Mass deportation orders leave colleges in uncertainty

Natalie Booth ’28
boothn@hartzera
JOUR 320 student

College administrators across the country are unsure about the Trump administration’s new executive orders that initiate the mass deportation and expedited removal of undocumented immigrants in the U.S., including college students. 

Lake Forest College admits undocumented students as part of its mission to embrace diversity, according to its website. Now, their future status is uncertain—here and elsewhere. 

“As far as what the future holds for undocumented students on any college campus, I don’t think anybody knows right now,” said Tony Tyler, Dean of Students. “Unfortunately, there’s not a lot of clarity yet on what that will look like.” 

The Trump administration has made the deportation of undocumented immigrants a top priority. On Trump’s first day of his second term, he signed 10 executive orders regarding federal immigration policy. One of those was for the government to “take all appropriate action to prioritize the prosecution of criminal offenses related to the unauthorized entry or continued unauthorized presence of aliens in the United States.”   

As of now, the College does not have any policies that conflict with state and federal laws, Tyler said.   

“If it was determined that there is a policy that conflicts, then obviously we’d have to take a close look at that policy and figure out what we need to do to get into alignment with either federal or state laws,” Tyler said.  

  The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has permitted agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to conduct arrests in “sensitive” areas, including college campuses. While Tyler said the college has not been contacted by ICE, administrators alerted students to the possibility.  

  “We’ve sort of gotten some indications from executive orders and commentary from the federal government as to what potentially could be coming, but we really don’t know,” says Tyler. 

A recent email from Dr. William “Chris” King, the director of public safety, included instructions for students, should they encounter immigration officials on campus.  

  “We are committed to fostering a respectful and safe environment for all our students, staff, and faculty,” King wrote. “In addition, we want to ensure the safety, privacy, and rights of all individuals on our campus. Finally, we want to ensure that any interactions with law enforcement are handled appropriately and in line with local and federal laws.” 

  In Illinois, ICE must follow the Family and Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), which protects student information held by institutions. If ICE were to contact Lake Forest College, the administration would continue to follow FERPA, says Tyler.  

  “If immigration customs enforcement were to request any information that is protected by FERPA, they would need to go through the legal processes to access it, just like any other agency that asked for it,” Tyler said. “[We] will engage with them, talk with them, see what exactly they’re needing.” For more information, students may contact the following Lake Forest College staff members: Tony Tyler, dean of students—ttyler@lakeforest.edu; Alice Fermaintt, associate director of Inclusive Excellence Programming—afermaintt@lakeforest.edu; Sandra Ortiz, associate director for International Student Support—sortiz@lakeforest.edu.