As Russian troops march through Ukraine, Ukrainians in the U.S. are anxious about their future and that of their homeland.

Roman Korol, a graduate student at California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, is concerned for his family’s safety here in the U.S. when his visa expires and his extended family in Ukraine.

“They're all in Ukraine. They're all under fire. They're all civilians. But that doesn't stop me from worrying about them every day, every second of this conflict. I'm stressed. I'm checking the news all the time and trying to find ways I can help from abroad,” he told VOA.

Korol is one of about 105,000 Ukrainians in the U.S. under a noncitizen status, which includes visa holders, undocumented immigrants and DACA recipients. His nonimmigrant student visa allows him to live in the United States while studying at a U.S. institution.

"As soon as I'm done [with] my studies, as soon as I graduate, and then become a doctor of philosophy, I have to leave the U.S. within, I believe, it's two or three months. … I was thinking of coming back there after I finished my degree. But at the moment, the situation is so severe that, you know, there are no flights to Ukraine,” said Korol, who is expected to graduate this year.

Temporary Protected Status

These uncertainties, coupled with the magnitude of the conflict, have led some immigration rights groups to call for Ukraine to be given Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to ensure safety for Ukrainians in American soil.

Lisa Parisio, an immigration attorney with Catholic Legal Immigration Network, said the responsibility of designating a country with TPS lies with Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

“That is a designation that the secretary of homeland security can make for an entire country — a blanket protection for nationals if there are conditions in a country that makes safe returning impossible, including armed conflict and other extraordinary and temporary conditions, which we are seeing in Ukraine right now,” Parisio told VOA.

TPS was a program started in 1990 when Congress said the attorney general had the authority to not deport immigrants in the United States who were unable to safely return to their home countries. It has been subsequently applied in countries embroiled in conflict such as Syria, South Sudan and Haiti.

If applied to Ukraine, Parisio said, the designation would provide protection from deportation for Ukrainian nationals in the United States for up to 18 months. And it also can provide work permits for people, if they choose to apply for them.

According to the U.S. Census' 2019 American Community Survey, there are about 105,000 Ukrainian noncitizens in the United States who would benefit from TPS.

Returning is possible

Andrii Umanskyi, a second-year student at American University in Washington, is in a state of disbelief over the Russian invasion.

“I'm feeling partially anxious. Even though the invasion was expected by most Ukrainians, who were receiving a lot of reports about Russian troops' movements, and the Ukrainian army was preparing for it, in spite of that, it is still quite shocking to see your own country being invaded,” he said.

Recently, a bipartisan group of U.S. senators called on President Joe Biden and Mayorkas to grant Temporary Protected Status to Ukraine, writing in a letter: "It is obviously too dangerous for Ukrainian nationals to return to Ukraine due to the ongoing armed conflict.”

When asked for comment, the Department of Homeland Security told VOA that while it was monitoring the situation in Ukraine, it could not say whether a decision had been made.

Umanskyi said that although protection would be welcome, returning to Ukraine would always be an option.

“I do intend to go back to Ukraine, no matter the outcome, but I would really prefer to go back to an independent and sovereign Ukraine with all its territories,” he said.

Umanskyi said the conflict only strengthened his determination to assist his country, however he can.

“Ukrainians need support now more than ever before,” he said.

VOA's Aline Barros contributed to this report.

The administration of President Donald Trump said on Monday it will review Columbia University's federal contracts and grants over allegations of antisemitism, which it says the educational institution has shown inaction in tackling.

Rights advocates note rising antisemitism, Islamophobia and anti-Arab bias since U.S. ally Israel's devastating military assault on Gaza began after Palestinian Hamas militants' deadly October 2023 attack.

The Justice Department said a month ago it formed a task force to fight antisemitism. The U.S. Departments of Health and Education and the General Services Administration jointly made the review announcement on Monday.

"The Federal Government's Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism is considering Stop Work Orders for $51.4 million in contracts between Columbia University and the Federal Government," the joint statement said.

The agencies said no contracting actions had been taken yet.

"The task force will also conduct a comprehensive review of the more than $5 billion in federal grant commitments to Columbia University."

The agencies did not respond to requests for comment on whether there were similar reviews over allegations of Islamophobia and anti-Arab bias.

Columbia had no immediate comment. It previously said it made efforts to tackle antisemitism.

College protests

Trump has signed an executive order to combat antisemitism and pledged to deport non-citizen college students and others who took part in pro-Palestinian protests.

Columbia was at the center of college protests in which demonstrators demanded an end to U.S. support for Israel due to the humanitarian crisis caused by Israel's assault on Gaza. There were allegations of antisemitism and Islamophobia in protests and counter-protests.

During last summer's demonstrations around the country, classes were canceled, some university administrators resigned and student protesters were suspended and arrested.

While the intensity of protests has decreased in recent months, there were some demonstrations last week in New York after the expulsion of two students at Columbia University-affiliated Barnard College and after New York Governor Kathy Hochul ordered the removal of a Palestinian studies job listing at Hunter College.

A third student at Barnard College has since been expelled, this one related to the occupation of the Hamilton Hall building at Columbia last year.

The Trump administration is opening new investigations into allegations of antisemitism at five U.S. universities including Columbia and the University of California, Berkeley, the Education Department announced Monday.

It's part of President Donald Trump's promise to take a tougher stance against campus antisemitism and deal out harsher penalties than the Biden administration, which settled a flurry of cases with universities in its final weeks. It comes the same day the Justice Department announced a new task force to root out antisemitism on college campuses.

In an order signed last week, Trump called for aggressive action to fight anti-Jewish bias on campuses, including the deportation of foreign students who have participated in pro-Palestinian protests.

Along with Columbia and Berkeley, the department is now investigating the University of Minnesota, Northwestern University and Portland State University. The cases were opened using the department's power to launch its own civil rights reviews, unlike the majority of investigations, which stem from complaints.

Messages seeking comment were left with all five universities.
A statement from the Education Department criticized colleges for tolerating antisemitism after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and a wave of pro-Palestinian protests that followed. It also criticized the Biden administration for negotiating "toothless" resolutions that failed to hold schools accountable.

"Today, the Department is putting universities, colleges, and K-12 schools on notice: this administration will not tolerate continued institutional indifference to the wellbeing of Jewish students on American campuses," said Craig Trainor, the agency's acting assistant secretary for civil rights.

The department didn't provide details about the inquiries or how it decided which schools are being targeted. Presidents of Columbia and Northwestern were among those called to testify on Capitol Hill last year as Republicans sought accountability for allegations of antisemitism. The hearings contributed to the resignation of multiple university presidents, including Columbia's Minouche Shafik.

An October report from House Republicans accused Columbia of failing to punish pro-Palestinian students who took over a campus building, and it called Northwestern's negotiations with student protesters a "stunning capitulation."

House Republicans applauded the new investigations. Representative Tim Walberg, chair of the Education and Workforce Committee, said he was "glad that we finally have an administration who is taking action to protect Jewish students."

Trump's order also calls for a full review of antisemitism complaints filed with the Education Department since Oct. 7, 2023, including pending and resolved cases from the Biden administration. It encourages the Justice Department to take action to enforce civil rights laws.

Last week's order drew backlash from civil rights groups who said it violated First Amendment rights that protect political speech.

The new task force announced Monday includes the Justice and Education departments along with Health and Human Services.

"The Department takes seriously our responsibility to eradicate this hatred wherever it is found," said Leo Terrell, assistant attorney general for civil rights. "The Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism is the first step in giving life to President Trump's renewed commitment to ending anti-Semitism in our schools."

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