The Office for International Students on the St. Thomas campus.The federal government revoked student visas and terminated immigration statuses for some international students, The Crest learned Monday. (The Crest archive photo)
The federal government revoked student visas and terminated immigration statuses for a “small number” of St. Thomas international students, according to an email President Rob Vischer sent to the university community Monday.
Vischer did not disclose the students’ identities or exactly how many students were affected. However, he did disclose the reason provided by the federal government for the visa revocations as “prior ‘criminal’ histories,” although the exact details are unknown.
“Be assured, however, that the university is communicating and directly working with impacted students to provide resources and support them as they work to finish their studies,” Vischer wrote.
The revocations come as federal immigration authorities have detained international students around the country, including one international graduate student at the University of Minnesota who was detained by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement in March for a drunken driving infraction.
Vischer thanked the university’s staff for supporting international students, whom he described as “part of what makes St. Thomas a vibrant learning environment.”
“Many of them take what they learn at St. Thomas back to their home communities, where they carry our mission forward, working to improve the world around them. International students will always be an important part of our university’s fabric,” Vischer wrote.
Miles Schiffer can be reached at schi9629@stthomas.edu.
