Educational institutions and college-affiliated groups are preparing for President-elect Trump’s inauguration by offering mental health advice, delivering travel notices to international students, and organizing anti-Israel rallies.
Most schools will be closed on Inauguration Day, Jan. 20, due to it falling on a federal holiday, Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Similar to Trump’s first inauguration and the weeks following his victory in the 2024 election, universities and education groups are offering different outlets for students on Monday.
Several anti-Israel college groups in Chicago are planning demonstrations. The University of Illinois Chicago’s Students for Justice in Palestine (SJPUIC) and Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) chapters intend to hold an anti-Israel protest, according to social media posts.
The groups will reportedly meet to “fight back against Trump’s racist and reactionary program,” wrote SJPUIC in a post on Instagram.
Anti-Israel activists gather at Harvard University to show their support for Palestinians in Gaza at a rally in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on Oct. 14, 2023. (Joseph Prezioso)
Other schools are offering mental health advice ahead of the Republican’s swearing-in.
Emory University’s Rollin School of Public Health conducted an interview with clinical psychologist Rachel Waford, published in December, about how to deal with “anxiety” during presidential transitions.
“Americans are experiencing a mix of emotions as Trump prepares to start his second term as President of the United States. For some, a second Trump administration is stirring up fear and anxiety,” the article reads.
Waford suggested those who have anxiety should stay off social media or unsubscribe from news outlets. “I would encourage anybody who is in that state right now to think about the ways that you can plug into your life tangibly. Plug into your community, social supports, and the things that bring a sense of security, safety, and control,” the psychologist said.
President-elect Trump will be sworn in as president on Jan. 20. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
The Close Up Foundation, a nonprofit civic education organization, offered middle school students the opportunity to take a seven-day trip to Washington, D.C., for the inaugural celebration in an effort to help “young people see how our national ideals impact us today.”
Meanwhile, in recent weeks, international students have been urged by their universities to return to the U.S. before the inauguration, claiming that Trump’s plans to crack down on illegal immigration could impact them. Several of the schools giving such notices include Cornell University, the University of Southern California (USC), Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and Penn State.
“A travel ban is likely to go into effect soon after inauguration,” said Cornell University’s Office of Global Learning in a message to students. “The ban is likely to include citizens of the countries targeted in the first Trump administration: Kyrgyzstan, Nigeria, Myanmar, Sudan, Tanzania, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Syria, Venezuela, Yemen, and Somalia. New countries could be added to this list, particularly China and India.”
A statement from USC said that “this is especially important given that a new presidential administration will take office on January 20 and – as is common – may issue one or more executive orders impacting travel to the US and visa processing.”
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LAPD surrounds students protesting in support of Palestinians at an encampment at the University of Southern California’s Alumni Park, in Los Angeles, April 24, 2024. (Zaydee Sanchez)
The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) has also directed teachers to evade Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) if they show up to schools.
“We will not allow any law enforcement entity to take any type of immigration action against our students or their families within our care,” LAUSD Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said during a press conference in January.
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After Trump won the presidential election in November, Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy offered a “Self-Care Suite” at school, while Northwestern University offered a “post-election wellness space” that provided puzzles, snacks, and “brain break activities” for students.
Fox News’ Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.
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