Five international students attending Tarrant County College had their visas revoked, according to district officials.
TCC notified the affected students once it learned about the federal government changing their immigration status, spokesperson Reginald Gates said in a statement. Of TCC’s 46,681 students, 469 are studying on a visa.
“TCC does not receive advance notice or explanation from the federal government when this occurs, nor does the college have access to the underlying details that may have led to such actions,” Gates said.
The federal government has pulled the visas of more than 200 international students enrolled in universities across Texas, according to data compiled by the news publication Inside Higher Ed.
The University of Texas at Arlington has seen 27 students affected. The University of North Texas in Denton County reported the federal government terminated the visas of 27 students.
Across the nation, more than 1,200 students attending over 200 higher education institutions have been affected, according to news publication Inside Higher Ed.
The immigration status of students is tracked through the federal government’s Student and Exchange Visitor Information System.
On April 9, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security started screening international students’ social media for antisemitic posts following two executive orders President Donald Trump issued in response to pro-Palestine protests on college campuses, according to a news release.
TCC’s international admissions team will provide guidance to help students understand and maintain their visa status, Gates said.
“TCC continues to monitor developments in federal immigration and visa policy and remains focused on ensuring that all students, regardless of background, are treated with fairness and dignity while enrolled at the college,” Gates said.
Jacob Sanchez is a senior education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at jacob.sanchez@fortworthreport.org or @_jacob_sanchez. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
This article first appeared on Fort Worth Report and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
