Boston University’s president, Robert A. Brown, said his administration will seek to protect undocumented students from deportation under President Trump, but he rejected demands that the university declare itself a “sanctuary campus.’’
In a wide-ranging interview Tuesday with Globe editors and reporters, Brown expressed concern that Trump will hurt higher education by making the United States less welcoming to immigrants and international students, slashing scientific research funding, and sowing an atmosphere of anti-intellectualism.
But despite the urging of more than 2,000 BU students who have signed a petition, Brown said the university cannot declare itself a “sanctuary’’ that would fully protect undocumented students from deportation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
“We really can’t, in the definitional meaning or the classical meaning of a religious sanctuary, be a sanctuary,’’ said Brown, president since 2005. “And you see a lot of universities trying to find the right language to say that to their constituencies.’’
Brown said BU will “do everything we can within the law’’ to help undocumented students and those protected by an Obama administration program for immigrants brought to the country illegally as children.
There are fewer than 10 such students at BU, Brown said, and an unknown number of undocumented students.
“If an ICE officer walks in and says, ‘Can you give me a list of your undocumented students?’ We can say, ‘No,’ ’’ Brown said. “But at the end of the day, if someone shows up on our doorstep with a warrant — not just an ICE officer walking around, but with a warrant — you’ve got to comply.’’
The issue of undocumented students has gained attention since Trump won the election. On the campaign trail, he pledged to deport illegal immigrants and rescind Obama’s program for immigrants brought to the United States as minors, known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals.
Wesleyan University has declared itself a “sanctuary campus,’’ saying it “will not voluntarily assist in any efforts by the federal government to deport our students, faculty, or staff solely because of their citizenship status.’’
Harvard University has rejected the “sanctuary campus’’ label, saying it could put undocumented students at risk by drawing attention to them. But Harvard has said it will seek to protect undocumented students by not voluntarily releasing information about their immigration or citizenship status.
Smith College has also said that “within the limits of federal law, we must support every member of our community, including and especially those targeted by anti-immigrant actions.’’
Brown said he is concerned that Trump — who has cast some immigrant groups as a security threat — will make the United States hostile to international students who have helped fuel innovation and economic growth in Boston and across the nation.
“A lot of that has to do with policy, but a lot of it has to do with the rhetoric and the feel,’’ Brown said. “Do people feel safe?’’
If Trump cuts funding for the National Institutes of Health — or selectively targets federal support for climate research or stem cell research — major research universities would also suffer, Brown said. BU received $369 million in federal research funding last year.
“If that gets damaged, it’s going to get insidious, making it harder for young faculty members to become researchers,’’ said Brown, a chemical engineer by training.
More broadly, he said, he worries that Trump — who has questioned climate science and trafficked in conspiracy theories — has promoted “anti-intellectual and anti-elitist rhetoric that is separating us from the rest of the country, and that’s not good for higher education.’’
Levenson can be reached at michael.levenson@globe.com.
