Since President Donald Trump’s return to office, a slew of executive orders have been passed, influencing everything from immigration to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives. Several of these orders already impact or could impact students at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where international students make up 29-31% of the student body.

Expansive, hardline immigration policies top this list, from renewed efforts to dismantle Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, to increased surveillance of international students, to a stricter travel ban targeting Muslim-majority countries. The effects are already being felt across the country — including at SAIC.

The administration has moved to halt new DACA applications and tighten restrictions on renewals, putting thousands of students, including those at SAIC, at risk of losing their legal work authorization and protection from deportation.

SAIC has historically supported DACA recipients, collaborating on legal efforts to defend the program. As policies shift, though, there are new questions about whether the school will continue to step up, expand legal aid, offer emergency grants, or take new measures to protect undocumented students.

In an email sent on Feb. 20, SAIC president Jiseon Lee Isbara wrote, “Students needing support related to these issues are encouraged to reach out to our Office of Student Affairs or Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for support.”

Bree Witt, SAIC’s interim vice president for marketing and communications, spoke to F Newsmagazine on behalf of the school. Witt said, “The school is carefully monitoring each new announcement from the [Trump] Administration to assess its potential impact on our community. We will only reach out to our community if a policy change that has the potential to impact school operations is implemented.”

No one at SAIC was able to share concrete steps that would be taken to protect international students, or share if they would provide additional legal support for students who might face difficulties re-entering the United States. Witt pointed to an email sent by Interim Vice President and Dean of Student Affairs Debbie Martin in February stating that law enforcement officers would be stopped at campus security and that students should contact campus security if confronted by law enforcement.

Another new executive order requires universities to monitor and report international students involved in activism, particularly those supporting Palestinian rights.

F Newsmagazine spoke to three international students, all of whom asked to stay anonymous for their safety.

“We’ve been scared since day one. We were scared during Biden, we’re scared now,” said R, a grad student.

Reports from The Intercept suggest that the Department of Homeland Security is already tracking student activists, with some universities receiving warnings about noncompliance.

SAIC has a long history of student activism and many have participated in demonstrations for Palestinian rights. International students fear that speaking out could cost them their visa status.

R said, “[The school’s communication] is laughable because when did the school ever have our back. They’ve been looking for reasons to persecute us since day 1, deportation just gives them a way to get rid of us for good.”

There is also a reinstated travel ban that expands restrictions to more Muslim-majority countries, raising concerns about visa renewals and the ability to return to the U.S. after traveling abroad.

Some international students worry that visiting family could mean being stranded, unable to return to school. The office of International Student Affairs has shared no comment with FNews at the time of publication.

S, another graduate student, said, “I have to travel in early March, and I’m scared. My friends are as lost as I am. I wish the school sent something more than insufficient, vague emails.”

Faculty members conducting research or attending conferences overseas face similar risks.

In 2017, when Trump first introduced a travel ban, universities across the country responded with legal guidance and support for affected students and staff.

M, an undergrad student, said, “What is the point of having offices dedicated to international students if there’s no communication from them when the government is throwing out these policies right, left, center. It’s not like these don’t have precedence.”

M was also frustrated with SAIC’s silence because many institutes emailed international students precautionary measures before Trump’s inauguration. “Where was our school’s communication? Where is it now? We’re all scared,” M said.

Trump has also signed multiple executive orders seeking to limit or eliminate DEI practices at schools and elsewhere. Some of the orders threaten to withhold federal funding if schools do not comply. Many universities have taken actions in response — The University of Chicago took down its DEI website and North Carolina’s public universities removed requirements that students take classes related to DEI in order to graduate.

At the time of this publication, SAIC hadn’t made any changes to its DEI initiatives.

At an all staff and faculty meeting on Feb. 19, Lee Isbara said, “We are all learning about it in real time. You’re learning it at the same time that I’m learning it, at the same time our general counsel is learning it, all other offices are learning it. So, the school is trying to understand what [the announcements] mean, and how they could actually impact the school as a law and regulation and ordinance.”

Lee Isbara said that the executive orders announced were up to interpretation and that SAIC would continue with “business as usual until we know for sure what is going to impact us exactly.”

Still, the ramifications for SAIC are significant. A hostile immigration environment could deter international students from applying, affecting both the student body and the institution’s financial stability. Other schools, including Northwestern and Loyola University Chicago, have already pledged legal aid and emergency support. SAIC has yet to make a similar pledge.

For students navigating this shifting landscape, advocacy groups like the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights and the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois continue to offer legal resources and support.