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Students report ICE detentions and SEVIS terminations; board votes to send letter to federal delegation
Summary
Minnesota State student leaders told trustees that recent ICE detentions and SEVIS terminations have left international students afraid, and the board voted unanimously to send a letter to the federal delegation seeking transparency and support.
Students and student leaders reported sudden U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detentions of Minnesota State international students and termination of Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) records. Students United read a letter on behalf of international student leaders describing fear, cancelled travel plans, missed classes and uncertainty about work authorization.
Student advocacy coordinator Adam Thompson read testimony describing an arrest on March 28 of an MSU Mankato student and said multiple additional detentions and SEVIS terminations have occurred without notice to students or campuses. The letter read by Thompson said students granted release on bond in court have in some cases remained in custody and that SEVIS terminations revoke work authorizations, restrict students’ ability to continue their education, and create acute anxiety.
Chancellor Olsen said the system office had collected information from campuses and written letters to the congressional delegation urging action and asking for compliance with judicial rulings. Student and employee groups asked the board to expand immediate access to legal and mental-health resources and to adopt a public stance demanding answers from federal authorities.
Following comments from multiple trustees, a trustee moved that the board send a letter to the federal delegation condemning the recent detentions and seeking transparency and protections for international students. Another trustee seconded the motion. The full board voted unanimously to send the letter; trustees asked that the office circulate a draft to trustees for feedback before it is sent.
Students and campus international centers requested that system and campus leaders consolidate legal, counseling and advocacy efforts, provide prompt and clear communication to affected students while protecting student privacy, and press federal authorities for explanation and compliance with judicial decisions.
