Judge Extends Block on Trump Admin’s Bid to Bar Foreign Students at Harvard

Harvard alleged that the administration was retaliating for protected speech and failed to follow proper procedures.

A view of the campus of Harvard Business School in Cambridge, Mass., on July 8, 2020. Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

BOSTON—A federal judge said on May 29 that she would maintain a temporary block she had placed on the Department of Homeland Security’s revocation of Harvard’s certification under the Student and Exchange Visitor Program, which allows it to enroll foreign students.

Lawyers for Harvard and the Department of Justice (DOJ) had been scheduled to have a hearing on the potential for a longer-term block. However, before the hearing, the Trump administration changed its position and told the judge that instead of immediately decertifying Harvard, it would consider the issue through a more lengthy administrative process.