Updated: 11:39 a.m.
BOSTON (Reuters) -A federal judge said on Wednesday that she would issue an order that would continue to block the Trump administration from immediately revoking Harvard University’s ability to enroll international students.
U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs in Boston announced her intention to issue a broad preliminary injunction shortly after the administration revealed it plans to pursue a new, lengthier administrative process to block the students’ enrollment.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security changed course ahead of a hearing before Burroughs over whether to extend a temporary order blocking President Donald Trump’s administration from revoking the Ivy League school’s right to host international students.
The department in a notice sent to Harvard near midnight on Wednesday said it would give the school 30 days to contest its plans to revoke its certification under a federal program allowing it to enroll non-U.S. students.
The Justice Department filed a copy of the notice in court two hours before Thursday’s hearing. Harvard’s lawyers and the judge said at the hearing that they were still processing it and assessing its impact on the school’s lawsuit.
When Burroughs asked if the notice acknowledged that procedural steps were not taken, Justice Department attorney Tiberius Davis replied that this wasn’t necessarily the case. Instead, he said, the notice recognized that adopting the procedures Harvard advocated for would be better and simpler.
Davis said the notice made Harvard’s arguments at this time moot. However, Burroughs, an appointee of Democratic former President Barack Obama, expressed skepticism about that, saying “Aren’t we still going to end up back here at the same place?”
Ian Gershengorn, a lawyer for Harvard, told Burroughs that an injunction protecting Harvard during the administrative process was necessary, saying the school was worried about the administration’s efforts to retaliate against it.
“The First Amendment harms we are suffering are real and continuing,” he said.
Burroughs said a preliminary injunction was needed to stop any immediate changes and protect international students arriving to attend Harvard.
The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based university says DHS’s action is part of an “unprecedented and retaliatory attack on academic freedom at Harvard,” which is pursuing a separate lawsuit challenging the administration’s decision to terminate nearly $3 billion in federal research funding.
Harvard argues the Trump administration is retaliating against it for refusing to accede to its demands to control the school’s governance, curriculum and the ideology of its faculty and students.
Harvard filed the lawsuit a day after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on May 22 announced she was revoking its certification with the Student and Exchange Visitor Program.
Harvard said the decision was “devastating” for the school and its student body. The university, the nation’s oldest and wealthiest, enrolled nearly 6,800 international students in its current school year, about 27% of its total enrollment.
Harvard had argued that the revocation not only violated its free speech and due process rights under the U.S. Constitution but also failed to comply with DHS regulations. The regulations require it to receive 30 days to challenge the agency’s allegations and an opportunity to pursue an administrative appeal.
In announcing the initial decision to revoke Harvard’s certification, Noem, without providing evidence, accused the university of “fostering violence, antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party.”
In a letter that day, she accused the school of refusing to comply with wide-ranging requests for information on its student visa holders, including about any activity they engaged in that was illegal or violent or that would subject them to discipline.
The department’s move would prevent Harvard from enrolling new international students and require existing ones to transfer to other schools or lose their legal status. Trump on Wednesday said that Harvard should have a 15% cap on the number of non-U.S. students it admits.
(Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston; Additional reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Lisa Shumaker)
Updated: 10:07 a.m.
BOSTON (Reuters) -The Trump administration on Thursday backed away from plans to immediately revoke Harvard University’s ability to enroll international students and would instead give it 30 days to contest those plans through a lengthier administrative process.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security sent Harvard a notice of intent on Wednesday to withdraw the school’s certification under a federal program to enroll non-U.S. students.
The Justice Department filed the notice in court ahead of a hearing before U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs in Boston over whether to extend a temporary order blocking President Donald Trump’s administration from revoking the Ivy League school’s right to host international students.
Citing the potential for Harvard and its students to be harmed if the administration reverted to its earlier plans, Burroughs at that hearing said she planned to issue a broad preliminary injunction preserving the status quo while the newly announced administrative process plays out.
Harvard had argued that the revocation violated its free speech and due process rights under the U.S. Constitution. In addition, Harvard contended that the revocation failed to comply with DHS regulations. The regulations required providing at least 30 days to challenge the agency’s allegations and giving Harvard an opportunity to pursue an administrative appeal.
Harvard has said losing that right would affect about one quarter of its student body and devastate the school. It has denied Trump administration charges of alleged bias against conservatives, fostering antisemitism on campus and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party.
The Homeland Security Department said it sent Harvard the notice after school officials indicated an intent to comply with requirements of the federal Student and Exchange Visitor Program, which allows Harvard to enroll non-U.S. students.
“We continue to reject Harvard’s repeated pattern of endangering its students and spreading American hate—it must change its ways to be eligible to receive generous benefits from the American people,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement.
Harvard did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The revocation announced on May 22 was an escalation of the Trump administration’s attack on Harvard.
The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based university’s lawyers argued the agency’s action was part of an “unprecedented and retaliatory attack on academic freedom at Harvard,” which is pursuing a separate lawsuit challenging the administration’s decision to terminate nearly $3 billion in federal research funding.
Harvard argues the Trump administration is retaliating against it for refusing to accede to its demands to control the school’s governance, curriculum and the ideology of its faculty and students.
The case before Burroughs, an appointee of Democratic former President Barack Obama, was filed after Noem revoked the school’s certification to enroll non-U.S. students.
In announcing the decision, Noem, without providing evidence, accused the university of “fostering violence, antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party.”
In a letter that day, she accused the school of refusing to comply with wide-ranging requests for information on its student visa holders, including about any activity they engaged in that was illegal or violent or that would subject them to discipline.
Harvard said the decision was devastating for the school and its student body. The university, the nation’s oldest and wealthiest, enrolled nearly 6,800 international students in its current school year, about 27% of its total enrollment.
The department’s move would prevent Harvard from enrolling new international students and require existing ones to transfer to other schools or lose their legal status.
Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Wednesday that Harvard University should have a 15% cap on the number of non-U.S. students it admits.
(Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston; Additional reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Lisa Shumaker)
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Updated: 8:06 a.m.
BOSTON (Reuters) -The Trump administration signaled on Thursday it might back away from plans to immediately revoke Harvard University’s ability to enroll international students and would instead pursue a lengthier administrative process.
According to a court filing, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security sent Harvard a notice of intent on Wednesday to withdraw the school’s certification under the federal Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), which allows Harvard to enroll non-U.S. students.
Harvard has denied Trump administration charges of alleged bias against conservatives, fostering antisemitism on campus and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party. It has 30 days to respond to the notice.
The notice came ahead of a scheduled hearing before U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs in Boston over whether to extend a temporary order blocking U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration from revoking the Ivy League school’s right to host international students.
Harvard has said losing that right would affect about one quarter of its student body and devastate the school.
Neither Harvard nor DHS immediately responded to requests for comment.
Harvard had argued that the revocation violated its free speech and due process rights under the U.S. Constitution as well as the Administrative Procedure Act, which governs agency actions.
Its lawyers said DHS regulations required providing at least 30 days to challenge the agency’s allegations, and give Harvard an opportunity to pursue an administrative appeal.
The revocation announced on May 22 was an escalation of the Trump administration’s attack on Harvard.
The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based university’s lawyers argued the agency’s action was part of an “unprecedented and retaliatory attack on academic freedom at Harvard,” which is pursuing a separate lawsuit challenging the administration’s decision to terminate nearly $3 billion in federal research funding.
Harvard argues the Trump administration is retaliating against it for refusing to cede to its demands to control the school’s governance, curriculum and the “ideology” of its faculty and students.
The case before Burroughs, an appointee of Democratic President Barack Obama, was filed after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem revoked the school’s SEVP certification.
In announcing the decision, Noem, without providing evidence, accused the university of “fostering violence, antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party.”
In a letter that day, she accused the school of refusing to comply with wide-ranging requests for information on its student visa holders, including about any activity they engaged in that was illegal or violent or that would subject them to discipline.
“As I explained to you in my April letter, it is a privilege to enroll foreign students, and it is also a privilege to employ aliens on campus,” she said.
Harvard said the decision was “devastating” for the school and its student body. The university, the nation’s oldest and wealthiest, enrolled nearly 6,800 international students in its current school year, about 27% of its total enrollment.
The department’s move would prevent Harvard from enrolling new international students and require existing ones to transfer to other schools or lose their legal status.
Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Wednesday that Harvard University should have a 15% cap on the number of non-U.S. students it admits. “Harvard has got to behave themselves,” he said.
(Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston; Additional reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi, Bill Berkrot, Philippa Fletcher)
BOSTON (Reuters) -A federal judge will consider on Thursday whether to further block U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration from revoking Harvard University’s ability to enroll international students, a move the Ivy League school said would impact about a quarter of its student body and devastate the school.
At a hearing in Boston, U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs will weigh whether to extend a temporary order she issued on Friday that blocked the U.S. Department of Homeland Security from carrying out the revocation it issued a day earlier.
The department’s move was an escalation of the Trump administration’s attack on Harvard. It has accused the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based university of bias against conservatives and of fostering antisemitism on its campus.
The school’s lawyers argued the agency’s action was part of an “unprecedented and retaliatory attack on academic freedom at Harvard,” which is pursuing a separate lawsuit challenging the administration’s decision to terminate nearly $3 billion in federal research funding.
Harvard argues the Trump administration is retaliating against it for refusing to cede to its demands to control the school’s governance, curriculum and the “ideology” of its faculty and students.
The case before Burroughs, an appointee of Democratic President Barack Obama, was filed after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem last week revoked the school’s certification in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program, which gives it the ability to allow enrollment of non-U.S. students.
In announcing the decision, Noem, without providing evidence, accused the university of “fostering violence, antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party.”
In a letter that day, she accused the school of refusing to comply with wide-ranging requests for information on its student visa holders, including about any activity they engaged in that was illegal or violent or that would subject them to discipline.
“As I explained to you in my April letter, it is a privilege to enroll foreign students, and it is also a privilege to employ aliens on campus,” she said.
Harvard said the decision was “devastating” for the school and its student body. The university, the nation’s oldest and wealthiest, enrolled nearly 6,800 international students in its current school year, about 27% of its total enrollment.
The department’s move would prevent Harvard from enrolling new international students and require existing ones to transfer to other schools or lose their legal status.
Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Wednesday that Harvard University should have a 15% cap on the number of non-U.S. students it admits. “Harvard has got to behave themselves,” he said.
Harvard argues that the revocation of its ability to enroll international students violated its free speech and due process rights under the U.S. Constitution as well as the Administrative Procedure Act, which governs agency actions.
Its lawyers say Harvard’s certification was revoked abruptly without complying with federal regulations requiring the department to provide a legitimate reason for its actions and advance notice and an opportunity to address any issues.
Under DHS regulations, the department was required to provide it at least 30 days to present evidence to challenge the agency’s allegations and provide the school an opportunity to pursue an administrative appeal, they said.
(Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston, Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Bill Berkrot)
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