FOIA Request to George C Wallace State Community College-Hanceville Regarding Chinese National Students on May 16, 2025.
As part of our commitment to providing comprehensive and accurate news coverage on local governmental affairs, we have submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to George C Wallace State Community College-Hanceville. The request seeks information under the Alabama Open Records Law § 36-12-40 et seq., specifically focusing on the presence and monitoring of Chinese National students at the institution.
The records requested include:
1. Documents or lists detailing all current students who are Chinese Nationals, along with their respective departments of study. If this information is protected, we have asked for the total number of such students broken down by department.
2. Documents or lists showing all current Chinese National students, the scholarships they receive, and the sources of these scholarships.
3. A list of recipients of any scholarship from grantors affiliated with the Chinese Scholarship Council, if not already included in the previous request.
4. Policies or procedures that describe how the university monitors students, including Chinese Nationals, to protect its Intellectual Property and other confidential information.
We have emphasized our role as members of the media in gathering and reporting news to hold public institutions accountable and provide transparency to the public. Given our professional responsibilities, we believe we qualify for a fee waiver for this request.
This request is made on behalf of North Birmingham Times and The Coalition Opposing Governmental Secrecy, a non-profit organization dedicated to investigating state and federal governmental agencies through Freedom of Information and Sunshine Laws.
For more information about The Coalition Opposing Governmental Secrecy, please visit [https://stopsecrecy.org/about/](https://stopsecrecy.org/about/).
