Rachel Heimann Mercader

'Culture of fear': College records reveal campus ICE panic

A quick Walgreens trip near campus turned into an interrogation about foreign travel. Uniformed officers demanded citizenship papers from students. The FBI searched for a professor in the Center of African Studies. Department heads advised biology labs to lock their doors after U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE) agents were allegedly spotted nearby.

Such stories ricocheted around the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign last spring, ratcheting up anxiety, internal emails obtained by Raw Story show.

Police chief Matt Ballinger wrote there was no evidence ICE had carried out any such operations but also explained the problem: ICE doesn’t notify local police when making inquiries.

The emails show how fear cascaded across Illinois’ flagship campus, where more than 12,000 international students — around 20 percent of the student body — suddenly felt at risk.

The panic unfolded amid high-profile national cases, as ICE detained student visa holders who had spoken out in support of Palestine. At Illinois, professors and administrators scrambled to respond: how should students handle being stopped by officers? Could they report crimes without drawing unwanted attention? Was it safe to attend graduation or even walk across campus?

As the Trump administration cracks down even on immigrants with green cards and visas, such panic amid the second-largest international student population at any U.S. public university is emblematic of the higher education landscape.

‘It’s going to be like this a long time’

“Another day, another rumor,” Martin McFarlane, director of International Student and Scholar Services, wrote on April 17 to Chief Ballinger and two associate chancellors.

“It’s going to be like this for a long time, isn’t it…”

Rumors persisted. But by mid-August, the university had “no confirmed reports” of ICE on campus, Patrick Wade, a UIUC spokesperson, told Raw Story.

Wade called incidents of panic “certainly concerning,” given “international diversity is one of the things that makes Illinois special.”

Megan Eagen-Jones, an assistant professor of musicology and director of undergraduate studies, said academic leaders sought guidance on “appropriate allyship and advocacy that's not breaking the law but is also standing by students who have these concerns.”

“We understand the anxiety and concern that students — and faculty and staff, for that matter — are feeling,” Wade said.

Wade said the university informed the campus community about “what to do if they encounter a federal agent” and “proactively communicated” that local and campus police “do not enforce immigration law, nor do they provide resources to federal law enforcement to do so.”

At other colleges, particularly in Florida, campus police departments have voluntary agreements with ICE that deputize campus officers for immigration enforcement duties.

“The past months have been unsettling and frightening for many members of our campus community, and we appreciate the work of all those involved in supporting our students and scholars,” Wade said.

‘Another universe’

Since Trump took office for a second term, the climate has changed at the University of Illinois, especially for international students “fearful of being deported all of a sudden, having their academic studies disrupted,” Eagen-Jones said.

“It tethers to every aspect of their life. The fears are pretty real and pretty raw.”

Eagen-Jones wrote to the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion on April 17, asking how to advise international students who want to file a police report but “are concerned about how that may draw ICE attention to them.”

“It sort of feels like living in another universe,” Eagen-Jones said.

“Five years ago. I wouldn't have imagined that I would be having the kinds of conversations with students that I'm having today and last semester.”

Eagen-Jones said international students were “worried … because if they express any political views whatsoever that might be seen as minor critiques … that would be foundation for some disastrous thing happening to them.”

Detention by ICE is the primary concern — stoked by the fates of Rümeysa Öztürk, a Turkish Ph.D. student at Tufts University, and Mahmoud Khalil, a graduate student at Columbia, both detained in March over views expressed in public forums.

A Raw Story investigation revealed a university in Florida flagging for police all negative commentary about the school’s partnership with ICE, raising free speech concerns.

“I want my students … not to be worried about being deported because they had a minor traffic violation, or they said the wrong thing in the wrong context,” Eagen-Jones said.

Eagen-Jones has participated in training sessions to learn more about international students’ rights.

“I'm in a college that really, really deeply values global connections and global creativity and is very much indebted to global partnerships,” Eagen-Jones said. “Rhetoric that demonizes international students and migrants, it's hard to process."

‘Distressing’

In an April 15 email, Supriya Prasanth, professor and head of the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, wrote to academic leaders to report the Walgreens incident involving a student of “Indian origin” who was left “quite shaken.” The similar incident at Target involved a student of “Chinese origin.”

Wojtek Chodzko-Zajko, vice provost for graduate education and dean of the Graduate College, responded, “It is disheartening to hear that one of our graduate students had an unsettling experience while simply trying to complete an everyday task.

“Even when an encounter appears polite, being unexpectedly approached and questioned can be distressing, particularly for international students who may already be under significant stress in the current moment.”

Alejandro Lleras, professor of psychology and associate dean for inclusive excellence, reminded James Imlay, professor and associate head of microbiology, that “in any interaction with a federal officer (ICE, FBI, DHS), it is of paramount importance that people do not lie.”

“Lying to a federal officer can be taken as a reason to cancel someone’s legal status in the US. But, I would say that students are not necessarily required to answer questions either,” Lleras wrote.

Lleras noted that spaces requiring an ID swipe for access, such as dorms and labs, are considered private and “safe.” ICE agents would be permitted in public spaces, including classrooms.

Lleras asked Imlay if he had any evidence ICE agents were in town, as reported by students, adding: “This is important because there is also a fear that some people might be impersonating agents, in which case there are legal repercussions for this.”

Ballinger, the chief of police, told leaders charges would likely be brought if an impersonator was located, but police found no indication of agents or impersonators.

“We continue to try and identify anyone that may be impersonating ICE, but it is like chasing our tails at this point with third-hand information that is incorrect,” Ballinger wrote on April 17 in an email chain involving “pressing questions about ICE agents.”

McFarlane, director of ISSS, noted that “rumors were flying,” and a black car parked with a “secure, contain, protect” decal “may have been misinterpreted as ICE.”

“Very frustrating but it’s going to continue as long as people are scared,” said Robin Kaler, associate chancellor in strategic communications and marketing.

Nearly a month later, Ballinger forwarded to campus police leaders an FBI contact who could answer questions about ICE operations.

“This is a serious safety issue,” Ballinger said.

Universal fears

As ICE agents continue to raid locations from Home Depots to farms and food markets, a nationwide Campus Defense Network has grown from a group in North Carolina.

Siembra NC provides “ICE Watch” training to at least 40 schools in 20 states, said Andrew Willis Garcés, a senior strategist.

Rumors of ICE sightings on the Illinois campus are similar to concerns at campuses across the country, Garcés said.

Siembra NC gathers at North Carolina State University (Photo courtesy of Siembra NC)

Florida Atlantic Faculty union leader Chris Robe said such fear is cultivated as a means of control.

“I think the point is the fear … to make people wary, to shut them up,” Robe said.

“How are they going to do [campus raids]? Practically, they're not. But they’re going to create the illusion that they can, and for a lot of people, that illusion is enough to stay quiet.”

He added that the impact of that strategy is unmistakable: “There’s a culture of fear this time around, of people not willing to speak on the record or just be public.”

Siembra NC has supported students setting up watch alert networks while some students are showing up to support international students at court, Garcés said.

“The concerns are related to what they've seen in the news — a student goes to a regular ICE check-in and is detained without warning, or students on campus who have valid visa work permits, green cards, getting detained, just getting abducted in broad daylight.

“International students are very understandably worried about any contact with law enforcement, with federal agencies.

“It really has, I think, changed just so much about it with what it means to be someone studying in the U.S.”

'Very scary': Police alert issued after alum calls college's ICE deal 'disgusting'

Shortly after Florida Gulf Coast University’s police department joined several state colleges in signing agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Cody Crivello, a 29-year-old tennis instructor, used Facebook to call his alma mater’s partnership “truly disgusting.”

That prompted a “yellow alert” email — listing Crivello’s full name, along with a link and screenshot of the comment showing his profile photo — to various departments at the school in Fort Myers, including campus police, records obtained by Raw Story show.

While a university monitoring social media for critical posts isn’t out of the ordinary and is "constitutionally permissible,” First Amendment scholar Eugene Volokh said alerting police to general negative commentary, particularly without any perceived threat or potential criminal activity, can create a chilling effect on free speech.

“I wouldn't, just as a categorical matter, convey all critical posts to the police,” Volokh, a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, told Raw Story.

“That can create an environment where people are discouraged from speaking out, where the university should be an institution that encourages people to speak.”

Crivello, who graduated FGCU in 2018, called the alert “weird” and “interesting,” expressing concern it might “negatively impact” him if he were to apply for graduate school or employment at the university.

“What would the police need to know about me saying that I disagree with their connections with immigration enforcement and deportation?” said Crivello, who ended up deleting the comment.

“I was like, ‘What's a comment on a Facebook post really going to do in the grand scheme of things?’ I figured they actually weren't listening. That was the funny thing. I was like, ‘They're not even going to read this.’ Little did I know, they were going to flag it, actually.”

The alert came from Fullintel, a private firm that conducts “AI-powered media monitoring” across platforms like Facebook, TikTok, Reddit and Discord, which FGCU has worked with since April 2023 and pays $124,000 per year as part of a five-year contract, records obtained by Raw Story show.

In addition to FGCU’s communications team, the school’s general counsel, Title IX office and campus police officials, including Chief James Kowalski, received alerts flagging more than two dozen comments and posts critical of the ICE agreement, which was signed following a February directive from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ordering all state law enforcement agencies, including campus police at public universities, to enter into 287(g) agreements.

Such agreements grant campus officers the authority to perform duties typically reserved for federal immigration agents, including questioning individuals about immigration status, making arrests and preparing charges related to immigration violations on university grounds.

Few details have been revealed about the execution of 287(g) agreements, prompting Raw Story to conduct investigations.

As of August 8, 319 law enforcement agencies in Florida including 13 university police departments had signed 287(g) agreements, according to ICE records.

FGCU has yet to receive paperwork or training information from ICE, and the school hasn’t taken any immigration enforcement actions since signing the agreement on March 28, Pam McCabe, director of university communications and media relations, told Raw Story.

McCabe said the school uses Fullintel for “24-7, 365-day-a year” monitoring of web and social media posts related to “campus safety, security, compliance and reputational concerns.”

Fullintel uses an automated system to scan “public content for specific phrases related to safety risks or harm,” and its “curation team” reviews anything flagged “to ensure it’s relevant, providing the necessary context for our clients to respond appropriately,” Angus Nguyen, director of marketing for Fullintel, told Raw Story.

“Alerts from Fullintel include untargeted negative commentary, hate speech, hazing, targeted harassment, sexual violence, suicidal ideation, targeted threats and threats to public safety,” McCabe said.

Fullintel works with a small number of colleges, with FGCU its only Florida university client, and the firm does not work with police departments, Nguyen said.

“Our alerts are designed to help campus authorities and respond quickly to potential safety threats or compliance issues,” Nguyen said. “We focus on public content related to safety, not personal opinions or political speech.”

The alerts obtained by Raw Story all involved personal opinions about the 287(g) agreement, with no apparent threats of crimes or plans for protests.

‘Not a good idea’

Rachel Levinson-Waldman, an expert on police surveillance and a director of the Brennan Center for Justice, called FGCU’s monitoring practices “very problematic,” particularly when tied to immigration enforcement.

“This opens up a huge area of risk in terms of social media monitoring,” Levinson-Waldman said.

Levinson-Waldman said a First Amendment legal challenge would require someone to show concrete harm, such as being referred for discipline, denied housing or being prosecuted on the basis of speech.

Zach Greenberg, an attorney at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), said FGCU’s monitoring could create a “chilling effect” on student speech.

“It suggests that the university is monitoring the speech for potential discipline and for retaliating against students for engaging in controversial political speech, especially with regards to issues like ICE, immigration and Trump,” Greenberg said.

McCabe said she was unaware of disciplinary action against any student based on political social media posts.

“FGCU encourages constructive and informed discussions on campus in a peaceful manner, even when we disagree or find an individual’s expression offensive or controversial,” McCabe said.

Volokh said campus police might want to monitor the web for “possible criminal intentions” or protests where expanded police presence is required.

But, “You might say it's not a good idea for the university to be generally reporting to the police all criticism because that's going to create a climate at school which discourages kind of open debate and open discussion,” Volokh said.

“That's not something I'd be wild about when it comes to the university.”

The Brennan Center has long warned about the dangers of law enforcement use of social media surveillance.

While law enforcement agencies often claim such surveillance is used for legitimate public safety purposes, U.S. government agencies have a well-documented history of surveilling activist groups, particularly those advocating for racial justice and immigrant rights.

From 2017 to 2020, ICE and other DHS agencies tracked social media activity and compiled dossiers on U.S.-based activists, lawyers and journalists who opposed family separation policies or participated in protests labeled “anti-Trump.”

“The [Trump] administration obviously has made no bones about the fact that they're looking to do extensive detention and deportation efforts, and particularly based on the content of what people are saying online,” Levinson-Waldman said.

Recently, that’s exactly what has happened.

In March, Rümeysa Öztürk, a Turkish Ph.D. student at Tufts University, and Mahmoud Khalil, a graduate student at Columbia University and a pro-Palestinian activist, were detained by ICE over views expressed in public forums.

The same month, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said 300 student visas had been revoked as part of a crackdown against students who protested against the war in Gaza.

NAFSA: Association of International Educators has been tracking reports of visa revocations and terminations. As of May 7— the most recent update — more than 1,600 cases had been reported.

‘Creates fear’

FGCU received close to a dozen emails from concerned alumni and community members expressing “outrage” at the ICE partnership, accusing the school of "hypocrisy," “selling out its students” and promoting “surveillance and compliance with a racist agenda.”

One flagged post came from Unidos Immokalee, a Southwest Florida advocacy group, which expressed alarm over how the agreement “creates fear and increased likelihood of profiling” for international students and families with mixed immigration status.

The social media post, urging people to sign a petition opposing the 287(g) agreement, was flagged by FGCU’s third-party media monitoring system and shared with campus police and administrators.

“That’s extremely concerning,” Maria P., a volunteer with Unidos Immokalee, told Raw Story. “They say they want to create an inclusive and safe environment for people, but this really makes people fear they’ll be retaliated against — whether in school, in classrooms, or even as alumni.”

Maria, an FGCU alumna who declined to use her last name due to privacy and safety concerns, said her organization also emailed FGCU “really just to support the current students and prospective students as well. It’s very scary for students who are vulnerable, maybe away from families, as well as any visitors on campus.”

Immokalee, a predominantly immigrant farmworker community, is in Collier County, where the sheriff’s department has had its own 287(g) agreement since 2020 and has “seen a lot of racial profiling,” Maria said.

About a quarter of FGCU students identify as Hispanic, and 2 percent are international.

Unidos emailed university president Aysegul Timur, urging FGCU to withdraw from its agreement and seeking details of the university’s partnership with ICE — such as when officers would be trained, whether student data would be shared with law enforcement, and how the program might affect immigrant students and families.

Internal emails obtained by Raw Story show FGCU officials were reluctant to respond.

Lisa Jones, interim vice president and general counsel, advised against answering questions in detail.

“I am concerned about continuing to respond to questions on this topic as it is rapidly evolving,” Jones wrote to Timur and McCabe. “If we answer these questions, we can expect more. If there is new information and these answers change, I am concerned they will bring this email up to argue we were not truthful or transparent.”

Maria said: “There’s such a lack of transparency. It’s extremely disappointing that they chose to not be transparent. The concern is not only for those who may have mixed statuses — there are many other people who are affected within the school.”

'DeSantis is the black hole': Florida hides records of college cooperation with ICE

At least 15 Florida universities have quietly signed agreements to voluntarily cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) — but how those partnerships are being implemented remains largely hidden from view.

Among the first to formalize such a partnership was New College of Florida, a small public liberal arts college whose board of trustees got a conservative makeover by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in 2023.

In April, New College’s campus police signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with ICE, but more than three months later the school has not reported any immigration enforcement activity or provided further details on its partnership with the agency.

When Raw Story asked the school for email communications about ICE, immigrants and undocumented students from its chief of police, Jennifer Coley, the Florida public records request yielded just over 2,000 responsive documents.

But nearly 1,500 pages of emails sent were entirely covered with black boxes. The rest were heavily redacted.

One of nearly 1,500 blacked out pages sent to Raw Story in response to a public records request about ICE at New College of Florida

“I've been doing open government law in Florida since 1991, and just as I've not seen an abuse of power like you see with Ron DeSantis, I haven't seen this animosity towards open government and access to public records ever,” Barbara Petersen, executive director of the Florida Center for Government Accountability, told Raw Story.

“We used to think [Republican governor turned U.S. senator] Rick Scott was bad.

“Ron DeSantis is the black hole where sunshine goes to die because they're so difficult about everything.”

Among visible information shared with Raw Story — hundreds of pages of mostly police training advertisements and newsletter blasts — few specifics could be ascertained about the execution of New College’s agreement with ICE, which grants state and local law enforcement the “authority to perform certain immigration enforcement functions” as part of Section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.

“We were one of the first institutions in the state university system to sign the MOA with ICE,” Jamie Miller, vice president of communications and chief marketing officer of New College of Florida, told Raw Story.

“We are proud partners with a variety of law enforcement agencies, and we stand ready, willing and able to assist our partner agencies in their efforts to keep Floridians safe and follow the law.”

As of July 29, according to the ICE website, ICE had signed 868 memoranda of agreement with programs across 40 states.

A federal database of participating agencies shows New College’s 14-page agreement, signed by Coley, that allows selected school law enforcement personnel to “perform certain functions of an immigration officer under the direction and supervision of ICE.”

Raw Story did not receive a response from ICE or Coley. The Executive Office of the Governor referred questions to the Board of Governors for the State University System of Florida, which recommended "contacting individual universities for specific information about the partnerships."

"Several police departments at universities within the State University System of Florida are partnering with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement," Cassandra Edwards, director of communications for the State University System of Florida, said via email.

"Our university police departments are always encouraged to collaborate with other law enforcement entities to enforce state and federal law."

Asked about the redactions in Raw Story’s public records request, New College’s Office of General Counsel, cited exemptions for cybersecurity and active criminal intelligence.

“I don't understand how information about ICE activities and undocumented students on campus could be considered active criminal investigative information,” Petersen said.

“I don't understand how this is active in any way since they're just complying with ICE.”

‘Red alert’

Coley sent New College’s signed MOA to ICE on March 12, according to emails obtained by Raw Story.

But more than two months later, Coley reported the college had not “received any communication from ICE,” according to an email sent to David Brickhouse, New College’s vice president for legal affairs.

In the same message, Coley said ICE had incorrectly listed the school as a “municipality instead of a state agency.”

Around the same time, Coley received communications that appeared to ready local law enforcement for federal coordination. On May 6, Coley received a “red alert” bulletin from Jennifer “Cookie” Pritt, executive director of the Florida Police Chiefs Association, about ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO). The message outlined how state and local agencies could contact ICE for support during immigration-related encounters, including routine traffic stops.

“ERO has established a response center for fielding calls from our state and local partners when encountering immigration-related matters,” the May 6 email said.

“ERO will assist state and local law enforcement partners who may encounter individuals during their normal routine vehicle stops with determining alienage and inadmissibility/removability.”

The email provided contact information for Krome Detention Center in Miami.

Shortly after New College’s memorandum of agreement was signed on April 15, Coley forwarded an email from Rachel Kamoutsas, chief of staff for the Board of Governors, that included a letter from state Attorney General James Uthmeier.

The letter concerned the temporary restraining order granted in the Florida Immigration Coalition’s lawsuit against Uthmeier, blocking the enforcement of a new immigration law, Florida Senate Bill 4-C.

Uthmeier, former chief of staff for DeSantis, last week appealed a federal judge’s ruling holding him in contempt of court for a letter he sent arguing law enforcement agencies are not bound to the restraining order.

Internal emails reveal extensive cooperation between New College police and Florida’s network of fusion centers: multi-agency hubs combining data from local, state, tribal, federal and other partners to analyze and disseminate threat-related intelligence.

Emails show New College police specifically working with the Southwest Florida Fusion Center (Region 6), overseen by the Collier County Sheriff's Office, and the Tampa Bay Regional Intelligence Center (TBRIC).

The college appears to be expanding its law enforcement capabilities. A June 2 email to Coley from Jean Harris, assistant vice president and chief procurement officer, shows New College police considering a quote and agreement with Axon, a company known for creating TASERs, dash cams and body-worn cameras.

In 2020, Axon announced a $13 million contract with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to equip nearly 4,000 border patrol agents with body cams.

The agreement and quote details were not shared with Raw Story, so it is unknown if the agreement involves the partnership with ICE.

‘Profound betrayal’

When Florida universities began signing formal agreements with ICE, the United Faculty of Florida union issued a sharp rebuke.

“These agreements, conducted without meaningful transparency or community input, represent a profound betrayal of the core values of higher education and an alarming escalation in the ongoing erosion of democratic norms in our state,” the April 22 statement said.

“Our campuses must be institutions of learning, critical inquiry, and inclusion — not instruments of surveillance and state-sponsored oppression. The presence and involvement of ICE on our campuses sows fear among students, staff and faculty, particularly those from immigrant, undocumented or international communities.”

The United Faculty of Florida did not provide comment in response to Raw Story's inquiry, nor did its New College chapter president.

But Talat Rahman, union faculty president at the University of Central Florida, told Raw Story when the ICE agreements were first signed, “there was a lot of panic, where people were not sure what was going on.”

The uncertainty, she said, created fear among students, particularly those who may be undocumented or have undocumented family members.

“If the students are afraid that somebody can walk in and arrest them, they're not going to be able to focus on what they're there for,” Rahman said. “And with the number of people who have been deported under wrong identification or without any reason, the concern is real.”

While the Trump administration has framed its immigration enforcement as targeting “criminal illegal immigrant killers, rapists, gangbangers and other violent criminals,” Raw Story investigations have documented detentions and deportations of everyday people — a breastfeeding mother, recent high school graduates, a newlywed and a construction worker.

In March, New College welcomed U.S. “border czar” Tom Homan to campus, to discuss immigration policies with DeSantis, who appointed a slew of rightwing trustees in 2023 as part of a crusade against the “woke mob” at the school known for being a safe haven for progressive and LGBTQ+ students. Some students and politicians labeled DeSantis’ appointments a “hostile takeover.”

Florida protest Activists protest against an immigration policy event featuring Ron DeSantis in Sarasota. REUTERS/Octavio Jones

“Majority of the people who are Board of Trustees members were appointed by the governor — they've been hand-placing and picking people that are loyalists to the governor and are going to do whatever the governor wants,” said immigration advocate Gaby Pacheco, president of TheDream.US, a national college and career success program for undocumented immigrant youth.

Rahman said colleges like her school, the University of Central Florida, have yet to answer key questions, including whether ICE officers will be permitted in classrooms.

“We have asked that, a) the agreement be spelled out and b) that the university not participate in it, but we haven't gotten any responses to that,” she said.

For now, Rahman said faculty and students are left waiting.

“I think what has happened here is that we are waiting for what is going to happen next, and probably there'll be a lot more activity in the beginning of the year.”

As faculty and students await clarity, immigration advocates like Pacheco are raising alarms about how ICE agreements could create workarounds to federal privacy protections.

She warned that these agreements may allow campus police to access records that could be used to identify students' immigration status, effectively creating a loophole to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

FERPA, she said, “protects students’ data and doesn’t allow colleges or universities to use that data to inform ICE or another agency about a student’s immigration status.”

Pacheco added that such agreements raise serious questions: “What is the coordination that’s going to happen? Will there be data sharing? Which there shouldn’t be.”

Rachel Heimann Mercader is a freelance investigative journalist based in Chicago. She is a graduate of Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, where she was selected as a SESP/Medill Education Journalism fellow, partnering with Raw Story Investigative Reporter Alexandria Jacobson.