Dear Erica,
I am writing with good news and an urgent call to action! U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) is leading a letter for his Senate colleagues to urge Secretary of State Marco Rubio to prioritize visa processing for international students and exchange visitors. The deadline for Senators to add their signature is TODAY at the end of business. While understanding the effects of losing Duration of Status is important, we can’t overlook the imperative of access to visa appointments on the fall enrollment picture. Thank you for using the link below to customize and send a message to your senators (Californians will be able to thank Senator Padilla too).
As I shared last week, U.S. Rep. Deborah Ross (D-NC-02) joined with Rep. Valerie Foushee (D-NC-04) and Rep. Jimmy Panetta (D-CA-19) to introduce H.R. 9971, the Advancing International and Foreign Language Education Act. The bill would reauthorize Title VI of the Higher Education Act, thereby reauthorizing and extending programs including National Resource Centers, Language Resource Centers, Undergraduate International Studies, and American Overseas Research Centers.
These are some of the very programs threatened by the Department of Education’s proposed rescission of the regulations governing all Title VI and Fulbright-Hays programs. The Coalition for International Education, of which NAFSA is a member, has launched an advocacy campaign for you to urge your House member to support the legislation. See below.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
Thank you for reading.
Best,
Erica
Erica Stewart
Senior Director, Advocacy & Strategic Communications
NAFSA: Association of International Educators
