February 12, 2026: This Week in International Student News
- Carrie Circosta
- 6 hours ago
- 7 min read
We're in the thick of Olympic season! (Medal tracker here 🥇🥈🥉)
And while athletes from around the world are competing on the biggest stage, international students are navigating their own high-stakes challenges:
📰 Top Headlines: Campus protests escalate as students demand protection from immigration enforcement, Florida proposes sweeping restrictions on international student enrollment, and a Babson College student remains deported despite a court order and federal admission of error.
🎓 Featured Scholarship Resource: Funding opportunity alert — the UCSC Silicon Valley Extension International Student Merit Scholarship offers $1,000 awards to qualified F-1 students, with application deadlines coming up soon.
🔍 Interesting Finds: Malaysia opens the world's first dedicated arrival center for international students at the airport, while a Syracuse student's powerful essay reveals what international students think but rarely say aloud about belonging in America.
⚡ Immigration Corner Deep Dive: Understanding 287(g) agreements — the federal partnerships that are giving campus police immigration enforcement authority, reshaping who has access to your data, and creating a chilling effect on campuses nationwide.
Lots to cover - let's go!
Carrie at International Student Voice ⭐
Best Links for International Students
📰 TOP 3 HEADLINES FROM THE WEEK
🚨 Students Nationwide Protest Immigration Agency Recruitment on Campuses
Students at colleges and universities across the country are protesting the presence of Customs and Border Protection recruiters at campus career fairs, with demonstrations occurring at institutions including Brigham Young University, the University of Georgia, Ohio State University, and Cornell University. At Ohio State, the protests ended in arrests of two student protesters and one staff member, while Cornell saw over 100 students and community members rally against ICE and CBP's deportation campaign. Student organizers argue that the presence of immigration enforcement agencies on campus creates a chilling effect that discourages international and undocumented students from feeling safe in academic spaces. The protests reflect broader anxiety within higher education communities about the Trump administration's intensified immigration enforcement operations and their impact on student populations. (Inside Higher Ed)
📊 Florida Lawmakers Advance Bill to Drastically Limit International Student Enrollment
A proposal approved by the Florida House Budget Committee would require preeminent state universities to reserve 95 percent of new fall enrollments for Florida students, reducing the current 90 percent requirement. The bill restricts non-U.S. citizen enrollment to no more than 5 percent from any one country at each state university, potentially affecting schools like the University of Florida, Florida State University, and the University of Central Florida. Critics argue the proposal will harm universities financially by eliminating tuition revenue from out-of-state students and could inadvertently increase costs for Florida residents who currently benefit from the revenue generated by international student enrollment. The bill faces additional Senate review before moving forward in the legislative process. (CBS Miami)
⚖️ Trump Administration Refuses to Return Mistakenly Deported Babson College Student
The Trump administration is refusing to allow Babson College freshman Any Lucia Lopez Belloza to return to the United States after federal officials admitted that deporting her was a "mistake," despite a court order that blocked her removal. U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Leah Foley said federal officials "respectfully decline to return Petitioner to the status quo" since Lopez Belloza "would remain subject to detention and removal if returned to the United States" due to a removal order from 2016. A federal judge recommended the administration grant her a student visa, but the government argued this was unfeasible, prompting her attorney to continue legal proceedings to bring her back. The case highlights the precarious situation facing international and mixed-status students navigating a more restrictive immigration enforcement environment. (WBUR News)
🎓 FEATURED SCHOLARSHIP
The International Student Merit Scholarship from UCSC Silicon Valley Extension supports new F-1 international students pursuing certificate programs with demonstrated academic excellence and professional potential. The one-time merit award of $1,000 USD is applied to your first-quarter international student fees and includes recognition as an International Student Scholar within the program. Applicants must be enrolling full-time (12 units per quarter) and submit a personal statement addressing their academic goals, career aspirations, and how UCSC Silicon Valley fits into their future plans. Early submission is encouraged since scholarship deadlines are one month before program application deadlines (Fall: June 15, Winter: October 15, Spring: January 15, Summer: April 1). (UCSC Silicon Valley Extension)
🔍 INTERESTING FINDS
🌍 Malaysia Launches World's First Dedicated International Student Arrival Centre
Malaysia's Ministry of Higher Education and Education Malaysia Global Services (EMGS) officially opened the International Student Arrival Centre (ISAC) at Kuala Lumpur International Airport Terminal 1, marking the first facility of its kind in the world designed to support international students upon arrival. The centre provides coordinated arrival assistance, including immigration guidance, airport-to-campus transportation information, and initial student support services, with dedicated EMGS personnel stationed 24/7 to ensure students receive timely assistance. (Laotian Times)
📝 International Student Reflects on the Conditional Nature of Belonging in America
A Syracuse University freshman from Uganda writes about the emotional complexity of being an international student, describing how her presence in the United States is "conditional," with her life documented, time-bound, and dependent on compliance with rules that can change without warning. Despite going through the motions of college life, she explains that beneath the surface is a constant awareness that she must be a "grateful guest," and that she is learning to hold gratitude and fear simultaneously—missing home while trying to make a new one in a country she still isn't sure loves her back. The essay speaks to the psychological toll of visa restrictions and immigration enforcement discussions on international students' sense of belonging and their future plans. Her honest reflection on living between permission and belonging resonates with many international students navigating an increasingly uncertain immigration landscape. (Daily Orange)
News in 1 Sentence
Limit on international student athletic scholarships has been proposed in Ohio as House Bill 584, which would cap scholarships for foreign students at 25 percent per athletic program to prioritize American athletes.
Immigration court terminated removal proceedings against Tufts University doctoral student Rümeysa Öztürk, finding that the Department of Homeland Security failed to prove she should be deported after her arrest for writing a pro-Palestinian op-ed.
Documentary challenges the way U.S. universities prioritize Chinese nationals' enrollment over American applicants, with commentator Steve Cortes arguing that hundreds of thousands of Chinese students are taking spots from qualified domestic students.
Stanford students reveal the invisible calculations international scholars navigate regarding political speech and activism, with immigration status shaping what feels safe to say publicly on campus.
Twelve Columbia professors and students were arrested at an anti-ICE protest on Broadway while demanding that the university provide stronger protections for international students amid the Trump administration's immigration crackdown.
DEEP DIVE: IMMIGRATION CORNER 🛂
The Hidden Handshake Between Campus Police and ICE
Universities have been signing agreements with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that fundamentally change who has access to their information and what authority campus police hold.
These agreements—known as 287(g) partnerships—are now at the center of student protests demanding universities protect rather than police their international populations.
To understand what's really happening on certain campuses, maybe even your own, it helps to know what 287(g) actually means, how it intersects with the advisors meant to help you, and why even the threat of enforcement can reshape student life.
What is a 287(g) Agreement?
A 287(g) agreement is a federal law enforcement tool that allows state and local agencies—including, for the first time, university police departments—to enforce immigration law on behalf of ICE.
Under the Trump administration, these partnerships have exploded in number, expanding from approximately 160 agreements nationwide to over 1,000 in just months. What makes the current wave unprecedented is that colleges and universities are now included in this program, with at least 16 Florida public universities and colleges signing on following Governor Ron DeSantis's February 2025 directive for law enforcement to cooperate with ICE.
What Authority Does 287(g) Grant Universities?
Under a 287(g) agreement, university police departments gain several critical powers. After receiving ICE training, campus officers are authorized to conduct immigration enforcement operations on campus. They also gain access to federal databases that allow them to check and verify immigration status.
This creates a legal pathway for campus police to initiate immigration removal proceedings. For students, this means the police force on your campus is no longer just responsible for campus safety—they now have federal immigration enforcement authority.
At Florida International University, which has 4,500 international students from over 140 countries, the police chief stated the university would assist ICE if requested for an immigration sweep on campus, though he noted this hasn't happened yet.
The Current Campus Immigration Infrastructure: Your International Student Advisor
To understand why 287(g) matters so much, you need to know how universities currently track and report on international students.
International Student Advisors serve as the institutional backbone of international student compliance. Their role includes monitoring visa status, reporting enrollment changes, tracking employment authorization, and maintaining records of visa expiration dates—all within SEVIS (the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System), a federal database that tracks every F-1 visa student in the United States.
Traditionally, international advisors have served as advocates within the university structure, helping students navigate complex visa rules while protecting their interests. But 287(g) creates a troubling conflict of interest: the very data that advisors maintain to ensure student compliance could now be accessed by campus police and used for enforcement purposes. This fundamental tension has not been adequately addressed by most universities.
The "Chilling Effect": Why Enforcement Doesn't Need to Happen to Have Impact
Here's what immigration scholars emphasize: the agreements create what experts call a "chilling effect"—intimidation that works even without active enforcement. At Florida International University, for example, students protested despite the police chief's assurance that no sweeps had occurred. Why? Because the infrastructure now exists, and students feel the threat.
The presence of 287(g) agreements contradicts the fundamental mission universities claim to have: welcoming and supporting international scholars.
When international students know their campus police have immigration enforcement authority, they may hesitate to participate in campus organizations, engage in political speech, or even seek help when they need it. The surveillance atmosphere that develops undermines the very academic freedom and community that universities are meant to foster.
What's Next?
While 287(g) agreements are currently concentrated in Florida, the landscape of immigration enforcement on campuses is rapidly evolving. It's important to stay aware of what's happening at your institution and nationally.
Even if your campus hasn't signed such an agreement yet, staying informed about these policies and your university's stance on protecting international students is valuable. Your international student office can provide specific information about your university's policies, data protection measures, and available resources. Understanding these details helps you make informed decisions about your education and safety.
Sources for this week's Deep Dive on 287(g) Agreements include:
[official ICE and DHS documentation](https://www.ice.gov/287g), research from the [American Immigration Council](https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/fact-sheet/287g-program-immigration/), [NAFSA](https://www.nafsa.org/professional-resources) international student compliance resources, academic research on immigration enforcement from [Stanford](https://siepr.stanford.edu/), [UCLA](https://civilrightsproject.ucla.edu/), and the [University of Michigan](https://sph.umich.edu/), and guidance from the [Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration](https://www.presidentsalliance.org/).
SHARE THE KNOWLEDGE!
Disclaimer: International Student Voice is not an immigration attorney or immigration advisor. The purpose of this newsletter is strictly educational. Always consult with qualified legal counsel for advice specific to your situation.