Administration grapples
with legal demands, safety
concerns, uncertain future
Bryan Anderson
Enterprise Manager
@BryanRAnderson
Eton University presents itself as an inclu
sive campus protective of all of its students.
After President Trump signed an execu
tive order suspending all refugee admission
for 120 days and banning travel from seven
Muslim-majority countries for 90 days, Elon
President Leo Lambert was quick to issue a
statement. He criticized the order, saying it
“has spurred deep concerns for many mem
bers of the Elon community.”
dhough talk about the executive order has
focused on the implications it would have for
those on student visas, it also poses significant
challenges for university administrations.
Elon must remain in compliance with fed
eral laws requiring it to disclose immigration
statuses while simultaneously working to pro
vide students with a sense of safety and secu
rity. It must also prepare for the uncertainties
that lie ahead. This clashing of demands has
put Elon in a vulnerable position.
Elon will comply with federal law
As Elon seeks to reassure its students that it
will keep them safe, it also recognizes the legal
responsibilities it must follow. These demands
do not conflict with one another, according to
Woody Pelton, dean of global education.
“We need to report that the students that
we invite to be a student are in fact a student,
and they all are.... Not only are we required to
do it by law, but we want to do it,” Pelton said.
Under the Student and Exchange Visitor
Program (SEVP), universities must have a
Designated School Official (DSO) disclose en
rollment and immigration statuses of non-im
migrant international F and M students. F
students enroll in more traditional academic
programs, while M students enroll in voca
tional programs.
nSOs report this information, along with
other student demographic and performance
variables, into the Student and Exchange Visi
tor Information System (SEVIS).
’Ihe Department of Homeland Security,
specifically the US. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE), uses this information to
track foreign .students in the United .States.
Elon’s DSO, Francois Masuka, declined to
be interviewed. Lambert, who was unavailable
to be interviewed, wrote in his initial state
ment that the university does not release “any
confidential data about its students, faculty,
and staff, including immigration status, unless
required by law.”
Pelton confirmed the university will con
tinue to adhere to federal laws and update
SEVIS. But Elon’s peer institutions have been
more openly antagonistic toward Trump’s im
migration ban.
Nondisclosure not an option
In a statement, Duke University President
Richard Brodhead wrote that Duke would not
share confidential student records with law
enforcement agencies unless the university
were subpoenaed.
The university later clarified that it would
still comply with SEVIS.
If universities violate federal law by not
reporting immigration statuses, which Duke
had initially suggested as a possibility, they
run the risk of losing their SEVP certification.
A loss of certification could lead to ineligibili
ty to enroll foreign students.
“Schools that fail to comply with these re
quirements may be deemed ineligible to enroll
foreign students or their
jj existing certification to
. , enroll non-immigrant F
required or M visa students may
to disclose be withdrawn, as ap-
student propriate,” said an ICE
immigration spokesperson.
statuses to the
„ should not worry about
Department their immigration infor-
of Homeland mation being in the gov-
Security. ernment’s hands.
“There is nothing stu
dents need to fear about
that ongoing reporting,” Pelton said. “Thats
been happening all along. Nothing new.”
Suad Ibrahim, a senior from Kuwait,
and Kahlil Osman, a freshman with dual
U.S.-Sudanese citizenship, said they trust
that Elon is making the right decision in
disclosing records.
Ibrahim and Osman still fear Elon cannot
protect them from some of the consequences
of Trumps executive order.
Mounting fear, frustration
Though Elon has just one student from one
of the seven banned countries, the ban’s im
pact extends much further.
“There are five people that I know that it’s
going to have a direct impact on — either the
student or faculty person themselves or the
family,” Pelton said. “Plans are changing prob
ably because of this.”
The executive order has affected several
more people indirectly.
Ibrahim is expected to graduate this spring
but will not be able to have her grandmother
in attendance because she is from Sudan —
one of the seven countries banned from en
tering the United States.
“I haven’t seen my grandma in two or three
years,” Ibrahim said.
Osman hoped to have his father vis
it Elon in the spring, but those plans have
come to a sudden halt since he only has Su
danese citizenship.
“It just hurts,” Osman said. “He’s missing
huge experiences of his son growing up.”
Plagued with uncertainty
The immigration ban is temporary, and
its constitutionality has been questioned by
the court system. On Friday, a Seattle federal
judge granted a temporary restraining order
blocking Trump’s ban on seven countries.
The White House responded later that
night with a statement calling the judge’s rul
ing “outrageous” and stating that the order is
intended to keep the United States safe.
Trump took to social media the next
morning, tweeting “the opinion of this so-
called judge, which essentially takes law-en
forcement away from our country, is ridicu
lous and will be overturned!”
The Department of Homeland Security re
leased a statement Saturday announcing it had
suspended implementation of the travel ban.
Ever-changing news is creating confusion
among Elon’s international population, leav
ing universities with the task of supporting
them in an uncertain time.
Kristen Aquilino, assistant director for
Global Student Engagement, sent an email
to members of Elon’s international commu
nity on Jan. 30 expressing the university’s
commitment to protecting their safety and
well-being.
In the email, she said she recognizes “there
are many questions and a great deal of anxi
ety,” but reassured them that they are “legally
authorized to work or study in the U.S.” She
also announced there would be a meeting for
people to ask questions and voice their con
cerns regarding the executive order.
Aquilino declined to comment on the
pending meeting.
I dont think there’s cause for anyone to
be excessively concerned about continuing
their day-to-day life as a student,” Pelton said.
I dont think there’s a reason for any of our
DIEGG PINEDA I PliDiD Eta I
Students and faculty gathered b
together for a solidarity march at I
Elon University Feb. 6. They walked *
from Speakers’ Corner to the Global
Neighborhood in support of Elon’s
international population.
students to feel threatened about their abilit)'
to continue as a student at Elon.”
Pelton said he is unclear what Trumps
actions will look like three months from
now. The university is essentially in the
same position as many of its students: con
fused, waiting to see what happens and
searching for guidance.
As Elon looks to the future, it takes com
fort in knowing the past hurdles it overcame.
9/11 rattled the U.S. population, shakij
many peoples sense of safety and securitj
Out of the Sept. 11 attacks, governmcil
agencies developed an interest in better un
derstanding foreign students on college cam
puses. Pelton recalls an instance where the]'
physically came to Elons campus.
“When 9/11 occurred, there was a lot more
curiosity about students and faculty that were
international,” Pelton said. “There were cases
where government agencies were coming to
campus to meet with students and faculty;”
Pelton doesn’t foresee a similar situation
occurring at Elon in the near future.
Moving forward
Despite rumors, Elon is not going to be
come a sanctuary campus. By definition, part
of being a sanctuary campus is not disclosing
immigration statuses of students. Though
Elon has sought to support and reassure its in
ternational community, it has also said it will
remain in compliance with existing laws.
The university administration itself, along
with specific departments, has consistently
expressed its commitment to keeping stu
dents safe. For the time being, legal and social
responsibilities do not appear to be clashing
with each other.
The larger implications of Trump’s execu
tive actions are what appear to be causing the
greatest concern. Lambert has signed a letter
with 597 other college presidents advocating
Homeland Security to craft policies that keep
the nation safe from harm while also wel
coming potential international students to
the United States.
Pelton worries the order could lower Elons
ability to recruit international students and
faculty members. He also fears the foreign tal
ent pool will have a more negative perception
of the country.
But at a time when the country is deeply
divided politically and ideologically, Pdton
believes there is a window of opportunity'
where values can meet in the middle.
“I think you can be fiercely patriotic —
I believe I am — but do that through a global
lens,” Pelton said. “That’s what we need to con
tinue to promote.”