Students’ identity influences sanctuary campus debate and belonging at UMD

Written by: Emely Miranda-Aguilar 🇸🇻

McKeldin Library on Apr. 8 2026 (Maximo Legaspi)

The University of Maryland conducted a survey in Spring 2024 to measure belonging and community on campus. While many students reported feeling comfortable with the overall climate, some groups reported a lower sense of belonging.

Recent changes at the university, including renaming the Office of Diversity and Inclusion to Belonging and Community at UMD and the removal of a list of 25 critical issues originally identified by Black student leaders from its website, have sparked discussion about how the university supports diversity and student advocacy. 

Among these concerns, protections for undocumented and immigrant students and what the university does to support marginalized groups are at the forefront of campus conversations.

Becoming a sanctuary campus

With recent Young Democratic Socialists of America rallies and a proposed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Hyattsville, Maryland, just outside College Park, the topic of the university becoming a sanctuary campus has resurfaced, leading some students to question the university’s commitment to diversity and belonging.

Sanctuary campus policies protect undocumented students by limiting cooperation with ICE agents and other federal immigration enforcement. As of mid-2025, 35 universities in the United States are sanctuary campuses.

“I definitely think it’s really important with all the immigration issues,” said Tatiana Prada, a freshman psychology major. “It would be good to have a public university be a part of being a safe place.”

The University of Maryland is not a sanctuary campus, but some groups and students believe that implementing sanctuary policies on campus is a step toward a more inclusive and supportive environment for all students, regardless of immigration status.

“You go to university, you want to be safe,” said Zachary Allanach, a sophomore architecture major. “Why shouldn’t they?”

Sophia Estreba-Delmo, a junior family health major,  said that any ICE presence on campus would generate a lot of fear among students, especially since the university is home to a diverse population of students. 

As of Fall 2025, 53.9% of undergraduate students identified themselves as non-white, excluding U.S. non-residents and unknown groups. Hispanic and Latino students make up 11.5% of this population.

“This country is built on immigrants, in general,” said Hung Lai, a junior information science major. “I just don’t think that it’s fair for immigrants to be targeted.”

Kaelen Okenwa, a senior information science major, said that while he has never been profiled on campus, he has heard cases of it happening to others and believes law enforcement could profile him one day.

“I feel like it’s definitely possible. Just because it hasn’t happened to me, I feel like it still could,” Okenwa said. “It makes you feel like you’re being watched, or surveilled kind of. Even if you don’t have any bad intentions, it still kind of makes you feel a little awkward, and also just careful with everything that you do.”

In the recent Student Government Association elections, students were allowed to vote for the university to become a sanctuary campus. 

Lai said that the referendum was one of the reasons why he participated in the election. However, some students who did not vote in this election said they did not know about the referendum, but would have voted if they knew how to vote or knew it would be on the ballot.

“I feel like if I went and voted, like one more extra vote is all that matters,” said Nicholas Price, a junior information science major.

Belonging on campus

Many students generally feel that the university does a good job of providing resources to students in marginalized groups that encourage inclusivity, but it could do more. 

“Just saying statements that are more specific that support diversity,” Estreba-Delmo said. “I feel like the statements they come out with are kind of wishy-washy, not fully supporting diversity and inclusion on campus.”

Aleena Hassen Friess, a junior neuroscience and Arabic studies double-major, also said that though the university has created resources and departments that specialize in race, ethnicity, culture, gender and sexuality, it should do more to help these communities and amplify student voices. 

“It’s like ‘Oh, we have all these resources, we’re learning about all these populations,’ but what exactly are we doing to help these populations?” Hassen Friess said. “It’s like we’re looking at it from a faraway lens, like an educational perspective, almost like a zoo, but we’re not going in and just actually helping out.”

Students like Prada and Allanach said that students themselves do a good job of spreading awareness and creating diverse and inclusive spaces that promote belonging. Price acknowledged that the university could do more, but it still has a “very open culture” that allows students to raise awareness and advocate for issues.

“There’s a bunch of different events, a bunch of different clubs or unions, and a bunch of opportunities to get your voice out there,” Allanach said.

For students like Lai, Estreba-Delmo and Price, they have found belonging by joining student groups and organizations with others who come from similar racial, ethnic or cultural backgrounds as them. 

“I surround myself with a lot of Asians in general, and also, my other friends… they come from immigrant backgrounds as well,” Estreba-Delmo said. “So I’ve never really felt like an outsider.”

Price echoed this, saying that the clubs he goes to, and people he talks with, tend to be of his own race. 

“I think that’s just more because of the way our communities are set up,” Price said. “I’m a part of the Black Engineering Society, so I’m around more Black people. I’m also a part of the Black Student Union.”

These student experiences showcase the divide between student-driven and institutional support. Though community spaces and organizations help students foster connection, university efforts still fall short. These mixed experiences align with findings in the university’s 2024 survey.

The survey itself determined that “addressing disparities in comfort and inclusion… are crucial steps in ensuring that all members of the UMD community feel supported, valued and empowered to succeed.”

Maximo Legaspi, Logan McLaren and Morgan Dampier contributed to interviews for this article.