Administrators hold forum to address international students’ concerns

Members of the Lehigh community gathered in Lamberton Hall on Tuesday to discuss international students’ concerns about how they may be affected by impending changes in the U.S. presidential administration.

Cheryl Matherly, the vice president and vice provost for international affairs, told The Brown and White that in recent weeks, many offices on campus have received inquiries from international students about visas and immigration status, safety and environment, and interpreting the political situation in the U.S.

Kathleen Hutnik, the associate dean and director of graduate student life, said she received many questions from students about campus resources that could help them understand the situation and how they might be affected.

She brought these concerns to Matherly and Clara Buie, the program director of the Global Union, both of whom she serves with on the Council for Equity and Community. Together, they decided to organize an informational panel to answer students’ questions and address their concerns.

Many senior Lehigh administrators participated in the forum, including President John Simon and Provost Pat Farrell, as well campus leaders and a local immigration lawyer.

“Nationally, this is a major topic of discussion because students are really questioning not only their safety and well-being, but to some extent they’re also questioning whether or not this is a good place for them in terms of the benefit of getting a U.S. degree,” Matherly said.

She said some international students are questioning whether it’s better to continue their degree in the U.S. when other countries, such as Canada, offer high-quality western universities and have presented themselves as welcoming environments.

Farrell said Lehigh faculty voted unanimously that they support and are deeply appreciative of international students’ presence in the university.

“We are fully committed to your education,” Simon told members of the audience. “International students are an important part of Lehigh.”

Matherly said 5 percent of students enrolled in U.S. universities nationwide are international students. At Lehigh, 9 percent of students come from foreign countries, according to the Lehigh at a Glance page.

Hutnik said 60 percent of Lehigh’s full-time graduate students are international.

“Recognizing that this is still a highly ambiguous environment, there is an awful lot that we won’t know until a ways into the presidential transition, but nonetheless, we wanted to create a forum where we could answer questions as we can right now,” Matherly said. “But more to the point, help students to know who their resource people are on campus.”

Edward Shupp, the chief of the Lehigh University Police Department, and Karen Salvemini, Lehigh’s Equal Opportunity Compliance Coordinator, encouraged students to immediately report incidents of bias or harassment that may occur on campus.

For students who were concerned about the safety of practicing their religion, university chaplain Lloyd Steffen said everyone has a constitutional right to practice their beliefs, and violence and Islamophobia have no place on Lehigh’s campus.

Many of the speakers reiterated the importance of Lehigh’s commitment to maintain its institutional values. Matherly said it is important to continue efforts to integrate international and domestic students and create opportunities for dialogue and personal interactions.

“I think the most important thing is recognizing the value of our global engagement,” she said. “The mission statement of Lehigh is very clear that we are preparing students as global leaders and that we value preparing students for leadership in a diverse community . . . Our international students bring value to the campus and it is all of our responsibility to make this a welcoming environment.”

Wenjing Wei, ’20, an international student from China, said she thought the panel was helpful for gathering information about available campus resources.

“To be honest, I don’t really worry about it much,” Wei said. “I was (in America) for high school and I went through one election already, and I know there won’t be too much change since, in the United States, there’s three branches (of the government), so the president won’t change much.”

Matherly said in the spring, following the presidential transition, her office plans to provide monthly updates to international students about information and changes that may pertain to them.

“Should there be something major that happens,” she said, “we would create or organize something for students where we could communicate that information back to them as we know it.”

Following the forum, the Office of International Affairs posted a page online listing responses to many of the questions that were raised by students.

Victor Yegon, ’20, who is from Kenya, said many of his questions were answered during the forum.

“Knowing that Lehigh is a community that is concerned with the welfare of international students — and everyone in general — and that they value all the diversity that they have, was something that was really encouraging,” he said.

Matherly said it’s too soon to tell whether or how president-elect Donald Trump’s administration will affect the way Lehigh recruits students from foreign countries.

“Lehigh really wants to have international students here on campus, wants to have these students as part of our community,” Matherly said. “We’re not retreating from any of our plans for our global engagement and recruiting, and at the end of the day we’re very focused on providing the best quality education experience for students.”