Public Media for Central Pennsylvania
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Penn State President Addresses Trump's Immigration Order

(photo: Penn State)

Penn State President Eric Barron released a statement Sunday on President Trump’s executive order blocking citizens from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen from entering the U.S. for at least 90 days.

Barron expressed concern for the effect of the ban on higher education. He said the university is keeping a close eye on developments “to ensure that we fully understand how this executive order and any future orders may affect Penn State, including the implications for our many students, researchers and faculty who are citizens of other countries."

Barron said that, as far as he knows, no one at Penn State has been directly affected by the executive order.

“But the problems that are surfacing with the order are clear,” he said, “and we join the Association of American Universities and universities all across the country in asking that the order be ended as soon as possible.”

The statement advised Penn State international students and faculty to carry immigration documents at all times when traveling and urged non-citizens not to leave the country “until greater clarity is apparent.”

President Barron said Penn State will provide more specific guidance as it becomes available, and encouraged anyone at the university with questions to contact Penn State’s Office of Global Programs. “The best part of Penn State is our people,” he said, “ – no matter what country they may call home. We support all of you.”

See the full text of the statement by President Barron here: http://news.psu.edu/story/447807/2017/01/29/administration/penn-state-president-shares-message-following-executive-order

See the Association of American Universities statement here: http://www.aau.edu/news/article.aspx?id=18366

Penn State’s Office of Global Programs: https://global.psu.edu/info/internationals-psu/students/contact-us(814) 865-6348 Email: international@psu.edu

Kristine Allen is Program Director of WPSU-FM. She also files feature stories for WPSU on the arts, culture, science, and more. When she's not at WPSU, Kris enjoys playing folk fiddle, acting, singing and portrait-sketching. She is also a self-confessed "science geek." Kris started working in public radio in college, at age 17, and says she "just couldn't stop."