OSU President Burns Hargis Responds To Temporary Immigration Ban

Following President Trump’s executive order late last week that put a temporary halt on immigration from seven Middle Eastern countries as well as refugees from around the globe, Oklahoma State president Burns Hargis responded with a statement.

Oklahoma State University is concerned about the recent executive order restricting re-entry into the United States for citizens of certain countries. The order has created confusion as well as anxiety throughout our country and on our campus.

That is an understatement.

Many of our faculty, staff and students come from across the globe. International diversity provides perspectives, experiences and opportunities that enrich the classroom experiences at our university and prepare our students to work in a global community.

Our international student center will be reaching out to international students, faculty and staff who may be affected by this order. We will work with our legal advisors and our Oklahoma political leaders to determine our options to support our international community at Oklahoma State.

As President of Oklahoma State, I encourage all to work together in support of our international community, which through the years has greatly enhanced the OSU land-grant mission and our campus experience.

For obvious reasons, the comments on this blog post will be closed. I will say that I’m glad for a university president like Hargis who is thoughtful, measured and caring of the tribe of folks he’s in charge of (namely, students and faculty at Oklahoma State).