A robotics team of Afghan girls, who were initially barred from entering the United States, is staying in Thurston Hall while competing in an international competition this week.
Lorraine Voles, the vice president for external relations, tweeted about the girls’ stay on campus Tuesday, a message retweeted by the University’s official account.
“The Afghan Girl’s Robotic team is staying at #GWU Thurston Hall as great women do at one time or another,” Voles wrote in the post.
First Global rented space on the Foggy Bottom Campus for contestants to stay during the organization’s robotics competition, University spokeswoman Maralee Csellar said.
A representative from First Global did not immediately return a request for comment.
After preparing for the contest for months, the six-member team twice had their visas denied, for unspecified reasons, to enter the United States for the annual contest in D.C. Their story spawned international outrage and the team was granted visas after President Donald Trump intervened, The New York Times reported.
The team held their first match in the competition Tuesday morning and gave an additional demonstration of their robot to Ivanka Trump, the president’s daughter. Contestants had to guide robots to place colored balls into openings based on their color, according to The Times.
Thurston Hall is GW’s largest residence hall, housing more than 1,000 freshmen during the academic year and incoming students during Colonial Inauguration at the beginning of the summer.