A politician and some educators have criticized the new rules released by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that may deport foreign students in the United States if they do not comply with the regulations.

Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren on Wednesday told BBC that the rules issued by ICE were "senseless, cruel, and xenophobic."

Based on the new regulatons, ICE said international students with fully online classes will not be allowed to stay in the U.S. unless they move to a course with in-person tuition. Students may face deportation if they do not comply.

According to ICE, visas will not be issued to foreign students enrolled in schools and programs that will go fully online for the fall semester. It will affect students, who are in the U.S. on F-1 and M-1 visas.

The coronavirus pandemic is pushing many universities and colleges to do online classes.

Universities on Losing End

The Chronicle of Higher Education said nine percent of universities in the U.S. are planning to do online classes. This included the Harvard University.

Harvard University President Larry Bacow has also expressed concern over the ICE rules, the BBC news reported. Bacow said these rules give international students few options, aside from leaving the country or transferring schools.

Bacow further noted that the decision weakens many colleges and universities' efforts to continue academic programs amid the coronavirus pandemic. He said Harvard will work with other colleges and universities to "chart a path forward."

New York University lecturer and journalist Elizabeth Spiers tweeted on Wednesday that many of her students depend on their visas. "Online classes will be a challenge with the time difference between the U.S. and the students' home countries," Spiers added.

For her part, Immigration lawyer Fiona McEntee said the loss of international students would mainly affect university budgets. 

International students make up five percent of college enrollment in the U.S., according to a Brooking Institution report. The total revenues from their tuition and fees amount to $2.5 billion.

International students also pay non-resident tuition rates. They also receive less aid than domestic students.

A National Association of Foreign Student Advisers (NAFSA) survey said a decrease in international student enrollments due to the pandemic might cost the U.S. some $3 billion. Schools may face a revenue loss of $23 billion.

Students Affected

More than one million of the country's college students are international students. Harvard University student Noah Furlonge-Walker was looking forward to his second year in the university when he heard the announcement.

Furlonge-Walker moved back to Trinidad in March, when Harvard said it would do online classes for the rest of the academic year. He said everyone was trying to get back to normal so "why they would do something that jeopardizes everyone?"

Meanwhile, Bowdoin College student Nirhan Nurjadin wanted to stay in Maine for his senior year. But ICE's new rule changed his plans.

Nurjadin, from Indonesia, said the 12-hour time difference would be a challenge catching up on online classes.

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