Police at Florida universities are being deputized for immigration enforcement

Ana Ceballos and Clara-Sophia Daly, Miami Herald on Apr 16, 2025

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MIAMI — Police departments at 11 universities and colleges across Florida have signed on to help Immigration and Customs Enforcement enforce immigration laws on Florida campuses.

The institutions that have enrolled to participate in the collaborative program between campus police and Immigration and Customs Enforcement include Florida International University, University of North Florida, Tallahassee State, Florida A&M University, Florida Atlantic University, Florida Gulf Coast University, New College of Florida, University of Central Florida, University of Florida, University of South Florida and University of West Florida, according to the Herald and Inside Higher Education.

The collaborative program, dubbed 287(g), empowers these agencies to stop and interrogate people about their immigration status in the course of routine police work.

The head of each university police department would be responsible for determining how many officers they would want to put through the training, which involves a 40-hour online course.

Campus police officers need to be trained and certified by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement before they can have the authority to stop, question and detain students or people who they suspect are in the country illegally.

The process of training officers can be slow.

Immigration enforcement is primarily handled by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Border Patrol and the Coast Guard, but the Trump administration is tapping into other law enforcement in its plan to rid the country of as many undocumented people as possible. Hundreds of police forces in the state are in line to participate in the task force model. But so far, it appears Florida Highway Patrol troopers have been the only ones that have been put through the training and certification process.

Students at some universities have responded to the news of this partnership by planning protests and walkouts. At Florida International University, there was a protest on Tuesday where students asserted that “ICE is not welcome on our campus.”

A walkout is also planned for Thursday, organized by the Student Union at FIU. The event was originally focused on uniting against “attacks on freedom of speech and educational funding,” but an organizer said they will also be protesting the collaboration between FIU Police and Immigration.

Immigration advocates have previously slammed the 287(g) program because they say it can make immigrant victims of crime afraid to come forward.

Governor Ron DeSantis has required county jails to participate in the collaborative program, and encouraged other agencies to do the same. He recently signed a bill into law that sets aside $250 million to help local police agencies with the cost of participating in the federal immigration programs.

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