HBS Statement on Supporting Our International Student Community

The Department of Health, Behavior & Society stands in solidarity with our international student community.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), on behalf of The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, has announced the termination of an emergency waiver that had permitted international students to maintain their visa status while enrolled in US universities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Department of Health, Behavior, and Society (HBS) at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health vehemently opposes this decision. Depriving our international students the ability to pursue their academic careers during the pandemic severely limits their future career opportunities and contributions to global health. This new policy is not only cruel, but it is also scientifically indefensible. At precisely the time when new and innovative policies are needed to promote public health education across the globe, ICE’s new policy stifles international students’ participation and collaboration in pandemic prevention and control.

Since its inception, HBS has been dedicated to understanding the role of policies in affecting social and behavioral responses to health threats and their impact on health disparities and inequities. This policy change is a thinly veiled attempt to pressure universities to reopen classrooms across the country against public health guidance. This is a violation of the health and safety of all students, faculty, staff, and other community residents in U.S. academic campuses. Alongside our School’s leadership, we remain vigilant in fully supporting our international students in HBS who may be impacted by these horrific changes. We and our School’s leadership vow to provide public health guidance to ensure high quality—and safe—scholarship and instruction for all of our students. This is a time of uncertainty and fear among our international students, and we are working as swiftly as possible to establish a viable solution.