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Monday, March 17, 2025

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Trump administration deports hundreds of immigrants, even as a judge orders removals be stopped; Sierra Club sues DOGE over mass firings; Lack of opportunity pushes rural Gen Zers in AZ out of their communities; Fixing one problem, creating another? Ohio's lead pipe replacements.

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Secretary of State Rubio pledges more arrests like that of student activist Mahmoud Khalil. Former EPA directors sound the alarm on Lee Zeldin's deregulation plans, and lack of opportunity is pushing rural Gen Zers out of their communities.

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Farmers worry promised federal reimbursements aren't coming while fears mount that the Trump administration's efforts to raise cash means the sale of public lands, and rural America's shortage of doctors has many physicians skipping retirement.

Higher ed experts advise campuses on how to prepare for ICE

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Monday, March 3, 2025   

On President Donald Trump's second day in office, his Secretary of Homeland Security rescinded a Biden-era rule barring Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, agents from making arrests near "sensitive locations" - including colleges and universities.

Now, higher education leaders in Alaska and elsewhere are navigating the fallout.

According to the Higher Ed Immigration Portal, international students make up more than 5% of all students in U.S. higher education. And roughly 22% of faculty were born outside the country.

President of the American Federation of Teachers, Randi Weingarten, said campuses are seeing a chilling effect due to hostilities toward international community members.

"Higher education should be the bastion of free ideas and academic freedom," said Weingarten, "because, how do you create new things? How do you innovate? How do you imagine if you don't actually create academic freedom?"

Nearly 8% of Alaska's population are immigrants, or about 55 thousand people. Weingarten encouraged unions to work for "safe, welcoming campus communities with opportunity and dignity for all."

An institution's approach to doing so may change now that ICE is allowed on campus.

Tanya Broder, senior counsel on health and economic justice policy with the National Immigration Law Center, pointed out that immigration agents can only legally enter public - but not private - areas of campus without a warrant.

"It's very helpful to plan in advance when you can," said Broder, "to have a real procedure for when people are showing up and trying to enter someplace where you have a reasonable expectation of privacy."

Broder suggested establishing and communicating campus policies and protocols for encountering ICE. She also said schools should designate individuals to review judicial warrants for validity.

The American Federation of Teachers also advises institutions to provide legal and mental health support for people who may be affected, offer "know your rights" training, reaffirm student data and privacy protections and issue public statements of support.

Director of Policy and Advocacy at the UndocuBlack Network, Haddy Gassama, spoke to higher education leaders on a recent webinar.

"I implore us to leverage the power that you have," said Gassama, "in ensuring that, one, it's communicated that you are protective of your students and, two, to go outside of the campus and be advocates."


Disclosure: American Federation of Teachers contributes to our fund for reporting on Education, Health Issues, Livable Wages/Working Families, Social Justice. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


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