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SU joins Harvard, MIT in lawsuit against ICE international student policy

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Under ICE’s guidance, issued Monday, international students must be enrolled in college courses that are held in-person to return to or remain in the U.S.

Syracuse University will join Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in a lawsuit challenging Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s new visa guidance, Chancellor Kent Syverud announced Thursday.

Under ICE’s guidance, issued Monday, international students studying in the United States must be enrolled in college courses that are held in-person to return to or remain in the country. International students attending universities with a hybrid model of both online and in-person courses can stay in the U.S. if their schools submit a form stating that the courses are not held entirely online.

The lawsuit, which Harvard and MIT filed Wednesday against President Donald Trump’s administration, would block ICE’s guidance and allow international students to stay in the U.S. even if all of their courses are held online. The university will sign an amicus brief, which is a document filed in support of a lawsuit that provides courts with additional information or arguments relevant to a specific case.

“We are working closely with our international students to ensure that they are able to register for in-person courses under our hybrid instructional model and therefore be in compliance with this new directive,” Syverud said.

SU has announced that it will host the majority of its classes for the fall semester either in-person or using a hybrid model. While several universities, including New York University, have also said that they will offer a free in-person course to protect international students from the threat of deportation under ICE’s guidance, SU has not mentioned creating a similar course.



Four members of SU’s Student Association, including President Justine Hastings and Vice President Ryan Golden, have called on the university to sue the Trump Administration and to offer a free in-person course to international students.

“To our international students, I say this: You have our unequivocal support,” Syverud said. “You are an integral part of our global Orange community. Your excellence and contributions to our University enrich us all.”





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