared plans for hybrid courses that would allow international students to remain in the U.S.
Tong said the policy would cut Connecticut’s higher education system “off at the knees.”
“It’s no secret American universities run on the contributions of foreign students,” he said recently. “Their contributions are important, not just academically … but also financially.”
Gov. Ned Lamont and Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz also shared concerns about the financial impacts of the policy on Connecticut’s higher education system, as well as the state’s economy.
“The president’s stated purpose for this policy is to protect American jobs. In reality, this ill advised and xenophobic policy will actually kill Connecticut jobs,” Bysiewicz, said, noting the millions of dollars spent by international students annually support thousands of jobs across the state.
“It’s just insane, what we’re doing now,” said Lamont, likening recent immigration policy changes to a wall that will halt entrepreneurship in the U.S.
Chong noted that while Americans may view some international students as sources of funding, schools must also keep in mind those who are immunocompromised, who may not have reliable health insurance and who may not have homes to return to if forced to leave the U.S.
“It’s really unimaginable how much this must be bearing on them right now,” he said.