Deadline met for foreign students

By Beverly Creamer
Advertiser Education Writer

Hawai'i colleges that serve the bulk of foreign students in the state have met the Aug. 1 government deadline to enroll all foreign students in a new federal computer tracking system, but that doesn't mean the end of problems.

Nationally some 600 schools are waiting for federal certification to be part of SEVIS, the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, which has been a national security priority since the 9-11 terrorist attacks. As a result, contingency plans are in effect at major ports of entry, including Honolulu, to help immigration inspectors answer questions from students who may not appear in the system.

"They wanted designated school officials to send in their cell-phone numbers and evening and weekend numbers and we'd be on call in case a student entered and they weren't sure of the student's status," said Linda Duckworth, director of International Student Services at the University of Hawai'i-Manoa campus.

There are 10 UH officials designated to respond in such emergency cases.

"If they weren't sure of the students' status, they would let them enter for 30 days while they're being checked," said Duckworth. "They're being more accommodating to the situation."

But university officials at Hawai'i's biggest schools worry that continuing glitches overseas could prevent or slow students from entering the country in time to begin fall classes, and they acknowledge the system is far from perfect and often depends on good follow-through by the foreign students themselves. The system is under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (formerly the Immigration and Naturalization Service) of the Department of Homeland Security.

"A student who got a degree from Hawai'i Pacific University (in May) could now be doing their optional practical training as far away as Florida or New York," said Scott Stensrud, associate vice president for enrollment management at HPU. "But they have to continue to maintain their address with us, even though we could be finished with them.

"There's no other method to track their address. If they move tomorrow, they're out of status, unless they notify the school, so we can put it into SEVIS."

With approximately 1,800 students entered into SEVIS, HPU has the highest number of foreign students enrolled of any institution of higher education in the state, with the University of Hawai'i close behind.

While some Mainland schools have seen big drops in their enrollments of foreign students, HPU has a 17 percent increase over last year. The final numbers won't be known until classes begin Sept. 2, said Stensrud.

Under SEVIS, paperwork that proves a foreign student is enrolled in a U.S.-certified school is generated after schools send the student information to a government database. By Friday, 5,937 schools — trade schools, universities and colleges — were certified by the bureau.

More than a million people are in the database, officials say, but the process hasn't been smooth. Users have had problems accessing the system, and lately school officials have been worrying about information not getting to consulates abroad.

"We don't know how many of those students are going to be successful in getting their visas until they've actually received them," said HPU's Stensrud. "There are some who have received them but others still waiting for interviews. Once we enter the name into SEVIS, there are still steps the government has to do to enter it into the consulates at the port of entry.

"So the students might get to that place (the American Consulate) only to be told 'You're not in the system.' "

Schools must report a foreign student's address or addresses, physical and mailing if applicable. The government also wants to know if students drop out or are no-shows at class.

The system includes alerts that let campuses know when a student has entered the country and at what port-of-entry. These students have a limited time to check in with their schools.

UH's Duckworth has received 15 "alerts" that students have passed through ports of entry.

UH has logged approximately 1,300 continuing students into its SEVIS system, with another 500 new graduate students and an additional 175 new undergraduates who have been issued visa documents.

Diane Smith of Knight Ridder News Service contributed to this report.

Reach Beverly Creamer at bcreamer@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8013.