Dear Unnamed,
I hope this finds you well and, ideally, within reach of a sea breeze or excellent air conditioning! The “heat dome” has been intense here in Washington, D.C. So has our activity around the recent halt of new visa interviews for students and exchange visitors.
Today we published a blog post that examines the new social media vetting guidelines issued by the U.S. Department of State to consulates overseas and highlights findings from our ongoing collection of reports from the field as to the effects of the three-week suspension and the outlook for fall enrollment. More than 90 institutions have responded thus far, and not surprisingly, 73 percent of them anticipate a drop in fall international enrollment. Also not surprising: international educators are adapting to support their students’ concerns and needs. A large majority of respondents indicated they are offering deferred admission, making accommodations for late arrivals, and offering distance learning options.
In other news:
On June 27, NAFSA joined a coalition letter led by the American Council on Education urging Senate leaders to protect access to higher education during the budget reconciliation process. The letter argues that cuts to student aid programs will “erect barriers to developing the workforce our nation needs to compete.”
The media is reporting that reductions of Washington, D.C.,-based staff at the State Department are imminent. The timing will likely be affected by the outcome of a U.S Supreme Court ruling on whether to leave in place a lower court’s order that temporarily paused government-wide layoffs. We will keep you posted.
New research released by the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) provides valuable evidence to counter the narrative that there is a high level of international student overstays in the United States. Their analysis reveals that the Trump administration is relying on a “flawed Department of Homeland Security (DHS) overstay report to bar people from immigrating or gaining temporary visas in a new travel ban and is likely to continue citing the report in an illegitimate manner.”
The NFAP analysis found that DHS was incorrectly calculating an overstay rate by combining actual overstays plus arrivals whose departure could not be verified. “Problems with DHS systems correctly identifying individuals who changed status inside the U.S. or left the country render the reports inappropriate for policy purposes.” NAFSA has previously expressed concerns about the rigor of overstay rates produced by the government.
Lastly, please note that this newsletter (and its author) will be on holiday next Friday in observance of the Fourth of July. “See” you on the 11th!
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
Urge Congress to press the State Department to expedite visa interviews and visa processing for international students and scholars.
Report through NAFSA’s online form your understanding of students’ ability to schedule new visa appointments and at which posts, and anticipated fall enrollment (coordinate with your colleagues to avoid duplication).
Take some time to rest and recharge. Breaks for Connecting Our World readers and doers are important too. :)
Best,
Erica
Erica Stewart
Senior Director, Advocacy & Strategic Communications
NAFSA: Association of International Educators
