Dear colleagues,
All of you play an important role at WSU in supporting our international student and scholar (faculty) community. You may be receiving a number of questions from our international students and scholars these days about changes in the interpretation of federal regulations that impact visa holders, concerns about a possible travel ban, participating in protests or even questions pertaining to federal agents and law enforcement.
WSU International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS) in the Office of International Programs is here to partner with you to support the international community. Specifically, our office serves international students and international scholars on WSU sponsored visas such as F, J, H-1B and others. I am writing today to provide you with more resources and information.
- Interpretation of federal regulations that impact visa holders: Technically, federal regulations for visa holding international students and scholars have not changed. However, they are being interpreted somewhat differently. For students with questions about maintaining their visa status, letter notices from the government or any other matter, please refer them to International Student Advising which is 1-3 p.m. daily in Bryan Hall 206 or available via Zoom. No appointment is needed. Urgent cases will be received outside of those hours as needed. Our ISSS team is ready to help. For international scholars, same day and next day advising is available with a phone call to our office at 509-335-4508 or an email to ip.scholars@wsu.edu .
- Travel: International Students and Scholars who have questions about travel or a possible travel ban may wish to review this helpful website. A special travel consultation event is available to international students on April 21 from 10-12 a.m. in person in Bryan Hall and via Zoom. Another special travel event for international scholars is available on April 25 from 10-12 in Bryan Hall and via Zoom. This event is designed to sign immigration documents but also provide case-by-case consultation on future travel plans with the most up-to-date information we have as of that date. Future travel advisories and direct outreach will come from ISSS to those impacted as official guidelines are released.
Students and Scholars may need to consider which port of entry into the U.S. is best for them as they plan travel, including those in Washington State. Here is a full list of airports.
- Participating in protests: WSU ISSS releases weekly immigration advisories as topics arise. Our guidance on international students participating in protests can be found here. All advisories are posted to our website.
- Questions pertaining to federal agents and law enforcement: WSU has a very helpful website for Interacting with Immigration Enforcement Officers. ISSS contacts for each site and other information is available here. ISSS is monitoring policies, guidance and changes released by the current federal administration closely and monitoring for impact to our international students and scholars in a coordinated effort with multiple areas of the university. Any general questions can be sent to ip.intlservices@wsu.edu for students or to ip.scholars@wsu.edu for scholars which are both answered daily. You may also call 509-335-4508.
Our international students and scholars contribute significantly to WSU’s teaching, research and service mission. Now is our chance to work together even more closely to demonstrate our appreciation and care for those contributions in a time of change.
Paul Whitney
Interim Vice President, International Programs
Director, Health Equity Research Center
Founder, Every Campus a Refuge (ECAR)–WSU Chapter
Professor of Psychology