They arrived with hope and purpose, teachers from across the globe answering a call from Washington D.C.’s public schools. The promise was never quite spelled out, but it was there — whispered in meetings, alluded to in emails: if they stayed, if they worked hard, a green card might follow. Now, that promise has evaporated. Last fall, D.C. Public Schools quietly suspended a pilot program that had allowed the district to sponsor green cards for its international educators, citing a lack of funding. The decision has left dozens of teachers adrift, many of whom are in the country on temporary visas.
One of them is a young teacher from Colombia. Her journey to the U.S. began years ago as an au pair, but she quickly saw the need for Spanish-language teachers. She returned home to earn her degree, then came back to the States for a Master’s in Education. In 2021, she began teaching in D.C. With each passing year, she believed she was getting closer to permanent residency. She was wrong. Three years later, there was no pathway forward — just an email informing her that the sponsorship program had ended. What was once a tentative vision of stability — a house, a family, a future in the U.S. — dissolved almost overnight.
“I was stunned”, she said in an interview. “I had made decisions based on what I thought was coming”. She isn’t alone. Many international teachers had taken similar leaps: enrolling their children in local schools, signing mortgages, building community ties. Few expected the district would pull the plug.
The D.C. schools’ decision comes at a time of heightened scrutiny around immigration and employment in education. Federal visa programs, such as the J-1 and H-1B, allow international teachers to work in the U.S. temporarily, but those visas come with strict expiration dates and little long-term security. For many, district sponsorship offered a rare chance to put down roots. Now, their options are bleak. Some are seeking sponsorship through private attorneys — a time-consuming and expensive route. Others are considering leaving the country entirely. “I came here to give back, to help students who need me”, said one educator, who requested anonymity for fear of jeopardizing her visa status. “But now, I feel disposable”.
D.C. Public Schools has not made a public statement about the change, and multiple teachers say they were not consulted or formally notified ahead of time. The move has sent shockwaves through a close-knit network of international educators, many of whom describe sleepless nights and mounting anxiety. “It’s not just about a job,” said another teacher. “It’s about belonging somewhere, feeling safe”.
Immigration advocates say the situation reflects a broader trend of precarity for foreign workers in the U.S., particularly under increasingly restrictive immigration policies. “We were building a life here”, the Colombian teacher said. “But now the rules have changed, and we’re the ones paying the price”.
