Update Regarding International Students
elow is a message sent to the Cal Poly community on Friday, July 10, 2020
Dear Students and Campus Community,
I have been watching with concern the news about the recent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announcement of new guidelines for fall 2020 that could profoundly affect our international students, valued members of our Mustang family. I am writing to let you know that I understand that the announcement has caused a great deal of anxiety and uncertainty for our students, their families and all of us who support them. We stand in steadfast support of our international students and appreciate the deep concern expressed by so many.
Yesterday it was announced that the CSU and California Community Colleges have joined California Attorney General Xavier Becerra in filing a lawsuit challenging the recent ICE policy guidance related to international students. The full press release can be found here: https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-becerra-state-public-education-leaders-sue-trump-administration
As CSU Chancellor Timothy White aptly stated: "The California State University stands in the strongest opposition to the policy guidance issued Monday by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. It is a callous and inflexible policy that unfairly disrupts our more-than 10,300 international students' progress to a degree, unnecessarily placing them in an extremely difficult position. And it deprives all of our students - and the communities, state, and nation we serve - of the remarkable contributions of these international students. The CSU applauds the California Attorney General's decision to take strong action to oppose ICE's policy guidance, and we will fully support this effort."
Further information and guidelines are forthcoming from the Chancellor's Office regarding how we can best support our international students. We recognize the urgency of the situation and will send out the information as soon as possible. We have a strong commitment to bring Cal Poly to the world and the world to Cal Poly, and will work to ensure a productive and educationally enriching fall for our international students.
Sincerely,
Jeffrey D. Armstrong
President
Cari Vanderkar, Ph.D.
Senior International Officer & Assistant Vice Provost for International Programs
