Harvard, MIT sue Trump administration over rule barring international students from online-only classes

Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology sued the Trump administration Wednesday over an order that would require international students to take classes in person this fall, despite the covid-19 pandemic.

The lawsuit represented a swift response to an unexpected order from the federal government as universities rush to protect the status of thousands of international students.

"We will pursue this case vigorously so that our international students - and international students at institutions across the country - can continue their studies without the threat of deportation," Harvard's president, Lawrence Bacow, told campus Wednesday.

On Monday, the federal Student and Exchange Visitor Program announced that visas would not be issued to students enrolled in schools that are fully online for the fall semester, and that students at schools offering only online classes would be barred from entering the country. Those already in the United States must either leave the country or transfer to a school with in-person instruction to remain in legal status.

The news stunned university officials, who were finalizing fall plans assuming that immigration authorities would continue to grant flexibility to existing requirements that international students must take classes in person - changes put in place in response to the novel coronavirus pandemic that shut down most schools this spring.

In March, on the same day President Donald Trump declared a national emergency, the Student and Exchange Visitor Program issued temporary guidance that would remain in effect for the duration of the emergency. Because the pandemic continues to rage in the United States, most colleges are at least prepared to switch to virtual instruction if needed.

The ruling frightened international students, who worried they risked deportation if their schools were not providing classes in person.

"The order came down without notice - its cruelty surpassed only by its recklessness," Bacow told campus. "It appears that it was designed purposefully to place pressure on colleges and universities to open their on-campus classrooms for in-person instruction this fall, without regard to concerns for the health and safety of students, instructors, and others. This comes at a time when the United States has been setting daily records for the number of new infections, with more than 300,000 new cases reported since July 1."

Harvard and MIT plan to offer most of their instruction online this fall. Harvard has about 5,000 international students and MIT has nearly 4,000.

The lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, filed in the U.S. District Court in Massachusetts, seeks a temporary restraining order as preliminary and permanent injunctive relief to stop the government from enforcing the policy, arguing that it violates the Administrative Procedure Act.

A spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

MIT's president, L. Rafael Reif, told campus Wednesday: "Our international students now have many questions - about their visas, their health, their families and their ability to continue working toward an MIT degree. Unspoken, but unmistakable, is one more question: Am I welcome?

“At MIT, the answer, unequivocally, is yes.” He wrote about his own memories of the anxiety of arriving in the United States to study, “excited to advance my education, but separated from my family by thousands of miles. I also know that welcoming the world’s brightest, most talented and motivated students is an essential American strength.”