The Indiana Graduate Workers Coalition said IU administrators set up protections for students who lost their visas.
(Aubrey Wright, WTIU)
Indiana University administrators are working on a set of protections for students who had their visas revoked, according to the Indiana Graduate Workers Coalition.
The IGWC said in a Wednesday press release IU administrators met with them and Graduate and Professional Student Government leaders to discuss plans. The protections would allow impacted students to continue their degrees. Impacted students will not automatically lose their jobs, the release said.
The IGWC is a union that represents IU graduate student workers, who are compensated for teaching classes.
“We want to make sure that there's a pathway to degree for everyone who is impacted by this, because it's just a huge interruption,” IGWC organizer Elijah Beaton said. “IU doesn't have direct control over this process, right? This exists outside of their ability to influence the Department of Homeland Security. So, the bare minimum they can do is make sure they keep their promises to the international students.”
The university doesn’t recognize the IGWC as a union, but it does recognize the Graduate and Professional Student Government as a student organization.
Beaton said more work needs to be done and that they hope students at other universities across the country see what’s possible.
Before the meeting, the IGWC organized a rally to demand IU protect international students. It asked for clearer communication from the university, echoing concerns from some Bloomington Faculty Council members.
Beaton said the graduate student government facilitated the meeting with leaders of the Graduate School and the Office of International Affairs.
“It became clear that we are on the same page,” Beaton said. “They both responded to some of the demands we made and had already begun to take steps.”
On Friday, Hannah Buxbaum, IU’s vice president for international affairs, told department chairs and deans that “less than 10” students had been impacted, but she stressed the situation changes rapidly. Provost Rahul Shrivastav said the university was working with students on a case-by-case basis.
A university spokesperson said it was a regularly scheduled meeting with the student government.
“During the meeting, administrators provided information about existing protocols and guidance for students navigating federal immigration policies,” the spokesperson said. “The university will continue to remain compliant with all applicable state and federal laws.”
The IU Police Department said it would comply with warrants from ICE.
According to Inside Higher Ed, more than 1,200 international students have been impacted by the Trump Administration's efforts to revoke visas. In many cases, the reasons are unclear.
“The IU administration also clarified in the meeting, as well as in subsequent meetings with academic departments, that the current Visa revocations have no clear pattern at IU,” the IGWC said. “They are not tied to political activity and also don't seem to be related to membership in IGWC in any way.”
According to the IGWC, the administrators agreed that the IU Graduate School will “create a flexible pathway to degree for students impacted by these revocations, including easing travel requirements and allowing remote [dissertation] defenses.”
Federal officials don’t notify schools when visas are revoked but instead mark changes in a database called SEVIS. The IU Office of International Services will check SEVIS records daily and contact impacted students immediately.
The IGWC said administrators agreed to clarify the differences between visa revocations and deleted SEVIS records. While Trump Administration officials argue the deletion of SEVIS records doesn’t necessarily mean immigration status has changed, Inside Higher Ed reported immigration lawyers said the deletions do indicate students lost their visas.
Department of Homeland Security guidance states students with terminated SEVIS records should leave the country immediately. They’re no longer authorized to work in the U.S.
But the IGWC said IU administrators agreed they will not automatically fire impacted graduate workers. Fellowships and other awards shouldn’t be impacted by status.
Beaton said the union suggested establishing an emergency fellowship fund or making IU a sanctuary campus.
This story has been updated.
Aubrey is our higher education reporter and a Report For America corps member. Contact her at aubmwrig@iu.edu or follow her on X @aubreymwright.
