New ICE guidelines for international students concern Memphis universities, but a mix of class offerings sustain their visas

Updated guidelines from Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) leaves international students in Memphis and across the nation with a difficult choice — take classes in person while COVID-19 cases continue to rise or return to the last country they lived in before the U.S. and take online courses.

It's the latest curve-ball for educators trying to make decisions on if — and how — students can be on campus without contracting a potentially deadly virus.

Two universities in Memphis — Rhodes College and Christian Brothers University, have joined an amicus brief in support of Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who are suing the Trump administration which is attempting to bar foreign students from attending colleges that will teach entirely online in the fall term.

"Those guidelines were shocking to me, and many of us in higher education," Rhodes College president Majorie Hass said. "Both because of their scope, and because they were not developed consultation with higher education leaders."

Rhodes, like many universities in Memphis and Shelby County will offer a mixture of class modalities when students return in the fall. In-person classes will be offered, but the university has also developed a comprehensive set of guidelines that include the ability to revert back to remote learning only, like most universities had to do in March after the novel coronavirus arrived in Shelby County.

Rhodes established three key criteria to ensure students returned safely — the establishment of comprehensive COVID-19 guidelines, campus community buy-in to those guidelines and the overall amenable public health picture in Memphis and Shelby County. The third criteria, Hass admits, makes her the most nervous.

"That's not in Rhodes' control, and that's something that is changing every day, so we can't make a definitive decision about reopening until we get closer," Hass said.

Though the start of fall semesters are still a few weeks away, the numbers of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in Shelby County have increased significantly. As of Friday, Shelby County's 7-day rolling average of new cases stood at 298 new cases daily.

"We've already worked with several of international students who were, for health reasons, can't travel," Hass said. "We've made plans with them to take their classes virtually even if we're open."

According to Dr. Donald Thomason, dean of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center's College of Graduate Health Sciences said there are some 10,000 international students in Tennessee. 

He said roughly one-third of the students at UTHSC are international students. 

Thomason said their contingency of international students are a "critical component" of research that comes out of UTHSC. Many of those same students are currently directly plugged into needed COVID-19 research.

But even beyond that, Thomason notes that the out-of-state tuition amounts paid by international students helps subsidize scholarships for Tennessee residents.

"Certainly, they help to contribute to all economic aspects of the state, they live here, buy food here, their spouses are employed in the state. So, not having those 10,000 students has a huge impact on not only Memphis and Shelby County, but the entire state," Thomason said.

COVID-19 numbers aside, most of Memphis' four-year universities are offering in-person classes, which means that international students will likely have the option of retaining their 88 F-1 visas as they take classes. 

But, it's unknown what could happen if the public health landscape in Memphis and Shelby County takes a turn for the worse, and campuses are forced to return to a remote learning-only scenarios. 

The ICE guidelines indicate that international students will either have to return to their home countries should their university revert back to remote-learning only, or find a college still offering in-person classes.

On Friday, the Tennessee Conference of Graduate Schools released a statement. The organization has representatives from every college and university within the state.

"The July 6 ICE directive will put universities in the terrible position of transitioning to remote instruction for the safety and well-being of their students, faculty, and staff, while knowing that international students will be forced to return home quickly and at great expense. According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, international students contributed $45 billion to our domestic economy in 2018, and an estimated $348 million was spent right here in Tennessee. Not only would their departure impact learning, but it will also impact the economy," the organization wrote. 

Christian Brothers University 

International Students at CBU will have the ability to attend in-person classes, as the Lasallian university will off in-person, hybrid and online courses.

"We oppose this decision, and we stand in solidarity with the universities who have challenged this mandate in the courts," said CBU president Jack Shannon. "On behalf of CBU, I have joined the amicus brief from the President's Alliance on Immigration in support of their action.

"Christian Brothers University has a culture of inclusivity and diversity that is cherished by our campus community, and that culture is greatly enriched by our international student community. Being Lasallian is about embracing people from different nations, cultures, and faiths. We are committed to always being a welcoming and supportive community of educators and students — all working towards greater understanding of our world and each other."

University of Memphis 

The University of Memphis has also opted for a mixture of in-person, hybrid, and online options for students this year.

According to a university statement, the new ICE guidelines may not translate into an impossible choice for international students, because of the flexibility of the university's fall offerings.

"We are aware of the latest announcement by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement arm of the Government. The new rule is actually comparable to those that existed in January 2020 (pre COVID-19).

"These rules will not pose a problem for our international students. Our CIES (Center for International Education Services) staff is dedicated to helping each student navigate compliance with the rules and regulations that govern their visa status." 

LeMoyne-Owen College

On Friday, LeMoyne-Owen College, Memphis' only HBCU, said they plan to bring back their international students for campus classes, and is in the process of reaching out to those students to determine the impact of the ICE guidelines.

The statement from the university reads: "We consider it a privilege to serve our international students, which make up roughly two percent of our student population. Given the recent ICE policy changes, we expect that our international students will return in the Fall, and we are reaching out to them to monitor and gauge the impact.  

"We continue to monitor the health care and higher education landscape to ensure a safe opening for the fall semester."

Rhodes

Rhodes recently released their pandemic plan for students returning to campuses, formed with the guidance from doctors and scientists at Baptist Medical Center. 

Like other universities, it's a mixture of both in-person classes, hybrid courses and online instruction offerings. The university has already worked with a few of their international students unable to travel, due to health concerns and COVID-19, to ascertain what their options may be.

Hass' official statement in response to the updated ICE guidelines:

"I’m appalled by the newly released federal guidelines that unfairly target international students studying in the US during the pandemic. I am working with national higher education organizations and with lawmakers to urge a return to the policy guidelines established for Spring 2020. The 88 F-1 visa holders that are members of the Rhodes student body deserve access to their education. Rhodes stands with them."

UTHSC

"I think it flies in the face of safety," Thomason said of the ICE guidelines. "Our students, their parents, their spouses, and their children trust us as a university to provide a safe environment. And if we're violating that trust, if we're trying to throw people together when as health professionals, we know the virus hasn't gone away, well we have to take precautions so we don't cause more harm as a result."

UTHSC will adopt a hybrid system for students registered for fall classes. The hybrid component, Thomason said, will help the university stay in compliance with ICE's guidelines.