To the Editor,
There is growing concern on the Bloomington and Indianapolis campuses about the numerous job postings from civilian immigration enforcement agencies like Customs and Border Patrol that have appeared across Indiana University-branded Career Services websites and on the IU calendar. University officials claim that this is an unavoidable consequence of using a third-party career platform, Handshake, with a boilerplate disclaimer that appears repeatedly across IU career platforms. At best, this explanation is unconvincing.
Career Services is not obligated to advertise every employer that requests its services. Like any career office, there are established guidelines and standards at IU for employers to recruit our students and young alumni. When an employer’s practices raise concerns about legality, workplace conditions or student safety, even if that employer once had a strong reputation, Career Services is not obliged to continue to promote them.
The nation is still mourning the tragic deaths of Alex Pretti and Renee Good. Both were shot and killed by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis in January 2026. On numerous occasions, federal courts have found Immigration and Customs Enforcement to have violated Fourth Amendment protections by wrongfully detaining U.S. citizens (Gonzalez v. ICE). As a university committed to constitutional principles and student well-being, IU cannot ignore these agencies’ documented pattern of irresponsible conduct when asked to provide them a recruitment platform.
Concerns about the First Amendment, IU’s Expressive Activity and Institutional Neutrality policies, or the Chicago Principles, all of which govern free speech and expression on campus, do not apply in this case. Rather, IU must exercise care in evaluating employers and applying Career Services standards to provide those employers a platform. The presence of these advertisements on IU’s Career Services website implies an IU endorsement, which should not be extended to an employer whose recent workplace practices are under numerous serious legal and constitutional challenges.
The Supreme Court Rumsfield v. Forum for Academic and Institutional Rights, Inc. (2006) decision, related to the Solomon Amendment, makes federal funding contingent on universities allowing military recruitment. However, ICE and CBP are not U.S. military agencies – they are civilian law enforcement agencies under the Department of Homeland Security. Thus, they are not subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice, and they are outside the scope of the Solomon Amendment.
The removal of IU-backed recruitment postings about civilian immigration enforcement agencies does not impugn individual CBP employees, many of whom currently perform important jobs ethically and responsibly. Instead, IU must discern whether DHS leadership and workplace practices currently meet the basic standards that govern employers promoted through Career Services.
IU Career Services professionals are hardworking, ethical and dedicated. They should not have to promote employers whose practices may be illegal, unconstitutional or unethical, nor should they have to entice students to take signing bonuses for jobs that may expose them to physical harm or legal risk. IU’s use of Handshake does not absolve IU of the responsibility to use discretion in approving employers.
Federal courts across the country are currently deciding whether CBP, ICE, and DHS have systematically violated court orders, misapplied federal immigration law, denied constitutional due process, and defied judicial authority. The solution is simple: take these IU-branded postings down until ongoing concerns about DHS, CBP and ICE are fully resolved by the courts.
Thank you,
Dr. Kathy Marrs, Professor of Biology, Indiana University Indianapolis
Purnima Bose, Professor of English, Indiana University Bloomington
