BOSTON: A federal judge on Thursday extended an order blocking the Trump administration’s attempt to bar Harvard University from enrolling foreign students.
US District Judge Allison Burroughs extended the block she imposed last week with a temporary restraining order, which allows the Ivy League school to continue enrolling international students as a lawsuit proceeds.
Harvard sued the Department of Homeland Security on Friday after Secretary Kristi Noem revoked its ability to host foreign students at its campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
“Harvard will continue to take steps to protect the rights of our international students and scholars, members of our community who are vital to the University’s academic mission and community — and whose presence here benefits our country immeasurably,” a university spokesman said in a statement.
On Wednesday, the Trump administration introduced a new effort to revoke Harvard’s certification to enroll foreign students. In a letter sent by the acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement director, Todd Lyons, the government gave Harvard 30 days to respond to the alleged grounds for withdrawal, which include accusations that Harvard coordinated with foreign entities and failed to respond sufficiently to antisemitism on campus.
The developments unfolded in a courtroom not far from the Harvard campus, where speakers at Thursday’s commencement ceremony stressed the importance of maintaining a diverse and international student body.
The dispute over international enrollment at Harvard is the latest escalation in a battle between the White House and the nation’s oldest and wealthiest college. In April, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem sent a letter to the school, demanding a range of records related to foreign students, including discipline records and anything related to “dangerous or violent activity.” Noem said it was in response to accusations of antisemitism on Harvard’s campus.
Harvard says it complied. But on May 22, Noem sent a letter saying the school’s response fell short. She said Harvard was being pulled from the federal program that allows colleges to sponsor international students to get US visas. It took effect immediately and prevented Harvard from hosting foreign students in the upcoming school year.
In its lawsuit, Harvard argued the government failed to follow administrative procedures and regulations for removing schools from eligibility to host international students, which include giving schools the opportunity to appeal and a 30-day window to respond.
Noem’s earlier letter to Harvard notified the school that its eligibility was revoked immediately. It did not cite any regulations or statutes that Harvard allegedly violated. The Wednesday letter accuses Harvard of violating regulations around reporting requirements and violating an executive order regarding combatting antisemitism.
Already, despite the restraining order, the Trump administration’s efforts to stop Harvard from enrolling international students have created an environment of “profound fear, concern, and confusion,” the university’s director of immigration services said in a court filing on Wednesday.
In a court filing, immigration services director Maureen Martin said that countless international students had asked about transferring.
Martin said that international Harvard students arriving in Boston were sent to additional screening by Customs and Border Protection agents, and that international students seeking to obtain their visas were being denied or facing delays at consulates and embassies.
More than 7,000 international students, exchange scholars and alumni participating in a post-graduate career training period rely on Harvard for their sponsorship and legal status in the United States.
The sanction, if allowed to proceed, could upend some graduate schools that draw heavily from abroad. Among those at risk was Belgium’s Princess Elisabeth, who just finished her first year in a Harvard graduate program.
Trump railed against Harvard on social media after Burroughs temporarily halted the action last week, saying “the best thing Harvard has going for it is that they have shopped around and found the absolute best Judge (for them!) — But have no fear, the Government will, in the end, WIN!”
The Trump administration has levied a range of grievances against Harvard, accusing it of being a hotbed of liberalism and failing to protect Jewish students from harassment. The government is demanding changes to Harvard’s governance and policies to bring it in line with the president’s vision.
Harvard was the first university to reject the government’s demands, saying it threatened the autonomy that has long made US higher education a magnet for the world’s top scholars. In a pair of lawsuits, Harvard accuses the government of retaliating against the university for rebuffing political demands.
