At least four international students in Alaska have had their student visas revoked as the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown continues.
They are among hundreds across the country facing removal after losing their student visas.
One of the affected students is recent University of Alaska Anchorage graduate Jean Kashikov.
Kashikov first visited Alaska in 2017 as a tourist from his home country of Kazakhstan.
“We took a cruise out of Whittier, and we did a bunch of regular tourist stuff,” he said in an interview Sunday.
“And I felt like it’s a really nice place with really nice people.”
Kashikov decided to apply to UAA and began taking courses in 2019.
He graduated last May with a bachelor’s degree in math, followed by an associate’s degree in aviation in December.
Now 24 years old, he began working as a self-employed flight instructor in Wasilla in March.
“In the last four to five weeks that I’ve been doing this, I had a bunch of one-time customers where I gave them, you know, biennial flight reviews, which is something that every pilot needs every two years, no matter how small,” Kashikov said.
Kashikov is able to work in the U.S. under an optional practical training period.
This program allows international students to remain in the country for one year after graduating, provided they are working in their field of study.
The federal government tracks and documents the students’ activities with a system called the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, or SEVIS record.
Kashikov’s training period wasn’t set to end until January of 2026.
However, on April 10, while eating breakfast at the Denali Family Restaurant, he received an email from UAA indicating that his SEVIS record had been terminated.
“That basically means that starting this day, you are unlawfully present in the country,” Kashikov said.
In a statement, University of Alaska officials reported that a total of four UAA students, including one currently enrolled, received similar revocations without any prior notice.
They further noted that no students from the Fairbanks or Southeast campuses had been impacted thus far.
“Our international students and scholars are vital members of our community, and we remain fully committed to supporting their success,” said UA President Pat Pitney in the statement.
Kashikov expressed his belief that the U.S. isn’t adhering to its own procedures and laws regarding visa revocations.
At least one experienced immigration lawyer concurs.
“This is, like, totally illegal,” stated Margaret Stock, an Anchorage-based attorney and internationally recognized expert on immigration law.
“Everybody knows it’s illegal, but they’re figuring people aren’t gonna be able to fight it.”
Stock cited research from the National Association of International Educators, which found that more than 800 international students nationwide had their visas revoked or SEVIS records terminated in recent weeks.
“The president apparently set a goal internally at the White House of deporting 1 million people, and they haven’t been able to find enough people who are actually deportable in order to do that,” Stock stated.
Instead, the administration is pushing for people to deport themselves by revoking their visas or issuing direct orders to leave the country, according to Stock.
There hasn’t been a consistent reason given to students for the termination of their visas.
However, officials have made vague references to criminal records checks.
“It sounds like they apparently went into some system and found the person had a ticket of some kind, or they got arrested for something, even if no charges were brought against them,” she added.
Kashikov admitted that he had been arrested three years ago in Arizona for blocking a public bus which he claims refused to pick him up.
He emphasized that he had no alcohol or drugs in his system, acted non-violently, and the charges were ultimately dropped.
Additionally, he has a pending speeding ticket in Georgia from August.
Neither incident qualifies as grounds for deportation, according to Stock who remarked that many individuals lack the resources to take on the federal government in court.
“Their strategy is to do things that are illegal,” she stated, “because they think people are going to have to go into court, and they won’t be able to afford a lawyer, and they won’t be able to fight the government, because it costs a lot of money to sue in federal court.”
Kashikov consulted with immigration attorneys, who provided him with three options.
The first is to simply leave the country.
The second is to attempt to get his SEVIS record reinstated.
However, Stock stated that the Trump administration isn’t currently approving reinstatements.
The third option is to sue the federal government.
Stock referred to a recent ruling in Wisconsin where a judge granted a temporary restraining order to a student, blocking the termination of their SEVIS record.
This order allowed the student to stay in the country and continue working while their federal lawsuit progressed through the courts.
Kashikov mentioned that he will most likely choose to leave.
“They can technically come grab me at any time,” he said.
“So I’m not willing to test them.
I want to leave if I can’t find a better solution.
And now there is no better solution on the horizon as of right now.”
Kashikov expressed that he will miss Alaska, and at least one of his flight instruction clients said they will miss him too.
Kenneth Groat, a resident of Palmer, mentioned he had searched for a flight instructor for over a year to assist him in obtaining his sport license before he found Kashikov.
“He’s a good pilot to start out with, but a good instructor as well,” Groat said.
“You know, he did maneuvers that I hadn’t done in a while, and it just worked out good having a good guy in the cockpit with me.”
Kashikov’s departure disrupts Groat’s plans but also signifies a loss of a talented worker for the state.
“It just seems like it’s hard to find young people to work these days,” Groat noted.
“And Jean just seemed, for his age, he seemed super motivated, you know, and headed in the right direction.
I really wanted him to succeed.”
Though Kashikov’s future in Alaska appears to be concluding, he hopes others can learn from his experience.
“I want the voting public to know that, you know, six months later, or a year later, or whenever, when they come out on the news and say, ‘We deported, removed, etc, so many thousands of violent criminals and whatnot,’ they’re gonna claim that that’s what they’ve done,” Kashikov said.
“And I just want people to know that that’s literally not what’s happening.”
Kashikov received an official notice from the State Department confirming his visa was revoked on Monday night.
As of Tuesday afternoon, he remained in the country.
image source from：https://alaskapublic.org/news/education/2025-04-15/university-of-alaska-says-4-international-students-have-had-visas-revoked-amid-national-immigration-crackdown
