More Guidance, and More Questions, for International Students and Covid-19
Last week I told you that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security was relaxing regulations on international students. Officials have since sought to clarify the initial memo, stating that international students will be able to take online courses without jeopardizing their visa status — whether they remain in the United States or return to their home country. Although resolving the uncertainty around online education was a big issue for colleges, they still have many unanswered questions about the coronavirus outbreak’s impact on current international students, incoming freshmen, and those who are about to graduate or finish postgraduate work. NAFSA: Association of International Educators lays out many of those concerns in a letter to Homeland Security officials.
Researcher Under Investigation for Foreign Ties Invents Coronavirus Test
A cancer researcher at the University of Florida left the United States in 2019 amid an inquiry into his alleged failure to fully disclose his Chinese academic appointments and funding. Now, Weihong Tan leads a team of 300 Chinese scientists who worked to develop a fast, easy test for Covid-19. HIs case illustrates the potential costs of the U.S. government’s stepped-up investigations and prosecutions of researchers for not disclosing foreign ties.
College-Advancement Group Comments on Proposed Reporting Requirements
Speaking of increased scrutiny of colleges’ international work, the Council for Advancement and Support of Education has submitted comments on a proposed federal disclosure form for foreign gifts and contracts. While the group said it supported transparency, it reiterated its concern that heightened reporting requirements could discourage donations from reputable philanthropists to American colleges. Specifically, CASE asked the U.S. Department of Education to limit the information that colleges must provide to what is required by statute and to eliminate the requirement to provide donors’ names and addresses in the disclosure form.
University Ends Overseas Recruiting Agreement Amid Softening Enrollments
Marshall University is ending its international-student pathways program with INTO University Partnerships, just seven years into a 30-year agreement. The West Virginia university cited softening international enrollments in halting the partnership with the student-recruitment company. Even before the coronavirus outbreak, new international enrollments at American colleges had declined for three years in a row. This is the latest public-private partnership to recruit international students that has fallen on tough times.
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