K-State President denounces new rules surrounding international student visas
MANHATTAN, Kan. (KSNT) – In a statement published to students and staff in ‘K-State Today’ on Friday, Kansas State University President Richard Myers denounced the new rules surrounding Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP).
“A policy that terminates students’ visas in the middle of their studies during a pandemic is wrong and will be detrimental for our students, our university, our state and our nation,” President Myers said in the statement.
On Monday, the Department of Homeland Security along with the Immigration Customs Enforcement (I.C.E) announced that international students would be forced to leave the U.S. if their institutions did not offer in-person classes in the fall.
The statement from President Myers comes after a week of backlash from higher-ed institutions around the country and growing concerns from K-State students. The announcement from the Department of Homeland Security also drew a statement from K-State Provost Dr. Charles Taber on Wednesday, ensuring international students would have options to remain in Kansas.
“Kansas State University is evaluating the new guidance concerning the status of international students at universities that move their instruction fully online. K-State is planning for a Fall 2020 semester that will provide face-to-face, hybrid, and online opportunities for students. We believe that our international students will be able to continue their education at K-State under our current plans.“
K-STATE PROVOST DR. CHARLES TABER
President Myers concluded his statement by saying: “We remain committed to working toward reasonable immigration policies that welcome international students and scholars to our campus.”
You can view the entire statement from K-State here.
A spring 2020 report from Kansas State University said there are 1,358 international student at the university.