Foreign student ban a huge threat for Harvard's Kennedy School

Large international cohort is critical to school's success in training future leaders

- 

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts - When 35-year-old Oscar Escobar completed his term as the youngest elected mayor in his Colombian home town in 2023, he was accepted into a programme at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government tailored to aspiring global leaders like him.

If the Trump administration gets its way, Mr Escobar may be among the last foreign students for the foreseeable future to attend the Kennedy School, widely considered one of the world's best schools for preparing future policymakers.

In May, the Department of Homeland Security sought to revoke Harvard's ability to enrol international students and force those who are there to transfer or lose their legal status.

It accused the university of "fostering violence, anti-Semitism and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party".

In early June, President Donald Trump doubled down by issuing a proclamation to bar US entry for foreign nationals planning to study at Harvard and directed the State Department to consider revoking visas for those already enrolled.

Mr Trump argued that Harvard has tolerated crime on campus and that its relationships with China threatened national security.

Harvard said the orders - which affect thousands of students - were illegal and amounted to retaliation for rejecting the government's demands to control its governance and curriculum, among other things.

It added that it was addressing concerns about anti-Semitism and campus threats.