Educators hired in recent years on H-1B visas for hard-to-fill K-12 vacancies are waiting for renewals, forcing many from their schools 鈥� and, in some cases, from the country. Their sudden, unexplained departure has left students confused and brokenhearted.

The White House has also imposed a , inserting an obstacle cash-strapped schools can not overcome. 

sued the government last year over the charge, which was announced in September. A federal judge earlier this month , calling it an but the Trump administration has vowed to appeal. Like other immigration-related disputes involving the president, it could be headed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

No matter how that case plays out, the need for foreign-born educators has not abated: The Dallas Independent School District, home to 8,649 teachers, had 412 H-1B visa-holders on staff this school year, a spokeswoman told the 74. 

Public schools in Washington, D.C. had roughly 225 of 辞惫别谤补濒濒.听

鈥淭hese staff members have brought global experience, multilingual expertise, and broadened worldviews as valued members of their school communities,鈥� D.C. schools鈥� spokesman Evan Lambert said in an emailed statement. 

He would not elaborate on what the district might do without them. A Dallas schools spokesperson also declined to answer questions about the impact of federal immigration policies 鈥� or about plans to fill classrooms in these staffers鈥� absence.

Three teachers in South Carolina鈥檚 Lexington District One went out on unpaid leave earlier this school year because their work visas were not renewed on time, a spokeswoman said. Their classrooms have been covered by various educators, including substitutes.

A mother of two young children in the district started a May 6 to draw attention to their plight and 鈥渢o publicly acknowledge that they are loved and valued.鈥�

The woman, who asked not to be identified for fear of retaliation, said the district is scrambling to fill these newly opened slots, leading to concerns about quality instruction. 

鈥淭hese dedicated educators have been a LEGAL and vital part of our community for years, enriching our classrooms with diverse perspectives and unparalleled dedication,鈥� she wrote in the petition, which has been signed by more than 1,100 people. 鈥淟osing them isn’t just a loss for our school district; it’s a loss for our children, our community, and our future.鈥�

The woman told 社区黑料 she hoped the petition would alert other parents as to why these educators were suddenly gone. 

鈥淲e are in a deep, deep conservative state and it didn’t seem to be at the forefront 鈥� or even something people were aware of,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 can鈥檛 change federal policy. I can鈥檛 change how these people are being treated or the things they are losing, but I can bring awareness to it.鈥�

Her elementary-aged daughter lost her tutor, who provided instruction in French in a dual-language program.

鈥淚 loved that whenever she would teach us, she would explain the steps really slowly 鈥� and if we didn’t get it, she would explain it a little slower,鈥� the child told 社区黑料 this week. 鈥淪he was always just really nice. She is my favorite teacher ever.鈥�

The little girl said she cried the first time she walked into the woman鈥檚 classroom after she left. She has seen her since, but can鈥檛 yet accept that the teacher might not be back.

鈥淪he paid some visits to the school and I have given her a hug, but I haven’t really said goodbye,鈥� she said through tears. 鈥淲hen she left, all of the happiness she gave me, I thought I was going to lose it.鈥�

The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement the government enacted the H-1B visa fee to address concerns about the program’s integrity and to protect American jobs. 

鈥淲e disagree with this blatant judicial activism dismantling President Trump鈥檚 historic efforts for immigration reform,鈥� a DHS spokesperson said in a statement. 鈥淯nder President Trump and Secretary (Markwayne) Mullin, our immigration system is being reformed to serve American citizens, American workers, and American families and to preserve our national identity 鈥� not to rapidly import foreigners who take American jobs, commit crimes, burden our welfare system, and erode our cultural and social fabric.鈥�

The National Education Association found in 2025 there were in the United States, spread across some 500 school systems. Texas, North Carolina and California public school districts employ the greatest number of these educators, the organization reported. But the figures are an undercount because they do not include charter schools. 

The international teaching pool is critical for districts large and small, said , chair of the education department at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She said, too, if the $100,000 fee were to stand, it would only harm students.

鈥淯.S. schools in general do better with stable teacher populations,鈥� Bartlett said. 鈥淎nd so when we bring in folks through the international labor market, we ought to be looking to see if they meet the standards of what we need for teachers to keep them, retain them, and then, our students will do better.鈥�

She added that while the issue plays out in the courts, schools might turn to another solution, the far cheaper J-1 visa. But it isn’t a flawless alternative, she said, because such visas are short term and prompt higher rates of turnover.

A showed that South Carolina in 2023 employed some 1,200 staffers with J-1 or J-2 visas, which allow for varied lengths of stay but often cap at three to five years. These hires had, on average, 11 years of teaching experience. Half taught math, elementary education, special education and Spanish. 

Ninety percent served in moderate to high-poverty schools, compared to 70% of the overall teacher workforce. Sixty percent taught in town or rural districts 鈥� 15 percentage points higher than the statewide average. These educators were concentrated in areas with greater attrition rates.

J-1 teachers generally plan for far shorter stays than H-1B visa holders, who can typically remain in the country for six years and often seek permanent residency. At 388, Dallas ISD employed close to the same number of J-1 teachers this year as it did H-1B visa holders, according to the district.

The 20 states that sued the government over the added fee noted H-1B鈥檚 importance in education in their , which cited a nationwide shortage of these and other 鈥渧ital鈥� personnel, including nurses, doctors and researchers.

鈥淲ithout access to skilled overseas workers, public schools would be forced to subject American children to larger class sizes, public research centers would lack staffing to support cutting-edge research, and hospitals would lose capacity to treat seriously ill patients,鈥� they wrote. 

The H-1B visa category was established in 1990 and has been used to bring over millions of high-skill workers in STEM and other fields: Some 400,000 such applications were approved in 2024, more than twice the number in fiscal year 2000, according to . Approvals peaked in 2022, when 442,425 applications were authorized.

Education and labor market experts say the administration’s efforts to curtail the H-1B program are in line with its other anti-immigration initiatives, including an attempt to dismantle the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or , from which thousands of teachers have sprung. 

U.S. District Court Judge Leo Sorokin in Boston, after rejecting each element of the government鈥檚 case in defense of the H-1B fee, said . 

鈥淭he Defendants鈥� miscellaneous arguments that the President has the authority to impose the $100,000 tax based on his 鈥榠mmigration and commerce powers鈥� are nowhere to be found in the authorities they cite,鈥� he wrote in his June 8 ruling. 

Ulysses 鈥淯ly鈥� Navarrete, executive director of the Association of Latino Administrators and Superintendents, said the fee is not a policy, but a price tag, adding there is no way smaller school districts, community colleges and nonprofits can absorb the cost. 

鈥淭his is another attempt by this administration to attack diversity, equity and inclusion for all educators, students and the communities that we serve because when you simultaneously restrict who can enter this country and price out entry-level positions, you’re not protecting American workers … you are shrinking the talent pool of resources, especially at a time when we’re already facing a national educator shortage,鈥� he said. 

Gustavo Balderas, the new superintendent of the Puget Sound Educational Services District in Washington state, served at seven school districts before landing in his current position earlier this year. 

Three of those school systems employed foreign teachers, mostly on J-1 visas. Balderas said these educators filled critical slots as much needed native Spanish speakers, helping schools with their dual language programs. 

鈥淚t really is beyond the language, though,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey are from the country and they are able to express the true authenticity of the culture to the kids.鈥�

At Acad茅mie Lafayette, a 1,400-student French immersion school in Kansas City, Missouri, two second-grade teachers had to stop working this spring because their H-1B visa renewals didn鈥檛 come through. Renewals for 13 others were coming up, a school leader .

Bartlett, of the University of California, said there are simply not enough American teachers to fill these spots and she鈥檚 not seeing any policy movement to fix that domestic shortage. 

So, instead, she said, schools have been benefiting from an international labor pool. But it comes at a cost 鈥� and not just in terms of high visa fees. 

鈥淲hen we recruit overseas, we are usually taking the most qualified teachers from those other countries,鈥� she said. 鈥淎lmost all countries that are economically less well advantaged than we are, and we are pulling from those countries, most notably, the Philippines 鈥� and Jamaica. Also Mexico. We disadvantage their schools, their economies and their children’s ability to learn and develop. So in many ways the whole system is problematic.鈥�