University of Oklahoma students express concerns about student visa revocations
NORMAN, Okla. (KFOR) — Visas for international college students are being revoked nationwide and here in our state. University of Oklahoma students say the sudden actions have them worried.
An international student from OU spoke to News 4 about her concerns regarding the revocations. Due to privacy, we are protecting her identity.
She's Kenyan American and already has her citizenship, but has siblings and friends who rely on visas.
"It's very scary because you don't know, like, if you'll be impacted," she said. "Education has been a tool for many years for people to change their circumstances and just create a better life for themselves and their families back home."
Here in Oklahoma, we know of at least 14 college students with revoked visas. Oklahoma State University, University of Central Oklahoma, Oklahoma Christian University, Langston University, and Rose State College are all sharing information.
However, the University of Oklahoma says they cannot share the information and sent News 4 a statement:
Due to FERPA protections, we are unable to provide any information related to your request.
The University of Oklahoma
However, universities in California, North Carolina, Ohio, Minnesota, Colorado, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada and Oregon also confirmed visa revocations, saying it does not violate federal privacy laws.
Another OU student weighed in on the matter.
"They already worked so hard, and they gotta go back to their home, that's not a good thing," Rodric Davis said.
Governor Kevin Stitt also addressed the topic in Wednesday's press conference.
"I will say I'm confident that President Trump is not revoking visas just to do that," Stitt said. "There is either some kind of criminal activity, there is something happening with those visas that they say that's a danger to America. I totally trust President Trump."
The international student said OU withholding information is unsettling.
"We have had no communication about what's going on," she said. "We've just seen like things that are going on across the state to other schools."
According to the O'Colly, of the eight known OSU students impacted, political activity was cited as a reason for one student. The other seven visas were revoked due to criminal activity ranging from a previous arrest, to a speeding ticket.
In a research study from the Association of American Universities, international students brought nearly $44B to the U.S. economy last academic year and supported nearly 400,000 jobs.