University President Lawrence S. Bacow called on President-elect Joe Biden to âprioritize the consideration of international students and scholarsâ in a Monday letter that proposed a slew of immigration policy changes to the incoming administration.
Bacow asked Biden to âact without delayâ to issue guidance allowing international students who are enrolled full-time to maintain or receive student visa status â even if classes are online â for the rest of the pandemic, and to reinstate the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
âTo remain a world leader, the US and its colleges and universities must be open to ensure that we do not become isolated from the discourse that occurs outside of our borders,â Bacow wrote. âOur present immigration system does not do nearly enough to encourage the legitimate flow of people and ideas or recognize the contributions that immigrants make to the US.â
After a turbulent year for the University and its finances, Harvard is set to grapple with an uncertain economic outlook in 2021, University Vice President for Finances Thomas J. Hollister said in an interview with The Crimson Thursday.
“There are three critical factors that we just don t know how they re going to behave. One is the pandemic itself. We all hope that we ll be back to normal, you know on campus in the fall, for example. We also have the uncertainty of the economy and the capital markets,” Hollister said.
Despite global economic turmoil, Harvard Management Company reported strong returns on its investments in the 2020 fiscal year. The endowment climbed to a historic high of $41.9 billion as of September making it by far the largest university endowment in the world.