ORLANDO, Fla. — One central Florida college is eliminating recruiting international students because of the uncertainty surrounding international student visas.
“It’s kind of crazy that we came to that point,” said Loic Largarde, an international student from France who is attending Valencia College in Orlando.
Largarde says his friends at school, who are back home for the summer, aren’t sure if they’re returning for class.
“No response from renewal of visas and everything like that. It’s a strong word to say disgust, but it kind of came to that point,” he said.
The Trump administration says it’s resuming processing visas for foreign students but demands access to social media accounts.
As the administration makes changes to the immigration system, some schools like Valencia College are no longer counting on international students to attend.
On Wednesday, the college released a statement saying, “Valencia College is no longer recruiting international students, though we will continue to serve our current international students, as well as new students who have been issued a student visa to study in the United States.”
A school spokesperson said there are 1,300 international students attending that make up 2% of the total enrollment.
“I think it’s a sad decision to make, because there’s a lot we can bring. We study and we’re really serious about our studies,” Loic said.
The University of Florida says no international student recruitment has been canceled.
Seminole State College doesn’t have a program, but says it supports their international students anyway possible.
The University of Central Florida hasn’t responded to WFTV’s calls or emails.
“America, we’re known in the world one of the top places send your kids to get educated.” said Rep. Maxwell Frost. He is concerned more schools will be affected.
“They’re not gonna want to come anymore. People are seeing what’s going on right now and they’re disgusted,“ he said.
Rep. Randy Fine released a statement saying, “Taxpayer dollars should benefit Americans First. We don’t need to recruit abroad when we have the best and brightest here in Florida. To any foreign student sfraid of coming to Florida-If you’re not a criminal or foreign agent, there’s nothing to fear.”
Loic worries about his friends, saying, “They just don’t want to be here anymore because nobody really helps them.”
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