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Undocumented students ask ISU trustees for noncooperation with ICE, legal help and a dedicated liaison
Summary
A student speaker at the Illinois State University trustees meeting demanded that the university not pre‑comply with federal enforcement, update resources for undocumented students, retain an immigration lawyer, and appoint a certified undocumented‑support liaison and a permanent chief diversity officer.
At the Feb. 21 Board of Trustees meeting, a first‑year student urged trustees to adopt concrete supports for undocumented students and to resist over‑compliance with federal enforcement directives.
Anthony Sarata Espinosa, who identified himself as a first‑year Spanish education major and a Latino student leader, told trustees that students feel under‑served and unsafe. He asked the university not to “comply/slash work with ICE if and when they arrive,” to create a centralized and updated webpage of DACA and undocumented student resources, and to appoint a knowledgeable and certified undocumented support liaison. He said the current webpage has not been updated since 2022 and asked that contact persons be vetted for expertise.
Espinosa also called for an immigration attorney on retainer to support students and for greater legal support generally; he said the only student legal resource currently available lacks immigration experience. He urged ISU to follow models such as Northern Illinois University for a student resource center and asked for rapid response plans and safe‑place mapping as part of campus readiness for potential enforcement actions.
Trustees did not act on these requests during the meeting. Espinosa said students will continue organizing and asked the university for timely communication and resources.
Speakers
- Anthony Sarata Espinosa — First‑year student, Spanish education major
Authorities
- Speakers referenced “Dear Colleague” letters and federal directives; trustees indicated the campus is monitoring federal directives and will form an institutional resiliency steering committee (see governance article). No binding legal action was taken on compliance in open session.
Clarifying_details
- webpage_last_update: "Current webpage on the website has not been updated since 2022" (as stated by speaker) - liaison_request: "Knowledgeable and certified undocumented support liaison" (as requested) - legal_support: "An immigration lawyer on retainer" (as requested)
Proper_names
- Illinois State University (school) - Northern Illinois University (example model referenced)
Searchable_tags
["undocumented_students","ICE","DACA","student_safety","legal_support"]
