The university swiftly condemned the SEVP revocation as “unlawful,” saying in a statement it is “fully committed to maintaining Harvard’s ability to host international students and scholars, who hail from more than 140 countries and enrich the University – and this nation – immeasurably.”
“We are working quickly to provide guidance and support to members of our community. This retaliatory action threatens serious harm to the Harvard community and our country, and undermines Harvard’s academic and research mission,” university spokesperson Jason Newton said.
The university has an enormous foreign student population that could be impacted. It says it has 9,970 people in its international academic population, and data shows 6,793 international students comprise 27.2% of its enrollment in the 2024-25 academic year.
Like many other colleges and universities, Harvard drew intense criticism last year for its handling of pro-Palestinian protests and encampments following the start of the Israel-Hamas war, as well as complaints from Jewish alumni and students about antisemitism on campus.
Reports released by two Harvard task forces last month concluded that both Jewish and Muslim students feared for their safety during the 2023-24 academic year and had deep feelings of alienation and academic censorship on campus. They included broad recommendations and policy changes as remedies, some of which Harvard has already made.
Harvard has also implemented some changes to comply with the Trump administration’s requests, including changing the name of its Office of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging to Community and Campus Life.
But Noem, in a letter to Harvard on Thursday, accused the university of “perpetuating an unsafe campus environment that is hostile to Jewish students, promotes-pro-Hamas sympathies, and employs racist “diversity, equity and inclusion’ practices.” She did not mention Muslim or Arab students.
The administration has slapped Harvard with severe retaliatory measures, including freezing $2.2 billion in federal funds – a move the university is fighting in court. The Internal Revenue Service is also making plans to rescind Harvard’s tax-exempt status, two sources familiar with the matter told CNN.
The Trump administration appears poised to make an example of Harvard as it threatens similar punishment to other institutions if they don’t cooperate.
“This should be a warning to every other university to get your act together,” Noem said on Fox News.