Students & Scholars

 

In the Wake of September 11: Responding to Concerns

What does an institution with extraordinary international outreach do when tragic world events threaten the stability of world order? MSU is an international university and hosts close to 4,000 international students and scholars from 135 countries. September 11 changed the hearts and minds of many people; for MSU it became an opportunity to reaffirm its commitment to international education.

MSU's reaction came on many fronts. A few days after the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, D.C., MSU President Peter McPherson organized a memorial service at Wharton Center for the Performing Arts in which people of many faiths could take comfort in their shared grief. This and other events helped the MSU community pull together.

The support for international students was pervasive across the MSU campus but was centered in the Office for International Students and Scholars (OISS). For newly hired OISS director Peter Briggs, who moved to MSU from the University of Oregon in early October, the aftermath of September 11 dominated the agenda. The traditional feeling of community on the campus and the intensified support for international students appear to have been effective in responding to international student concerns. "It seems impressive," comments Briggs, "that while international students at a number of U.S. universities (especially those of Middle Eastern origin) returned to their home countries due to concerns for their safety, not one international MSU student withdrew from school for this reason."

As homeland security became a national priority, MSU administrators found themselves tracking a fast-moving series of federal regulations designed to confront terrorism, many of which affected international students. A new USA PATRIOT Act included provisions to fund a program to track international students. In addition, President Bush signed a Presidential Directive that included a provision to explore "visa abuse." The Department of State created special policies to investigate visa applications of male Muslim students from certain countries.

"So much transpired in such a short period of time," says Briggs. "The media made international student issues front page news. It was a time of great uncertainty. OISS staff were challenged to keep abreast of the new regulations, respond to an inquiring media, and communicate the changes to MSU's international community."

Under orders from the U.S. Attorney General, the FBI selected 5,000 men from across the country for interviews, including 43 MSU international students. MSU's Department of Police and Public Safety refused to participate with the FBI in interviewing MSU students. OISS staff provided students being interviewed with background information, offers of legal assistance and, upon request, sat as observers during some of the interviews.

In late fall semester, when late-breaking changes were being made in federal regulations for processing visas and immigration, many international students were making plans to return home for the holiday break. What was the risk to their traveling? How could advisers reassure them that they would be able to return to campus for the start of spring semester when long-standing rules for re-entering the U.S. appeared to be in flux? OISS tracked the many policy changes and issued a series of travel advisories with the most up-to-date information for those traveling. In addition, OISS hosted a series of seminars addressing the complexity of the changes in visa processing and immigration. The special outreach to international students won praise from students who were struggling to balance the need to travel against the risk to their ability to return.

Michigan State University and its international student and scholar constituencies seem to have weathered the September 11 storm and emerged relatively unscathed. The recently established weekly International Coffee Hour in the International Center has been well received, and OISS hopes it will become a traditional gathering point for everyone at MSU wishing to be part of the university's international community.

At the end of spring semester 2002, the number of applications from international students for fall 2002 is exceeding that of previous years. "The world changed on September 11," says Briggs. "We now work in a context of legal issues to support antiterrorism. This will, unfortunately, affect the regulations pertaining to international students and scholars. We have a strong commitment to maintain and expand MSU's international enrollment. This means that we will simply learn to work with the new government regulations."