Cal Poly Pomona has postponed a planned career fair after word spread online that federal immigration agencies would be recruiting on campus.
Administrators made the decision on Monday, Aug. 25, to postpone the career fair. It was originally scheduled for Sept. 18-19. A new date has not been announced.
“This adjustment allows the university time to thoughtfully reformat both events in response to student and community feedback, ensuring our career programming better serves the needs and aspirations of our students while remaining in compliance with our legal obligations as a public institution,” a post from the office of the university’s president reads in part.
As of fall 2024, 54% of Cal Poly Pomona’s 25,255 students identify as Hispanic or Latino, according to the university.
The university announced the career fair on the career website Handshake, which includes 106,266 verified employers, according to the university. Employers are then able to post job opportunities to Cal Poly Pomona students using the platform.
Neither Immigration and Customs Enforcement nor the Department of Homeland Security were among the 200-plus employers that had been registered to attend the career fair, according to university spokesperson Cynthia Peters.
But Customs and Border Protection and the Federal Bureau of Investigation were among those registered. CBP has previously attended several career fairs on campus, according to Peters. According to the university, ICE has not participated in a career fair since Cal Poly Pomona began using Handshake in 2017.
But the university would be unable to stop ICE or DHS from participating, if they wanted to, Cal Poly said.
“If a university allows any outside employers, recruiters, or agencies to attend career fairs, then it must provide equal access to federal employers — including law enforcement agencies — on the same terms,” the university’s post on the career fair reads in part. “Denying federal agencies while allowing others can be considered viewpoint discrimination or a violation of nondiscrimination/equal access policies under the First Amendment.”
This is a developing story.
