Some University at Buffalo students are being affected by President Donald Trump’s executive order on immigration. UB says some international students experienced trouble traveling back to the United States following their break, as Monday marked the start of the new spring semester on campus.
Stephen Dunnett, UB vice provost for International Education, met with reporters at UB’s North Campus in Amherst to discuss the situation. He noted 122 UB students are from five of the seven countries on the order, the bulk of them, 110, from Iran.
“We have one Iranian graduate student, who is about to finish his last semester here, who went home and now is unable to enter,” stated Dunnett.
UB’s offices of International Student and Scholar Services and Immigration Services is working to assist students affected by the executive order. They are monitoring the situation closely.
“This will do, and I think has done, damage to American higher education. You can imagine if you are a parent and you have a 17-year-old or 18-year-old child that you are about to send to Buffalo this fall and you might think twice on whether or not you'd like your child to come here,” Dunnett told reporters Monday. "All of our students are very thoroughly vetted. We’ve never had any difficulties with the students who studied here."
The university has issued an advisory to all its international students telling them not to travel outside the United States. They also advise against traveling into Canada.
“We are about our students and it is my responsibility to help them as much as I can,” Dunnett remarked.
Although President Trump campaigned heavily on anti-immigration policies, Dunnett said Monday he never anticipated this would happen.
"I want to believe this is an aberration," Dunnett replied.
