University of Minnesota students are not pleased with Trump's second term


University of Minnesota students study hard in The Toaster Innovation Hub beneath Wilson Library. Midterms week has descended on the UMN campus. (Eleanor Steffen/Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication)

By Eleanor Steffen

University of Minnesota students are critical of President Donald Trump's intentions and leadership after the first month of his second term in office.

Trump began his second term by issuing dozens of executive orders that targeted matters such as crackdowns on immigration, reversing climate change actions, terminating federal diversity programs, and designing policies that define genders, according to NPR.

The orders put students in an uneasy position as Trump moves to defund and ultimately eliminate the Department of Education, says NPR. Interviews conducted Wednesday and Thursday with five UMN students confirmed this discomfort.

Student reactions... 💭

Victor Corral, 29, a fifth-year graduate student at UMN pursuing his PhD in Molecular Pharmacology and Therapeutics, receives federal grants that fund his biochemistry and genetics research. Corral is an international student from Mexico, a group that already receives limited funding.

Corral said that he fears for the stability of his research program in the wake of federal funding cuts.

“It will be affecting the research that I do somehow, especially for my mentor, my principal investigator,” Corral said. “So, for him, it’s also quite unpredictable how funding is going to be affected.”


Victor Corral, 29, of St. Paul, is a UMN international grad student. (Eleanor Steffen/Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication)

In Trump’s first 30 days in office, he issued 108 executive actions, including 73 executive orders, according to NBC New York.

Ramses Del Angel, 20, is a computer science student and sophomore at UMN. Del Angel heavily criticized the operations of the Trump administration, specifically the elimination of DEI.

“They’re cracking down on these systems that have helped a lot of people,” Del Angel said.

Amanda de Lima Smerillo, 28, is a third-year strategic communications student at UMN. De Lima immigrated to the United States from Brazil in 2017, but said that she's worried about the status of her citizenship and documentation as immigration becomes a focus of Trump’s authority.

“I have my documents, but like, he can cancel my documents any time,” de Lima said. “He don’t know what I did for be where I am now, you know.” 

Amanda De Lima Smerillo, 28, of Bloomington, is a third-year UMN student. (Eleanor Steffen/Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication)

Looking forward... 🔎

UMN students are uncertain about what the next four years could look like, but their outlook is not positive. Still, they remain hopeful. Aubrey Barber, 20, a third-year animal science student at UMN, encourages optimism.

"It might be a challenge, but we will get through it," Barber said.

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