Illinois State University is among the many higher education institutions affected by Trump administration revocations of international student visas.
“We can confirm that a small number of those students have had their visas revoked. We are directly communicating with the affected students to provide appropriate resources and options,” said a university spokesperson.
ISU said it currently has 554 international students enrolled. That’s down from 741 in 2023, about 620 in 2022, and 557 in 2021, according to previously released enrollment data. Back in 2016, then-ISU President Larry Dietz announced an initiative to grow international student enrollment, seeking to capitalize on full freight tuition, high academic standards embodied by those students, and on efforts to enhance cultural diversity on campus.
The spokesperson acknowledged the recent trend is downward, but cautioned against attributing it solely to Trump administration opposition to immigration.
“A variety of factors come into play in international student decisions to attend ISU,” said the spokesperson.
ISU cited student privacy considerations in declining to shed more light on the reasons for the visa revocations, a more precise number of students affected, or the resources the university is making available to assist those students.
“Every student is different, and we are working with each of those impacted,” said the spokesperson.
The moves come as the Trump administration has been cracking down on international students in the U.S. for their involvement in campus protests. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Fox News on March 28 student visas are being revoked "every day."
"I would argue that the — what I would add to it is what we have seen on campuses across the country where students literally cannot go to school, you cannot — buildings are being taken over, activities going on — this is clearly an organized movement," Rubio said.
"And if you are in this country on a student visa and are a participant in those movements, we have a right to deny your visa. I think it would make sense to deny your visa. We’re going to err on the side of caution. We are not going to be importing activists into the United States. I think it’s lunacy to continue to allow that."
The University of Illinois in Urbana also confirmed some of its international students also have lost their visas. The Associated Press has reported visa revocations involved students with old traffic violations and no history of involvement in protests. Some students have not been given any reason for the change in status.
