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Update: As of April 28, George Mason has been notified that 14 of these students have had their SEVIS status restored and remain enrolled at the university. Another student’s visa was revoked, but that student’s SEVIS record was never terminated. 

Dear fellow Patriots:  

In recent days, George Mason Â鶹¹ú²ú has learned that the U.S. Government has terminated and/or revoked student visas of 15 international students. To date, these terminations have occurred without involvement of or prior notice to the university. 

As we seek to learn why our students were selected for visa revocation and what decision-making process is being applied by the U.S. Departments of State and Homeland Security, we are writing to the George Mason community to affirm our advocacy for the appropriate treatment of all international students enrolled here. We will do whatever the law permits to assist our students, and we are actively exploring what those options may be. Steps we already have taken to assist affected students include:

• First, our Office of International Programs and Services (OIPS) is in direct contact with the affected students to provide them with support and additional external resources.
• Second, students are being advised to contact their academic dean to see what options they may have to complete their coursework. The Provost’s Office is encouraging faculty to work with students who may be found in these situations, providing as much flexibility as possible.
• And third, the university has reached out to appropriate federal authorities to learn what process is being used to identify students for revocations. So far, no answers have been given. We are also seeking appropriate legal clarity from legal support referred to us by the state Attorney General’s Office.

OIPS is continuing to monitor the situation, and more information will be forthcoming as it becomes available.

We also want to answer questions that have arisen over whether the university has contributed to these federal actions.

To be clear, we have played no role in facilitating these visa terminations. We have not shared confidential student visa status or immigration information with federal authorities. As stated in a number of meetings on this matter, to date, we have not been asked for any information by the current administration to aid an immigration enforcement action. GMU Police officers do not engage individuals solely on the basis of immigration or visa status. Additionally, to our knowledge, federal agents have not been to campus to engage or detain international students.

The university’s only indicator that a student’s visa status has changed is by monitoring the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) database maintained by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program. Only when OIPS staff see the change in a student’s SEVIS record, or perhaps first hear word directly from the students themselves, are we able to learn of a visa revocation.

To our 4,000 international students and our 36,000 American students, we care about your well-being, and we are doing everything possible to maintain a stable, positive scholarly environment for you. We will keep you updated as events warrant.

Sincerely,

Gregory Washington
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Rose Pascarell
Vice President for Â鶹¹ú²ú Life