HATCHET
The GW
April 14, 2025 Vol. 121 Iss. 25
AN INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER • SERVING THE GW COMMUNITY SINCE 1904 • ONLINE AT GWHATCHET.COM
BEST
OF NORTH WEST
Pages 6
-8
Federal agencies revoke ‘small number’ of international student visas: officials JENNIFER IGBONOBA NEWS EDITOR
RACHEL MOON
SENIOR NEWS EDITOR
Federal agencies have terminated “a small number” of international students’ visas at GW, officials said Thursday. Officials announced in a weekly “federal update” email to community members Thursday that the University is aware that a “small number” of students had their visas revoked or terminated by the Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies. Federal agencies have revoked visas from hundreds of students at universities across the country over the past few weeks due to their alleged involvement in campus protests against the war in Gaza or minor crimes. The State Department is responsible for issuing and revoking visas, the DHS Office of Public Affairs said in an email. A University spokesperson declined to comment on how many student visas the State Department revoked. University President Ellen Granberg said during a Faculty Senate meeting Friday that she was not
aware of “all the details” regarding the specific number of students who had their visa revoked or for what reason the documents were rescinded by federal agencies, which she said included DHS. Provost Chris Bracey said the total number of revoked student visas was “split” between current and recently graduated students. Bracey said there’s no grace period for a terminated visa, which puts recipients at immediate risk of detention and deportation and that officials recommend affected students seek legal representation. Bracey said the case for each student with a revoked visa is different. As of Friday, more than 800 students from at least 150 universities across the country have had their visas rescinded by federal agencies for various reasons and often with little to no explanation. Last month, the U.S. Department of State began revoking the visas of international students who Secretary of State Marco Rubio said participated in “political activism.” University officials in the Thursday email encouraged international students to carry proof of immigration registration “at all times,” learn about how the government collects
KYRA WOOD | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Students protest the detainment of Mahmoud Khalil in front of University President Ellen Granberg’s on-campus residence in March.
individuals’ personal data and review guidance from the American
Immigration Lawyers Association and American Civil Liberties Union
Ethan Lynne secures SGA presidency, fending off outside challenger
on their rights when asked about their immigration status.
KHANH DANG
Officials ‘likely’ to bring institutional neutrality presentation to trustees
MOLLY ST. CLAIR
GIANNA JAKUBOWSKI
ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR
STAFF WRITER
Students elected junior Ethan Lynne as the Student Government Association’s next president on Saturday afternoon, pulling in 791 votes ahead of junior Emily-Anne Santiago. Lynne, a political communication student and current SGA vice president, received 60.53 percent of the vote in the first round of ranked-choice voting, according to the Joint Election Commission’s unverified election results. In his presidential campaign, Lynne pledged to conduct a thirdparty investigation into GW’s response to free speech on campus over the past three years and create a student advisory board to provide input to the Student Health Center. About 100 community members gathered in the University Student Center Amphitheater Saturday at 2 p.m. to hear the JEC announce the election results, including University President Ellen Granberg. “This is a dream come true,” Lynne said. “I love GW so much. The past three years have been amazing but I couldn’t have done this without my team. They’re the best, most amazing people I’ve ever met.” SGA Senate Pro Tempore Liz Stoddard prevailed in the vice presidential race, securing 62.39 percent of the votes and defeating second place candidate SGA Sen. Claire Avalos (CCAS-U), per the unverified election results. “I am so incredibly grateful that the students here thought that I was fit enough for the job, and I will do everything I can to make sure that I follow through,” Stoddard said.
NIDHI NAIR
STAFF WRITER
STAFF WRITER
MATHYLDA DULIAN | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR Student Government Association Vice President Ethan Lynne smiles after learning of his victory in the presidential race.
DANIEL HEUER | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Student Government Association Senate Pro Tempore Liz Stoddard reacts to her vice presidential win.
WELCOME TO THE HATCHET’S 2025
Best of Northwest Guide
NICK PERKINS CULTURE EDITOR
It’s been a hard three months to live in the District. Since President Donald Trump’s second term began, he’s been trying to dismantle the city. Last month, he signed an executive order to ramp up police presence in D.C., and he continues to threaten to strip the District of home rule, the policy that allows the city government to make rules for the city. The District has also just felt sadder since Trump took office. Maybe it’s that half the city got laid off from the federal government. Maybe it’s because 92.5% of the city voted for WHAT’S
INSIDE
Kamala Harris and hates every policy that the Trump administration has enacted over the past three months. Maybe it’s that the city is full of people who can’t turn their brains off from politics, inserting what’s been described as a potential “constitutional crisis” in every dinner conversation. That depressed enthusiasm about the District is exactly what the Best of Northwest exists to counter. The Hatchet’s annual guide is meant to be a celebration of all that is still vibrant about life in our home of northwest D.C. and GW. The District has always been under the thumb of the federal government — that’s why the modern iteration of D.C. exists. But in
the nearly 250 years of the city and the American federal government’s tenure, the District has blossomed into more than just a series of downtown bureaucratic office buildings. People in D.C. still get to partake in a wonderfully varied culinary scene, where restaurants offering pupusas, crab and an Irish open bar all fall in the same area. The District is still home to used bookstores, square dancing and gay flag football leagues — all of which give the city a genuine vitality that the Oval Office hasn’t been able to touch. It’s a bummer to live in D.C. right now, sure. But let’s embrace what’s still great about being here.
NEWS GW’s undergraduate tuition next academic year will likely rise proportional to financial aid, experts say. Page 2
SNAPSHOT
The University is weighing its stance on institutional neutrality, Provost Chris Bracey said at a Faculty Senate meeting Friday. Bracey said he will host a community-wide virtual seminar with two legal scholars on campus free speech and institutional neutrality — a policy that mandates a university refrain in issuing statements on any political issues — April 21 at 3 p.m. The conversation will mark the beginning of “more extensive engagement” around the policy, which will “likely” involve a presentation to the Board of Trustees and the formation of a task force to “study the issue” and make recommendations over the summer, he said. The process of discussing institutional neutrality will “perhaps” include additional engagement with the community next fall, he said. A University spokesperson said in November that GW is not considering institutional neutrality “at this time” but that if officials were to consider adopting a stance, they would consult with community members. More than 15 American
universities adopted the policy following the outbreak of the war in Gaza. Later on in the meeting, faculty senator Guillermo Orti, the co-chair of the senate’s Professional Ethics and Academic Freedom Committee, introduced a resolution that proposed the senate endorse the American Association of University Professors’ statement on institutional neutrality. The statement recommends that universities focus on the “practical results” of releasing individual statements related to social or political issues instead of adhering to a blanket policy of institutional neutrality. The senate resolution states that adopting institutional neutrality is not the solution or “panacea” to the problems at GW and suggested that the University “look inward” at its principles to prioritize values like academic freedom. Multiple faculty senators proposed amendments to clarify the resolution’s wording because of confusion over its definition of institutional neutrality and the statements that the University would or would protect under the policy. The senate unanimously voted to send the resolution back to committee for review. See OFFICIALS Page 3
KAIDEN J. YU | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR
University President Ellen Granberg rides with athletics staff during the 2025 GW Invite on the Potomac River.
OPINIONS The editorial board advises GW to address the community’s avoidance of athletics before pouring more money into its programs. Page 4
SPORTS Meet the driving force behind what’s become softball’s best season in years. Page 5
CULTURE Take a tour through The Hatchet’s local, campus and culinary favorites in Northwest D.C. Page 6-8