NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. – Rutgers University’s faculty union is joining with student protesters to demand that officials declare the school a “sanctuary campus” for illegal immigrants.

“We need a ‘sanctuary’ in order to keep Rutgers as we love it and as it currently is: a place open to all who wish to challenge themselves amid new ideas in community with students of color, Muslims, Jews, LGBTQ students, women and men,” Deepa Kumar, vice president of the Rutgers faculty union, told NJ.com.

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“After 250 years, ‘sanctuary’ is who we are,” she said.

Kumar and other faculty members are joining a planned student protest outside of the Board of Governors meeting at the New Brunswick campus’s Winant’s Hall this afternoon in an attempt to pressure university officials into adopting the “sanctuary” status for illegal immigrants. Students in universities across the country have made similar pleas out of fear that President-elect Donald Trump will end President Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which granted protection from deportation for illegal immigrants to pursue work and higher education.

Because Obama did not gain the approval of Congress for the DACA program, and decreed its existence by executive order, Trump can easily cancel the program.

Some university officials, like Princeton University President Christopher Eisbruber, have pointed out the term “sanctuary campus” has no legal definition, but students at schools across the country are pursuing the imaginary protection nonetheless.

The protest at Rutgers comes about three weeks after university president Robert Barchi penned a letter to students and staff outlining the school’s commitment to helping and protecting immigrant students, though he did not specifically use the term “sanctuary campus.”

“As President, I want to emphasize that Rutgers University stands together with all our students. No matter your political view, ethnicity, religious beliefs, race, gender identity, sexual orientation, or nationality, you are first and foremost a Rutgers student, and you are owed our respect, our support, and our best efforts to keep you safe and secure as you express your opinions and pursue your studies,” Barchi wrote.

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“Our University is and must be a safe place for all people to live and learn – where students and others of all viewpoints may express their ideas with the full expectation that they will be heard and respected.  Robust exchanges may not always be comfortable, but they must always be respectful.”

He also pointed out that Rutgers chancellors and counselors provide assistance to all students struggling with personal and legal concerns, and the Rutgers Law School operates an Immigrant Rights Clinic to help illegal immigrant students with immigration issues.

Those services are in addition to other steps the school is taking to shield illegal immigrant students, including strict student confidentiality unless compelled by court order, and indifference to immigration status on campus and in student housing unless a serious crime is committed.

A 2014 study estimated Rutgers’ illegal immigrant student population at about 200, with numbers expected to increase. The university faculty union and scores of students don’t believe Rutgers is doing enough to ensure their safe space on campus, and plan to continue to pressure Barchi to follow the lead of Columbia University and Wesleyan University officials and declare a “sanctuary” status, NJ.com reports.

Rutgers faculty union president David Hughes claims the term “sanctuary campus” is critical to keeping illegal immigrant students enrolled at the school.

“Undocumented, college-bound women and men may simply forego the risk of applying to Rutgers,” he said.