Dear Senator Lee, Senator Romney, and Representative Curtis,

I am a middle school teacher here in Utah. I am devastated about ICE’s new rules in regards to foreign students studying in the United States. 

This policy negatively impacts the economy, the universities, and more specifically the international students. This policy will force institutions to choose between putting the health of their students and instructors at risk or losing their international students. 

As someone who recently graduated college, I know how tight a college budget can be. I cannot imagine the stress of potentially having to buy a last-minute plane ticket because a university or college has to switch to online halfway through the semester. Additionally, I cannot imagine the constant fear throughout the semester that the university or college may have to switch to online. Certainly this stress would affect their performance.

Additionally, this policy could have drastic effects on our economy. According to NAFSA’s latest analysis, international students studying at U.S. colleges and universities contributed $41 billion and supported 458,290 jobs to the U.S. economy during the 2018-2019 academic year.

I want representatives to consider the many adverse effects of this policy. I would ask that these students be granted the opportunity to study without fear of deportation.

Regards,
Rebecca (Utah)