Information Regarding Agents Visiting Universities

Campus police departments have procedures and practices they follow related to immigration enforcement, and campus police officers will not detain or arrest an individual solely based on a suspected violation of immigration law and will not routinely inquire about an individual’s immigration status.  

No. Campus police departments do not participate in federal immigration enforcement actions. Federal agents must use appropriate legal processes if they are on campus and wish to contact individual students about enforcement-related issues.  

No. An individual’s immigration status does not determine whether campus police departments will provide campus and community safety-related services and will only be relevant if the individual is involved in serious crimes. An individual’s immigration status does not affect their ability to file a police report with campus police departments.   

Universities do not normally issue alerts based simply on the presence of federal, state or local law enforcement on a campus. Universities’ emergency notification systems are defined by federal law and regulations.
These emergency notification systems are designed to provide information about an immediate, actively occurring, and confirmed emergency situation on a campus (or an actively occurring threat that’s heading towards the campus) that requires the community to take immediate action in order to stay safe.
Using such emergency notification systems other than as required by law and in compliance with university policies can subject the universities to federal investigation and significant penalties.
If an incident becomes an immediate threat to the health or safety of students or employees on a campus, a campus emergency notification would be issued.

A sighting of, or an arrest by, federal law enforcement on campus does not necessitate a call to 911 or a campus police department non-emergency line. The only exception is if one of the below criteria apply: 

• Your physical safety, or that of someone else, is in immediate jeopardy 

• There is civil disorder or a likelihood of violence 

• Destruction of property is occurring 

Generally, no. Federal agents are generally able to access public spaces. However, access to non-public spaces require a judicial warrant. See below for further information on public and non-public spaces.

Take the following steps: 

• Be respectful.  

• Take enough time to think through and formulate your answers.  

• Ask the federal agent for their name and to see their government issued badge. Most likely the federal agent will show you their badge without you asking. If not, it is your right to ask for this.  

• Ask the federal agent why they are on campus, if they have not shared that information already.  

• Ask the federal agent to have a seat in a waiting room or lobby. If you do not have such a space, politely ask them to wait where they are while you try to reach the proper contacts.  

• Call your campus police department. Tell campus police the following information: “Agent X from the Department of Y is here to talk to me about Z.”  

• Do not leave a voicemail message with campus police.  

• Notify your supervisor if not already notified. 

• If no one from your campus police department is available, tell the federal agent that no one is available right now.  

• Ask the federal agent if they can come back another time.  

• Do not give the federal agent access to any paper files or access to any computer systems. 

• Do not give your consent to enter a non-public area  

• If the federal agent seeks to enter non-public areas, if asked, inform the officer that you do not have the authority to consent to entry or searches of non-public areas. 

• Federal agents are free to enter any public areas of your workplace but must have a valid judicial warrant to enter a non-public area.  

• If federal agents disregard your instructions or requests, do not interfere with their actions.  

• If federal agents act—with or without awaiting guidance from you or others at the campus and regardless of whether they have presented a judicial warrant—it is important that you do not intervene or block their movement, as obstructing or otherwise interfering with law enforcement activity can be a crime.

If the federal agent approaches a student worker first, the student should immediately get their supervisor. If their supervisor is not available, the student worker should contact a divisional HR representative

Campus police will ask the caller to describe the encounter in detail and review the contents of the judicial warrant or any other legal document that is presented to the employee. Campus police also have 24/7 access to attorneys from the Office of General Counsel (OGC) and will likely involve an OGC attorney in any such review. 

Federal agents are free to enter any public areas of your workplace but generally must have a valid judicial warrant to enter a non-public area. 

Employees may say to the federal agent, “I am not authorized to give you consent to enter or accept legal documents,” and contact campus police as directed above.

As a public institution, many areas within the campus and its facilities are open to the public. Generally, federal agents are authorized by law to enter public spaces without special permission. Public areas may include sidewalks; green spaces; parking lots and ramps; and lobby, waiting, or hallway areas that are open to the public. Campus libraries and museums that are open to the general public are also generally considered public areas. Campus events, such as lectures, forums and performances that are free and open to the public, or meetings subject to the Wisconsin Open Meetings law are also generally deemed to be public areas. 

Some campus areas, such as faculty, staff and student offices, residence halls, laboratories, and areas accessible only by a key or key card, are not open to the public without permission.  

Classrooms are also non-public areas unless the classroom is hosting an event open to the public. Other non-public areas would include areas only available to employees or individuals with an employee escort, areas holding events that require a ticket for admittance, areas only available to university patients or research participants, privately or university-owned vehicles, and other areas as long as there is a reasonable expectation of privacy in that space. 

Generally, federal agents may not enter non-public areas without permission from individuals authorized to provide permission on behalf of the university unless the federal agent presents a valid judicial warrant or exigent circumstances are present. 

A valid judicial warrant must be signed and dated by a judge. It will include a period within which the search must be conducted, a description of the premises to be searched, and a list of items to be searched for and seized (e.g., payroll records, employee identification documents, etc.). 

Most often, federal agents who might come to campus would be acting on civil, not criminal, authority, and generally carry administrative warrants. Administrative warrants are not signed by a judge and do not authorize federal agents to enter non-public areas or to obtain documents or electronic data without consent.

Only authorized university officials such as Facilities Planning & Management and/or building managers may affix limited access signage inside campus buildings.  

Temporary signs made locally are not allowed . 

Signs generally cannot be placed on exterior doors of campus facilities.  

The Universities of Wisconsin provide information on the immigration status of its students, faculty, or staff only when required by law. 

If asked by a federal agent to provide private information about a student, faculty or staff member, the employee may say “I am not authorized to provide the requested information,” and contact campus police. 

No. The Office of General Counsel (OGC) represents the university, including employees acting in their official capacities. OGC does not represent faculty, staff or students in personal legal matters outside the scope of their business as university officials.  Individuals needing personal legal assistance may contact the State Bar of Wisconsin Lawyer Referral and Information Service at (608) 257-4666 or (608) 257-3838.