Journalism Department stands with international students

Thursday, July 16, 2020

UPDATE: The Journalism Department was pleased to see the federal government announce on July 14 that it would rescind its July 6 policy requiring international students who are not taking in-person classes in Fall 2020 to leave the United States. The government has instead reverted to the guidance issued in March, which allows international students to participate in online or in-person instruction without affecting their visa status.

Students who want more details about the policy can read this document issued by the Student and Exchange Visitor Program of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

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The faculty of the Journalism Department were appalled when U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced this week that international students in the U.S. whose schools switch to online classes for the fall semester will have to leave the country or face deportation.

We want you to know that the Journalism Department vehemently opposes this policy and that we deeply value our international students and the global perspective they bring to our university and our department.

The California State University and California Community Colleges have joined California Attorney General Xavier Becerra in filing a lawsuit challenging the recent ICE policy guidance related to international students.The full press release can be found here: https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-becerra-state-public-education-leaders-sue-trump-administration

Here is the comment from CSU Chancellor Timothy White:

“The California State University stands in the strongest opposition to the policy guidance issued Monday by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. It is a callous and inflexible policy that unfairly disrupts our more than 10,300 international students’ progress to a degree, unnecessarily placing them in an extremely difficult position. And it deprives all of our students — and the communities, state, and nation we serve — of the remarkable contributions of these international students. The CSU applauds the California Attorney General’s decision to take strong action to oppose ICE’s policy guidance, and we will fully support this effort."

The Journalism Department is a global institution that values our international students. They belong here, and they are vital members of our community. We stand with them in solidarity.