Cincinnati college students, faculty grapple with travel ban
Hedayat Abrishami's parents won't be able to see him get married this spring.
He planned to have his father standing beside him while he watched his American-Catholic fiancé walk down the aisle.
Abrishami, a University of Cincinnati doctoral student, canceled the plane tickets after President Donald Trump signed an executive order temporarily banning citizens and refugees from seven majority-Muslim countries Friday.
"I wasn't going to put them in danger of being in custody," he said.
Abrishami isn't alone. Another UC student won't be able to go home to see her grandfather, who may be dying. And a new Miami University student, now home in Iran, will have to stay there and won't be able to start classes this spring.
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Trump's order is causing concern these three and dozens of other international students and faculty at Tristate universities. International students not only provide essential tuition dollars but also enhance the cultural diversity and research capabilities of a university.
Abrishami is from Iran, which denies his parents' entrance into the U.S. under the new law despite their visas. If Abrishami left the U.S. now, he wouldn't be allowed back in.
"The reasons behind the order are not justified and are unfair," Abrishami said. "We shouldn't be the ones targeted by this."
Foreign nationals from the seven countries on the list – Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen – killed no Americans on U.S. soil between 1975 and 2015, according to an analysis of terror attacks by the Cato Institute.
Abrishami supports the administration's decisions to protect U.S. citizens by keeping the borders secure and conducting a thorough vetting process. But he says his family members shouldn't be included in the ban because they are law-abiding visitors. They handed over all the appropriate documents to the embassy and were approved by the Federal Bureau of Investigations.
"If they want more, they can ask for more," Abrishami said. "Don't just shut the borders. Don't target an entire nation or individuals who are doing their normal routine."
Abrishami, 31, is studying electrical engineering and has a background in artificial intelligence and computer programming. He plans to finish his advanced degree by 2019, before his visa expires, and work full-time in the U.S., maybe even in Cincinnati.
He's enrolled in classes, but is living with a fear that another order handed down by the country's most powerful office might change that.
"There might be something out there that denies us continuing our program and carrying out the life we planned," Abrishami said.
How are local campuses affected?
UC has a growing international student population with more than 3,550 students from 115 countries. More than a third of those students are in the engineering program. The majority of international students are earning a master's degree.
About 75 UC students and 20 faculty members are from the seven countries listed on Trump's executive order. Those individuals safely returned to campus for the spring term before the restriction came out. None are currently overseas and unable to return, according to university officials.
UC told students and scholars that it will do "everything possible to support you during this difficult time and to ensure your ongoing safety and academic success" in a statement. the state noted that UC does not share protected information with the government like immigration status except for the information required by the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System.
Interim UC president Beverly Davenport and interim UC provost Peter Landgren said Trump's order "runs counter to our university’s core values" in a statement emailed to the university's students and faculty Monday night. "Our university is committed … to fostering excellence and global connectedness as exemplified in our founding motto, Juncta Juvant: Strength in Unity."
University officials told students from the affected countries not to travel.
Kiana Memarandadgar, a 25-year-old UC graduate student, wouldn't be allowed back in the country if she left because she's also from Iran.
That means she can't see her grandfather who was just diagnosed with a life-threatening tumor.
"I was planning on going home to see him," Memarandadgar said. "But now, I might not be able to get back in."
She's on a full scholarship, working towards a master's degree in architecture and plans to graduate in May 2018. Memarandadgar has an F-1 visa, which means she's just as legal as any other student attending UC, but she says that's not how she's being treated.
"It's insulting, you feel humiliated," Memarandadgar said. "We're scholars and educators studying and teaching. It's awful to paint everyone with a single brush."
She chose to build her future in this country and now she feels unwelcome. Her classmates have been supportive, but Memarandadgar said her fears linger because this change was so sudden.
"What if tomorrow something even scarier than this comes out?," Memarandadgar said. "I'm counting the moments for my study to finish and I can go home."
How are local universities responding?
A Miami University graduate student is stuck in Iran and won't be able to attend classes this spring.
She was supposed to arrive in Oxford within the next week, but wasn't able to secure a student visa before the 90-day suspension on all non-citizens arriving in the U.S. from the listed countries went into effect. No Miami faculty are stranded, according to university officials.
Another graduate student arrived from Iran Thursday, hours before the executive order was announced. He enrolled in classes Monday and is one of the three dozen students, scholars and faculty members from the affected countries.
Miami University officials immediately expressed concern about the impact of the executive order on international students, faculty, staff and their families and on the quality of higher education in a campus-wide letter Friday night.
"We want them to be able to succeed here," Cheryl Young, assistant provost for global initiatives. "This draws away from that."
The university has seen a surge in the number of international students in the past few years, with more than 3,000 enrolled in 2016.
MU officials assured the campus community it will remain a globally connected university, welcoming students, faculty and staff from all over the world.
"Our priority is to support these students," Young said. "We’re enriched by their presence and appreciate their diverse talents, culture and the contributions they make in Southwest Ohio."
The university in reaching out directly to all our international students, especially those from the countries named in the executive order for support.
MU is also advising students from these seven countries to not leave the U.S.
Northern Kentucky University doesn't have many students, faculty or staff that are affected, according to university officials.
Xavier University is aware of at least one student and two faculty members from those countries, but does not believe they or their families are currently traveling or detained. Xavier's Center for International Education has reached out to them to offer support and will monitor the executive order and how it's implemented.
"We understand that members of our community might be experiencing uncertainty around this order and how it might affect them or their families. Please know we stand with you," XU President Rev. Michael Graham said in a campus-wide letter Monday. "All are welcome here regardless of faith, national origin or immigration status."