Dear students, faculty and staff,
For generations, international collaboration has been a fundamental and distinguishing characteristic of American research universities, and a principal reason for their success. At Rice, this remains true, and our campus community is wonderfully enriched by the presence of international students, faculty, scholars, staff and visitors.
In recent days, however, events at other universities have made it clear that we have entered a period of intensive immigration law enforcement for university communities in the United States. In some cases, persons with student visas or legal permanent residency (green cards) have been detained for alleged violations of immigration law; in others, international students have seen their visas canceled with no prior notice, even to their sponsoring colleges or universities.
For a campus built on long-standing efforts to embrace the wisdom of the world’s great scholars and universities, these developments bring understandable concerns and questions.
International students, for example, worry their visas will be canceled or study-abroad opportunities restricted. International faculty, graduate students and postdoctoral scholars ask if they should risk traveling outside the United States for field research, academic conferences, or to visit family and friends. Non-U.S. citizens hear they may receive extra screening and scrutiny when returning to the United States through airports or other ports of entry. And, in some cases, non-U.S. citizens believe they may become unable to express their personal political views or engage in other lawful activities.
Rice strongly affirms its enduring commitment to our international students, faculty, scholars and staff, and to the value and perspective that international travel brings to our most important and defining academic endeavors.
In addition, to better inform and support our campus community during these current uncertainties, we are writing to offer these five main points of guidance and assistance.
- First, we strongly encourage all non-U.S. citizen members of the Rice community (including those with student visas, green cards and work visas) to carefully reconsider non-essential travel outside the United States.
- Second, Rice has established an International Travel Incident Response Team. This team is available to give immediate, 24/7 help to Rice faculty, students, staff and postdoctoral scholars who encounter health, safety, and immigration difficulties while traveling abroad or returning to the United States. To reach the International Travel Incident Response Team, call 713-348-6000, day or night, 365 days a year. If you travel internationally, please program this number into your phone. This number connects you to the Rice University Police Department. Simply ask for the International Travel Incident Response Team, and RUPD will immediately connect you to a Rice member of the team. This team can provide you guidance, connect you to legal advice, or speak directly to immigration officials on your behalf.
- Third, before traveling outside the United States on a university-related trip, all students, faculty, scholars and staff are required to register their travel with the Rice Travel Registry, which is located at https://travelregistry.rice.
edu/. Registering your travel helps Rice connect you to critical resources, including Rice-paid travel insurance, medical assistance services, legal referrals, security evacuation services and, in some locations, access to member-only clinics for primary and 24-hour emergency care.
- Fourth, before traveling outside the United States on a personal trip, all faculty, scholars and staff are encouraged to register their travel with the Rice Travel Registry, which is located at https://travelregistry.rice.
edu/.
- Last, if you have questions about your immigration status or visa, please contact Rice’s Office of International Students & Scholars (OISS), which supports all Rice internationals and Rice academic departments on immigration matters. For assistance, please drop by OISS’ reception desk on the first floor of Lovett Hall, Entrance A; make an appointment here; email OISS at oiss@rice.edu; or call 713-348-6095.
Beyond these five points, we have developed additional, initial guidance and resources for our international travelers and international community. By Monday, April 7, you will find this initial guidance at https://global.rice.edu/
Rice is committed to being a community of excellence and ambition for students, faculty, scholars and staff from every background and origin. Thank you for continuing to support this most accomplished group during this period of concern and beyond.
With care,
Amy Dittmar
Howard R. Hughes Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs
Professor of Finance, Jones Graduate School of Business
Professor of Economics, School of Social Sciences
Kelly Fox
Executive Vice President for Operations, Finance and Support
Ramamoorthy Ramesh
Executive Vice President for Research
Professor of Materials Science and Nanoengineering
Professor of Physics and Astronomy
Caroline F. Levander
Vice President for Global
Carlson Professor in the Humanities
Professor of English