Visas revoked for Cal, Stanford students amid immigration crackdown

Federal government revokes dozens of student visas

The student visas for several Stanford University and UC Berkeley students were revoked this week by the federal government, the universities acknowledged in statements.

The student visas for several Stanford University and UC Berkeley students were revoked this week by the federal government, the universities acknowledged in statements on Saturday.

UC Berkeley said six students saw their visas revoked. Two of them are graduate students and two others are undergraduates. The other two are in the Optional Practical Training Extension for STEM Students, also known as STEM OPT, which provides work experiences in their field.

The school initially said four students were affected. In a statement to KTVU, the university called it a fluid situation and that numbers could change.

Berkeley school officials did not indicate what the reason was behind the revocation of the students' visas. The college said they will not identify the impacted students due to their privacy policy, but said those students are being provided with resources and being encouraged to seek legal counsel for guidance.

"Campus officials (and the University of California) are committed to doing what they can to support all members of our community as they exercise their rights under the law. In doing so, the university will continue to follow all applicable state and federal laws," UC Berkeley said in a statement.

Similarly, Stanford University learned Friday that four of its students and two recent graduates had their student visas revoked.

The university said they learned of the revocation during a routine check of the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System records.

The school said the impacted students were notified and provided with legal assistance resources. The students' identities will also not be shared because of privacy concerns, the school said.

Stanford said they are also not aware of the presence of any immigration authorities on its campus.

"Stanford deeply values its international community of scholars and remains committed to supporting the well-being of all members of our community. We understand that these developments may be deeply unsettling for members of our community," the university said in a statement.

The university said that student and personnel records are private and it will not share such information with immigration enforcement unless legally obligated to do so. Additionally, Santa Clara County sheriff's deputies will not ask about immigration status in their typical duties and will not participate with other law enforcement agencies regarding immigration enforcement unless legally required to do so, the university said.

Dig deeper:

President Donald Trump signed an executive order in January to cancel student visas of pro-Palestinian protesters, which he said would help combat antisemitism across the country.

Additionally, the New York Times reported that Secretary of State Marco Rubio ordered diplomats overseas to "scrutinize the social media content of some applicants for student and other types of visas," in an effort to restrict those allegedly criticizing the U.S. in Israel from entering the country.

Less than two weeks ago, Rubio said the department revoked hundreds of visas, including many belonging to those who allegedly engaged in political activism. The visas were revoked under a law that bars non-citizens whose presence could have "serious adverse foreign policy consequences."

It wasn't immediately known if the Cal and Stanford students participated in any Israel-related protests in the U.S.

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