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For Immediate Release
July 9, 2020

UUP President Frederick E. Kowal on new ICE rules impacting international students

The following is a statement by UUP President Frederick E. Kowal, Ph.D., on new U.S. Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement rules that force international students that only take online classes to leave the country or transfer to another school.

“UUP stands with SUNY’s nearly 22,000 international students, and our union will do all we can to help them remain in the country this fall.

“We are repulsed but not surprised by this latest attempt by the Trump Administration to strong-arm colleges and universities to open in the fall, during a pandemic that is spiking across the country.

“UUP refuses to participate in the politicization of the pandemic and we will do all we can to allow our international students to complete their studies without fear of being pushed out of the country mid-semester.

“We support a careful and safe reopening of campuses this fall in our Guidelines for Reopening Assuring a Safe Working Environment during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Those safeguards include the liberal use of online courses; mandatory and recurring coronavirus testing for all; contact tracing and isolation methods; and directives for social distancing and wearing face coverings.”

UUP is the nation's largest higher education union, with more than 42,000 academic and professional faculty and retirees. UUP members work at 29 New York state-operated campuses, including SUNY’s public teaching hospitals and health science centers in Brooklyn, Long Island and Syracuse. It is an affiliate of NYSUT, the American Federation of Teachers, the National Education Association, and the AFL-CIO.

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