Ashley Brittania Bryan
Contributing Writer
A global pandemic caused major disruption to life’s normal proceedings. It has also resulted in the closure of Broward College’s campuses and many other college campuses nationwide.
This forced many institutions to resort to remote or online learning platforms with a completely virtual learning experience. For international students however, that transition was more complicated than that of their peers as immigration rules and policies stipulate their ability to remain in school and maintain overall legal status in the U.S.
If the policy would’ve remained in effect much longer, it would’ve drastically affected many students in many different ways. However, these policies had already taken effect for students like Chloe Newman, a new student, who was recently accepted into Broward College for the fall semester.
“I was recently accepted into the college when ICE announced its new policy. Not only has this affected my ability to obtain a student visa but with it followed more restrictions on my admission into the country. This was very disappointing and discouraging to me as I already had to defer my admission due to the Corona virus. I was worried about what the future will bring to my situation as I felt the experience was torn away from me before it even began. Surprisingly, with lawsuits and many outcries from students like me, the policy was soon withdrawn, and I couldn’t have been more relieved. We have rights too and we won’t be ignored.”
This is only one example of a drastic effect the policy had already begun to take on a prospective international student at BC. Even though the entire essence of being an international student is to experience life and cultures in another country whilst pursuing their studies.
She, and many other students in her situation, have since been able to proceed with their admission to the college, despite the lack of physical instruction that was already disrupted by the pandemic.
What was once an outcry of students and their respective institutions led to the development of an overwhelming support system on social media, as students then learned their legal status will remain protected, as well as their safety from risking exposure to the corona virus had they been forced to continue their studies in person.
