- Utah school officials worry the decision to halt interviews for J-1 visa seekers could impact the state's dual-language education programs.
- The Utah Board of Education has recruited 40 foreign teachers for the 2025-26 school year, and 11 may be impacted.
- The decision stems from Trump administration moves to increase scrutiny of foreign students wanting to study in the United States.
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah school officials are worried about the possible impact of a Trump administration decision to halt new interviews of applicants for J-1 visas, needed by the cadre of instructors from abroad teaching in the state's dual-language immersion programs.
The exchange visitor visa, also known as a J-1 visa, is "a lifeline for the program, for sure," said Robert Austin, the humanities team coordinator with the Utah Board of Education.
Austin helps coordinate with foreign teachers recruited to teach in schools across the state that offer dual-language immersion programs — offerings that provide instruction in both English and a second language.
Official information is sketchy, according to Austin, but he's gleaned from media reports that the U.S. State Department ordered U.S. embassies and consular offices in late May to stop granting new interviews to those applying for student or exchange visitor visas, including J-1 visas. Politico reported late last month that the decision stems chiefly from efforts of President Donald Trump's administration to increase scrutiny of foreign students wanting to study in the United States.
Others are impacted, however, including teachers and nannies. Austin said 11 of 40 new foreign recruits to teach in dual-language immersion classes in Utah in the 2025-26 school year are affected, unable to schedule the interviews they need to secure their work visas. Teachers who already secured J-1 visas, which typically last three years with the possibility of extensions of up to two years, aren't affected.
A "significant number" of foreign teachers recruited from Mexico, Spain, Brazil, Taiwan, France and Germany serve in Utah's dual-language classrooms. In the 2024-25 school year, 344 Utah elementary, middle or high schools offered dual language programming — 172 of them in Spanish and 99 in Chinese. Utah schools also offer dual-language immersion programs in French, Portuguese, German and Russian.
While not all teachers in dual-language programs come from abroad, those who do, apart from having a command of the second language, help promote better cultural understanding of the countries they come from, Austin said.
If teachers still needing them can't secure J-1 visas, that'll leave schools scrambling to fill the posts ahead of the start of the coming school year, Austin said. Beyond that, he said, the decision to halt interviews for the visas sends "a really mixed message about how welcome" the teacher recruits are.
The Utah Board of Education sent a letter to the members of Utah's delegation to Washington, advising them of the situation and asking for help in getting the U.S. State Department to change course. In his first term, Trump took aim at teachers, tech workers and others from abroad, hoping to deny their entry.
"These international educators are essential to our (dual-language immersion) students. Without timely visa appointments, newly hired teachers cannot move forward with travel, training or start dates for the coming school year. Delays now could leave students and schools without the qualified teachers they are counting on," reads the letter, sent last week.
One recruit from Spain noted the extensive planning required to leave the country to come to the United States to teach, according to an excerpt of a message the woman sent to Utah school officials, included in the letter to lawmakers. Her husband has already sought a leave of absence from his job to accompany his wife, and she'd also have to close her home in Spain and register her two daughters in Utah schools.
"With this in mind, we would be grateful to know whether there is a date by which it would be reasonable on your part to expect the J-1 visa appointments to resume — so that we can plan accordingly," the woman wrote.
Austin hasn't heard of any response from the lawmakers, and school officials are waiting for any sort of direction.
"The information currently available is scarce, and forecasts are vague. The coming weeks will shed light on the actual effect of this action and help the education and exchange community develop a proper response," reads a report last week by Immigration Impact. Immigration Impact is affiliated with the American Immigration Council, a nonprofit organization focused on immigration issues.
