Reflections of a Teacher Once On An H1-B Visa

We have more than just a teacher shortage problem to solve

Photo by Yoga Sukma 🇮🇩 on Unsplash

I was hired as a special education teacher in inner-city Cincinnati in the year 2000. As an international student on a student visa, I was eligible to work for up to one year after I finished my master’s program.

During my interview and again when I was offered the job, I sought double confirmation that my employer would sponsor an H1-B visa for me to work. The work visa allowed me to teach in an inner-city charter school, one of the most challenging populations to teach, with a high teacher turnover rate.

Cincinnati was not unique in having a teacher shortage. The problem was pervasive. Not enough American citizens were willing to work in the most challenging school districts across the nation, which were fraught with behavior problems, gang violence, and poor academic outcomes.

As a response to address the shortage of special education teachers in the United States, several State governments launched an initiative to bring in special education teachers from India. I had friends from India who entered the United States to work as teachers. They were promised a legal work visa and a seamless route to obtaining teacher certification. Those I knew stayed on to become green card holders and…