Published February 2, 2017 This content is archived.
President Donald J. Trump
The White House
United States of America
Dear President Trump:
We write as presidents of leading American colleges and universities to urge you to rectify or rescind the recent executive order closing our country’s borders to immigrants and others from seven majority-Muslim countries and to refugees from throughout the world. If left in place, the order threatens both American higher education and the defining principles of our country.
The order specifically prevents talented, law-abiding students and scholars from the affected regions from reaching our campuses. American higher education has benefited tremendously from this country’s long history of embracing immigrants from around the world. Their innovations and scholarship have enhanced American learning, added to our prosperity, and enriched our culture. Many who have returned to their own countries have taken with them the values that are the lifeblood of our democracy. America’s educational, scientific, economic, and artistic leadership depends upon our continued ability to attract the extraordinary people who for many generations have come to this country in search of freedom and a better life.
This action unfairly targets seven predominantly Muslim countries in a manner inconsistent with America’s best principles and greatest traditions. We welcome outstanding Muslim students and scholars from the United States and abroad, including the many who come from the seven affected countries. Their vibrant contributions to our institutions and our country exemplify the value of the religious diversity that has been a hallmark of American freedom since this country’s founding. The American dream depends on continued fidelity to that value.
We recognize and respect the need to protect America’s security. The vetting procedures already in place are rigorous. Improvements to them should be based on evidence, calibrated to real risks, and consistent with constitutional principle.
Throughout its history America has been a land of opportunity and a beacon of freedom in the world. It has attracted talented people to our shores and inspired people around the globe. This executive order is dimming the lamp of liberty and staining the country’s reputation. We respectfully urge you to rectify the damage done by this order.
Sincerely,
Robert L. Barchi
President
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
Joanne Berger-Sweeney
President
Trinity College
Lee C. Bollinger
President
Columbia University
Robert A. Brown
President
Boston University
Ronald J. Daniels
President
Johns Hopkins University
Nicholas B. Dirks
Chancellor
University of California, Berkeley
Adam F. Falk
President
Williams College
Patrick Gallagher
Chancellor
University of Pittsburgh
Amy Gutmann
President
University of Pennsylvania
Philip J. Hanlon
President
Dartmouth College
Ralph J. Hexter
Interim Chancellor
University of California, Davis
Pradeep K. Khosla
Chancellor
University of California, San Diego
David W. Leebron
President
Rice University
Wallace D. Loh
President
University of Maryland, College Park
David Oxtoby
President
Pomona College
Daniel R. Porterfield, Ph.D.
President
Franklin & Marshall College
Hunter R. Rawlings III
Interim President
Cornell University
Peter Salovey
President
Yale University
Mark Schlissel M.D., Ph.D.
President
University of Michigan
Barbara R. Snyder
President
Case Western Reserve University
Samuel L. Stanley Jr., M.D.
President
Stony Brook University
Claire E. Sterk
President
Emory University
Satish K. Tripathi
President
University at Buffalo
Henry T. Yang
Chancellor
University of California, Santa Barbara
Kimberly W. Benston
President
Haverford College
George Blumenthal
Chancellor
University of California, Santa Cruz
Richard H. Brodhead
President
Duke University
Kimberly Wright Cassidy
President
Bryn Mawr College
John J. DeGioia
President
Georgetown University
Christopher L. Eisgruber
President
Princeton University
Drew Gilpin Faust
President
Harvard University
Howard Gillman
Chancellor
University of California, Irvine
Andrew Hamilton
President
New York University
Sam Hawgood, MBBS
Chancellor
University of California, San Francisco
Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C.
President
University of Notre Dame
Marvin Krislov
President
Oberlin College
Ron Liebowitz
President
Brandeis University
Anthony P. Monaco
President
Tufts University
Christina H. Paxson
President
Brown University
Carol Quillen
President
Davidson College
Clayton Rose
President
Bowdoin College
Michael H. Schill
President
University of Oregon
Valerie Smith
President
Swarthmore College
Debora L. Spar
President
Barnard College
Sonya Stephens
Acting President
Mount Holyoke College
Marc Tessier-Lavigne
President
Stanford University
Mark S. Wrighton
Chancellor
Washington University in St. Louis
Nicholas S. Zeppos
Chancellor
Vanderbilt University
