FILE PHOTO: Folks stroll on the Enterprise College campus of Harvard College in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S., April 15, 2025.
Religion Ninivaggi | Reuters
A federal decide in Boston on Friday briefly halted the Trump administration‘s ban on Harvard College enrolling worldwide college students, hours after the personal college filed a lawsuit difficult that ban.
The go well with got here a day after the Division of Homeland Safety revoked Harvard’s potential to enroll international college students beneath the F-1 visa program on the behest of Secretary Kristi Noem, saying the personal college tolerated “anti-American, pro-terrorist agitators” on campus.
Decide Allison Burroughs, in issuing a brief restraining order, or TRO, on Friday morning, blocked DHS’ revocation from taking impact pending a court docket listening to.
Burroughs mentioned within the order that Harvard had proven that until that TRO was granted, “it can maintain rapid and irreparable damage earlier than there is a chance to listen to from all events.”
“Thus, a TRO is justified to protect the established order pending a listening to,” the decide wrote.
DHS mentioned Thursday that Harvard was barred from enrolling future worldwide college students, and that present international college students enrolled on the college needed to go away the college or danger shedding their authorized standing in america.
The ban affected greater than 7,000 present visa holders finding out at Harvard, which has been within the crosshairs of the Trump administration for months. Among the many international college students at Harvard is Princess Elisabeth, the future queen of Belgium, who’s pursuing a grasp’s in public coverage there.
President Donald Trump final month mentioned that Harvard ought to lose its tax-exempt standing.
“With the stroke of a pen, the federal government has sought to erase 1 / 4 of Harvard’s pupil physique, worldwide college students who contribute considerably to the College and its mission,” the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Courtroom in Massachusetts mentioned.
“Harvard’s certification is important for every of Harvard’s hundreds of worldwide college students to lawfully stay on this nation whereas they full coursework, receive levels, and proceed essential analysis,” the go well with mentioned.
The lawsuit referred to as the revocation a “blatant violation of the First Modification” and the Due Course of Clause of the U.S. Structure.
The varsity additionally mentioned it was the “newest act by the federal government in clear retaliation for Harvard exercising its First Modification rights to reject the federal government’s calls for to regulate Harvard’s governance, curriculum, and the ‘ideology’ of its college and college students.”
DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin, in an announcement, mentioned that Harvard’s “lawsuit seeks to kneecap the President’s constitutionally vested powers beneath Article II” of the Structure.
“It’s a privilege, not a proper, for universities to enroll international college students and profit from their greater tuition funds to assist pad their multibillion-dollar endowments,” McLaughlin mentioned. “The Trump administration is dedicated to restoring frequent sense to our pupil visa system; no lawsuit, this or some other, goes to alter that. We have now the regulation, the info, and customary sense on our facet.”
DHS on Thursday mentioned it revoked Harvard’s Scholar and Alternate Customer Program certification as a result of the Ivy League college’s management “has created an unsafe campus surroundings by allowing anti-American, pro-terrorist agitators to harass and bodily assault people, together with many Jewish college students, and in any other case impede its once-venerable studying surroundings.”
Harvard’s go well with famous the Trump administration’s motion got here days earlier than commencement.
“With out its worldwide college students, Harvard is just not Harvard,” the grievance says.
Harvard President Alan Garber, in a letter to the college group on Friday, wrote, “We condemn this illegal and unwarranted motion” by the Trump administration.
“The federal government has claimed that its damaging motion is predicated on Harvard’s failure to adjust to requests for data from the US Division of Homeland Safety,” Garber wrote.
“Actually, Harvard did reply to the Division’s requests as required by regulation,” he wrote.
The go well with says that Noem, in an April 16 letter to Harvard’s Worldwide Workplace, demanded details about every pupil visa holder at Harvard’s 13 faculties inside 10 enterprise days, accusing Harvard of failing “to sentence anti-semitism.”
The go well with says Harvard produced the requested data on April 30 and supplied further data on Could 14.
“But, on Could 22, 2025, DHS deemed Harvard’s responses ‘inadequate’ — with out explaining why or citing any regulation with which Harvard did not comply — and revoked Harvard’s SEVP certification ‘efficient instantly,'” the grievance mentioned.
The go well with notes that in latest weeks and months, the Trump administration’s Process Drive to Fight Anti-Semitism has conditioned the continued issuance of “quite a few federal advantages” to Harvard, together with billions of {dollars} in grants and different funding, on the college “accepting sweeping modifications to Harvard’s governance, admissions, hiring, and educational packages.”
“When, on April 14, 2025, Harvard refused to accede to those calls for, the federal government’s retribution was swift,” the go well with says.
“Hours later, the federal government froze greater than $2.2 billion in federal funding essential to the help of ongoing cutting-edge analysis at Harvard,” it says.
In his letter Friday, Garber addressed worldwide college students and students affected by the enrollment ban.
“Know that you’re important members of our group,” Garber wrote. “You’re our classmates and mates, our colleagues and mentors, our companions within the work of this nice establishment.”
“We are going to help you as we do our utmost to make sure that Harvard stays open to the world.”
