To the Bard Community:

We have received reports that a student in our Bard Baccalaureate program was recently taken into custody by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. This did not occur on or near Bard campus. We are in contact with the student’s family and working with community leaders to support them, and have sent a letter to the federal government advocating for this student. A vigil will be held in the Meditation Garden outside the Bard College Chapel on Monday, October 20, at 5 pm for the community to come together in solidarity and support.

We know this news will be distressing to members of our community. We want to remind our campus community that immigration enforcement officers cannot enter nonpublic areas, including residence halls and campus buildings, without a search warrant or consent. An individual’s rights are the same regardless of whether they live on campus or off. For more detailed information, please visit bard.edu/federal-actions-faqs.

Since its founding, Bard has remained committed, as a nonsectarian place of learning, to the liberal arts and sciences, to excellence and innovation in teaching, to the promotion of the arts, and to the link between education and democracy. Central to strengthening that link is the extension of access to higher education to all. Bard’s responses to the policies and actions of the current Federal administration therefore derive from its steadfast consistent commitment to its historic institutional mission.

For support during times of uncertainty, the campus community may use the resources of the Dean of Students office, the Dean of the College’s office, and the Chaplaincy.

Thank you very much for your attention. I have every hope that we will be able to help this student. 

Sincerely,
Leon Botstein
President