NC State students who lost visas were in ‘good standing’ with university, chancellor says
NC State University Chancellor Randy Woodson told The News & Observer on Thursday that university officials were surprised to learn that two of the university’s international students had lost their visas, adding that both students — who have since left the country — were in “good standing” on campus.
More than a week after the university learned of the terminations, officials still have not received a reason for that decision from federal officials in the Department of State, Woodson said.
“We’ve not been informed in any way of why, so we don’t know,” Woodson said. “There’s no reason at NC State — they’re in good standing as students. We don’t have any evidence of any history of any interaction with law enforcement.”
Woodson spoke to The N&O at a regularly scheduled meeting of the NC State Board of Trustees, offering additional details about how the university learned that the students’ visas had been terminated — and concerns university officials have about how other international students could be impacted by similar actions.
The administration of President Donald Trump in recent weeks has increasingly targeted international university students, especially those who have participated in pro-Palestinian protests, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio also ordering federal officials to scrutinize the social media accounts of those applying for student visas. Rubio has signed more than 300 letters revoking the visas of students and other visitors to the country since Trump took office in January, The New York Times reported.
The news of the cancellation of visas of Saleh Al Gurad and an additional, unidentified NC State student — first reported by Technician, the university’s student newspaper — came to light Tuesday evening. But university officials had learned of the terminations a week before.
Woodson said university officials learned that the visas had been terminated through the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, or SEVIS, a federal database maintained by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that contains information about visa holders throughout the country. In an unsigned statement published Tuesday, the university’s Office of International Students wrote that officials learned the students’ SEVIS records had been terminated March 25.
After university officials learned that the students’ records had been terminated, they “were the first to inform the students,” Woodson said.
“But then shortly thereafter, they were informed by the embassy,” Woodson said. “And they chose, in consultation with their embassy and with attorneys, to return to Saudi Arabia.”
Al Gurad, who had begun studying engineering management at NC State this semester, had “a very blank and grave look on his face” when university officials told him that his visa had been revoked, his roommate, Philip Vasto, told The N&O Wednesday. Al Gurad, who has not responded to The N&O’s request for comment, arrived back in his home country on Sunday, according to Vasto.
Vasto and Juliette Majid, an NC State graduate student and member of the campus chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine, both told The N&O they were not aware of Al Gurad being involved in any form of pro-Palestinian speech or protest since he arrived to campus.
A student’s visa being terminated does not automatically force them to stop their studies or leave the country. But, particularly under the current presidential administration, fighting a termination can be a costly and lengthy process, Ohio-based immigration attorney Richard Herman told The N&O. Thus, Herman said, it’s “not unreasonable” for students who lose their visas to flee the country.
NC State enrolls the most international students of any school in the public UNC System and hosts the second-most international students of any university in the state, according to federal data. According to a 2024 report by the Department of State, NC State enrolled more than 3,700 international students from more than 100 countries during the 2023-24 academic year, most of whom were graduate students.
Woodson said the university’s international students are “very concerned” about the revocations of visas taking place around the country. He said campus officials will continue to monitor the SEVIS database “and make sure we’re informed” about any additional terminations that might occur.
“We’re very concerned, because bringing international students to America for higher education has been a bedrock of this country for innovation, for the success of our global work around the world,” Woodson said. “And so, obviously, this has implications for students being concerned about coming to the U.S. for higher education. That has implications for our enrollment, for our graduate programs, in particular.”
Woodson said he hopes federal officials “at some point” will provide university officials with the rationale for the students’ visas being revoked.
“That’ll put us in a better position to help our students understand,” he said.
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This story was originally published April 3, 2025 at 12:56 PM with the headline "NC State students who lost visas were in ‘good standing’ with university, chancellor says."
