Approval of Previous Minutes —

Hollie Hall made a motion to approve the minutes from the Oct. 11, 2022, committee meeting.  Sunita seconded the motion.  None opposed.  Minutes approved.

Guest Speaker Presentation —

Sunita Gandhi welcomed Dr. Eron Memaj for an informal conversation with the committee.  Dr. Memaj is looking forward to working with committee members.  Dr. Memaj is new to KU and Director of International Support Services (ISS).  Introductions were made. 

Dr. Memaj was introduced and began the discussion with a brief overview of the background and journey that led to the KU position as director of ISS.  Dr. Memaj talked about International Support Services for students.  Dr. Memaj encouraged everyone to share what is needed at KU for services provided to International Students.  Dr. Memaj also would like the committee to share its goals. 

Dr. Memaj is from Albania.  The journey to U.S. began at age 16 when Dr. Memaj landed in Ohio.  Dr. Memaj’s bachelor’s experience included study abroad programs and participation in student organizations.  He was on most types of Visas, so he has vast knowledge and experience of them. His journey of 21 years of becoming a U.S. citizen…he understands the lengthy journey.  After his bachelor’s, Dr. Memaj worked in promotions and public relations in the jewelry industry.  Ohio State, Dr. Memaj’ s alma mater, offered a position that would give him the chance to get a master’s degree and work in higher education in the international office, part of the assistantship.  Post masters, he worked at a private, small school in Ohio with a student population of about 4700, with about 150 international students. After a year, he accepted a position at Kent State, where he worked with international and domestic students.  This was a challenging position working in Housing.  After a few years, he was selected as director of international student affairs, where he was for the past 7 years.  He finished his PhD along the way.  Looking for opportunities outside of Ohio, he saw this position at KU, and this was the right opportunity for him to move forward.

In International Support Services, there are 4 pillars as students pursue the journey to KU.  We have admissions and recruitment, mainly undergraduate.  The second pillar is immigration advising and compliance.  We make sure students comply with regulations and have the right documentation for visas. It also helps students stay legal and follow the regulations.  International student engagement provides resources and programming for international students.  And there is Administration.  ISS is in Strong Hall, first floor.  There is always something happening in the office.  Dr. Eron Memaj paused for comments and questions.

Question.  Your ISS team is doing a great job.  When it comes to resources, how will you advertise this?  In general, when we talk to students and staff, we don’t know where to send them.  Especially with the other campuses, they don’t know where to send students.  Can we talk about how to advertise?

Answer.  We work closely with Student Affairs, and there are lots of services available for students.  We are in constant contact with students with various programs and workshops, like programs, such as one in which we introduced students with KU Public Safety office and during orientations, we talk about these resources and let international students know to come to us without hesitation, we are the first contact in their journey.  It doesn’t mean the students will remember all those resources.  We try to make sure to continuously keep them informed/reminded of these resources and encourage to contact us for any assistance, our team of experienced and helpful faculty and staff is always there to help the students. This way, when an issue arises, they know and feel comfortable to come to us.  We are open to other suggestions.

Question (from Chat).  Concerns on how we can support students.  Explain to students using Watkins is free, means that students have already paid with their fees.  Explain how insurance works.  It’s overwhelming to students in orientation.  CAPS (KU Counseling and Psychological Services) is not talked about much.  I know they are overwhelmed.  You don’t have to pay for sessions if you have KU health.  Many students don’t know this.  More support in explaining those points is important. 

Comment:  There are clinics in Education that do assessments and counseling.  Clinical Psychology and Child Psychology have clinics.  They have sliding scales and do some pro bono work.  These are additional resources for international students.

Question.  International students are choosing other destinations to study: UK, Canada for example.  Do you think students feel less welcome in U.S. and if so, do we have a plan to address those concerns?

Reply (Hollie).  This is a result of a multitude of things.  Visas and sanctions made it less desirable.  Also, cost is an issue.  There is a big decline in the number of students coming to US and overall high cost is a big factor. 

Reply (Charlie).  It’s an interesting dynamic.  U.S. is still the number one destination to study for international students.  U.S. share is declining as other countries prioritize international student mobility and opportunities.  Systems are evolving.  If you look at U.K, Canada, and Australia, those countries attracting international students, they have progressive immigration policies related to post degree employment.  In Canada, there is a smooth process toward employment and permanent residency that has been incorporated into their immigration laws.  In U.K., when Theresa May was PM, she removed

the post-completion employment authorization for international students and they saw student numbers plummet by 75%.  When reversed, they saw, over a 5-year period, a rebound.  People want flexibility and doors to be open. In U.S., STEM fields, where there is a 3-year optional practical training opportunity upon completion, those areas are seeing international student growth.  This creates less certainty for students and a longer time.  Immigration policy is a big factor here.  Politics eroded confidence in OPT (Optional Practical Training). Look at regions and states.  KU and Kansas have a different sense of safety and security.  When students come, they tend to stay.  There is a perception that the heartland is welcoming and safe.  KU has bucked some trends and we are seeing growth in international students.  The next two or three years we will see the number growing.  Our Applied English Center is a big draw.  We don’t structure this into our admissions process. English proficiency is not a barrier.  U.S. education is expensive.  Many graduate students at KU are funded, especially STEM. 

Reply (Dr. Memaj.  There are political changes that happen, but most universities and campuses are open and supportive.  NASA has a “You’re Welcome Here” campaign.  We navigate the challenges. 

Dr. Memaj asked what the committee mission is and even individually, what would you like to achieve? 

One comment was that we hope to address student concerns that we are not even aware of. We would like them to know they belong at KU.  We want to address their concerns.

The committee charges were put on the chat for Dr. Memaj.  Dr. Memaj described some things ISS does behind the scenes.  Protest in Iran, we reached out to all students, and Iranian students to let them know we are here for them.  There is a lot of stress when you are away from your family who is dealing with a crisis.  We organized a discussion panel for Iran students so they can discuss.  It provided a platform where they could be heard.  We reached out to other international groups.  It may go unnoticed to others, but the students do notice.  I reach out to the students individually.  We help students with things needed in job searching.  We recently had the World Expo, and the event went well.  It marked International Week, which we celebrate. 

Question.  When two countries are at war with each other.  We are not supposed to take a side with the students.  Do Russian students feel safe here?   Is there student conflict?  How do we support them both?

Reply (Dr. Memaj).  I came here on August 1.  I’d like to say that I’ve not heard of any Russian students feeling unsafe.  There has been a lot of support for Ukrainian students.  Should I hear that any students not feel safe, I will help them.  I have not heard of any conflict.

Comment (Chat-Wyatt) “At least at the graduate level, our Russian and Ukrainian students are getting along really well. Some of them just travelled to a national conference together and said it was very productive. I think they have enjoyed sharing and venting with each other.”

Reply (Charlie).  Charlie shared a slide.  In the Spring when Russia invaded Ukraine, we reached out to Ukrainian students to come up with individualized plans.  We worked with Endowment and with Ani Kokobobo’s department to raise funds to ensure students’ needs were met.  They were mostly graduate students.  We sat down with Russian students and let them know we understood they did not make these decisions.  They may experience hostility and KU does not see you as part of this—we support all students.  As sanctions are levied against Russians, this may affect our students.  Community conversations around things is important.  KU is a special place.  There are two places that support Ukrainian language at five levels-- Harvard and KU.   We need to lead these conversations.

Reply (Dr. Memaj).  Please contact me if you need anything.

New Business —

The upcoming poll.  The subcommittee is going to meet during the break.  They are looking at the 2020 questionnaire as a starting point.  We will work on getting it ready to go in the spring.  It takes a long time to organize this. They are more likely to fill it out when they are here.  We should send it out at least two times.   Sunita asked the members of the poll subcommittee to let us know if they need help.

Meeting adjourned.