2012-2013 Economic Impact Report Tool for International Students

"Each year, NAFSA produces a detailed regional, state-by-state, and congressional district analysis on the economic benefits of spending by international students and their dependents to the U.S. economy.

International students not only contribute economic value, they build bridges between the United States and other countries; bring global perspectives into U.S. classrooms and research labs; support U.S. innovation through science and engineering coursework, making it possible for U.S. colleges and universities to offer these courses to U.S. students; and support programming and services on campus for all students by paying out-of-state tuition, funded largely by non-U.S. sources.

Use the tool below to explore detailed breakdowns of the data and analysis, including new data on the number of jobs created/supported."

http://www.nafsa.org/Explore_International_Education/Impact/Data_And_Statistics/The_International_Student_Economic_Value_Tool/

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus among those who believe comprehensive immigration reform is dead this Congress

"Despite exasperation among reform advocates that the House has refused to vote on any major immigration bill — particularly the Senate-passed legislation — Priebus said that his “gut” feeling is that the House will indeed pass an immigration overhaul in the next 14 months."

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/11/reince-priebus-immigration-house-immigration-99605.html#ixzz2kRaiSGNY

August Recap

The voice for immigration reform showed up. Some highlights for the month:

• 82,000 contacts (phone calls, letters, and faxes) to Hill offices – including nearly 1,000 letters sent by CoWorld members
• 600 local media hits
• 350 congressional meetings
• 130 town hall meetings

This is not silence.  This is not apathy.  This is not disinterest. 

Because of these efforts, 26 House Republicans....and counting.....plan to support immigration reform and citizenship.

There's a lot going on these days. There's the budget (my husband works for the government....this is ever present in our home).  There's Syria, Gun Control, race issues, and more... It is important to remember that these are all important---and immigration reform is just as important!  A lot is being done by the pro-immigration supporters.

But there is more to be done. See what others have been doing throughout the last month:

Immigration Activists Arrested in Pro-Reform Protest Near Capitol

Immigration Reform is Pro-Growth and Pro-Farm

Women Protest in DC for Immigration Reform

There are many more out there. I recommend following @katieatnafsa on Twitter.  You'll get regular updates on what's going on across the nation. Then the easiest way to advocate is to retweet! Retweet any article pertaining to Immigration Reform and boom, there you go. Easy advocacy!

Why I Support S. 744....

Okay.  Let's all agree that it is not perfect.  No bill is.  No amendment ever reaches the beliefs of each citizen in this nation of many.  I understand the concerns of the many. I understand why we would want to make our borders secure.  I understand why we need to be able to compete in a global economy.

'We' love our nation. 'We' enjoy certain freedoms because of our nation's desire to help all men remain or become equal.  Are our freedoms absolute? No, but they are ours.  

Funny thing about the word 'we,' is that it hasn't always applied to everyone.  At one point in our personal family history, "we" did not apply.  Our families saw how a simple word like 'we' could change their history.....so it changed ours.  

There are many living in the United States, paying taxes, contributing works of art, sharing cultural beliefs, adding more flavor to the 'melting pot' in which we claim such pride.  These families came here for some of the same reasons our families came.  They came for the 'we.'  Right now, a lot of those families are separated or sent home because of long lines and red-tape.  Not because they did anything wrong or brought shame or harm to our nation...simply because the line was too long.

There must be a better way to keep the best and the brightest.  There must be a clear explanation of how to remain and live in the U.S. without such contradicting information and laws. One would think.....but at this time there is not.

S. 744 is not perfect, but it does answer the question of how to create a commonsense process for all aspiring citizens. So ask your Senators to vote YES to S.744. Tell them that the majority of Americans want this.....because they do. We elected our government officials to speak for the will of the people.......SO SPEAK!

I was afraid the first time I called the Capitol.  I was pacing in an office actually.  To my surprise, I was able to share my opinion with someone who actually wrote down that I called.  Does my one call make a difference? I believe that it does.  I believe that I am voicing my opinion, but I need help from you.  It takes maybe 5 minutes to call. Pace in an office--if it makes you feel better.  BUT SPEAK! 

Here's how to call:

Call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask to be connected with your Senators. When connected, please use the below talking points:

• My name is ______________________ and I live in ______________________.
• Like the majority of American’s, I support immigration reform and I’m calling to ask Senator _____________________ to vote “Yes” on S. 744.
• Thank you.

That's all. Help to see history happen right now.....and not just read about in a book!

ADVOCACY TIP FOR THE DAY: Follow your Members on Twitter. Tweet them with opinions.  Their offices track these as well when deciding how to vote. Easy, but effective!

Misinformation...Thanks Senator Graham....

Please see the below press release from NAFSA, my professional organization who coordinated my visit to your office in March. When political leaders such as Senator Graham inaccurately describe the immigration status of the 2001 terrorists, others can misuse such statements to suggest that the United States turn away from international education and from engaging our institutions with the rest of the world. 

NAFSA Statement Correcting the Record on Student Visas

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Bill Roberts, 202-495-2553 or billr@nafsa.org
Katie O'Connell, 202-495-2559 or katieo@nafsa.org

WASHINGTON, April 24, 2013 - During yesterday’s hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senator Lindsey Graham and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano engaged in a colloquy on immigration reform that contained a misstatement of the visa status of the 9/11 hijackers. This historical inaccuracy is being repeated in news accounts of the hearing.

Contrary to what Graham and Napolitano stated, none of the 9/11 hijackers held expired student visas. In fact, 18 of the 19 terrorists who hijacked airplanes on September 11, 2001, had entered the United States legally on tourist or business visas. Only one had entered the United States on a student visa. This information was exhaustively documented by the 9/11 Commission in its supplemental report, 9/11 and Terrorist Travel, which provides a detailed chronology of each attacker’s visa status and entry to the United States. The report states plainly: “Hani Hanjour was the only hijacker to arrive on an academic visa.” DHS, the Immigration and Naturalization Service before it, and the Government Accountability Office, among others, have confirmed this fact on numerous occasions.

Misstating the facts misleads the American public. The reality is that international students are an asset to our nation, not a threat to security.

---------

With nearly 10,000 members, NAFSA: Association of International Educators is the world's largest nonprofit association dedicated to international education. Visit us at www.nafsa.org/policy. To learn more about our advocacy efforts, visit www.ConnectingOurWorld.org and follow @ConnectOurWorld on Twitter.

Growing More Grass...

Another great week in the life of this Grassy Advocate!  I was able to meet other International Educators from the great state of Alabama at the Alabama Association of International Educators conference in Auburn, AL.  Visiting other states who share the same problems or victories remind me how important the community of International Education is to our everyday work.

More importantly, I had a chance to encourage them to engage in the debate focused around a common-sense immigration process.  I lived in Alabama for 6 years and know first hand that if faces unique challenges in this debate.  The home of Civil Rights movement still has a long way to go to reach the goal of all being created equal in the eyes of the public...as we all do.  This idea reaches much further than black and white.....but a whole spectrum of folks.

A federal representative was able to call-in from DC to discuss the issue in detail.  It's always an honor to have such engagement from officials interested in the debate.  It seems there is a new development everyday toward a new process--it can be hard to keep up.  After the call, I was able to share the story of a student faced with challenge after challenge on his journey to and in the U.S. You can read more about it here.  It seems every time I tell his story, others know someone just like him.  Someone whose life was impacted greatly by the lack of a clear process.  Someone who only wanted to come and contribute to the U.S.--in the right way.

I asked the group what the best way to engage in this date would be.  Several commented and I offered a direct solution!  SJC! Senate Judiciary Committee.  Senator Jeff Sessions (R)-Alabama sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee focused on Immigration!  A direct path to someone who has great influence in this debate. I asked all attendees to visit Connecting Our World and contact Senator Sessions, and others, expressing their appreciation and support for a broader approach that addresses the many interrelated issues of our broken immigration system.  I asked them to address why reform or creation of a straightforward process is important to Alabama and to them personally.

You can do this too!  Visit Connecting Our World, click on the Action Alerts and viola!  Maybe you have a story to tell--maybe it's your own or someone else's.  Be a voice. Support the students, scholars, and community members who sit across from you everyday.  The more voices....the more movement in creating a commonsense process that works for us all!

Until next time....

The Middle of March...

Every year, in the middle of March, NAFSA: Association of International Educators hosts an event that is unlike the typical informational conference.  It redirects members' focus on matters bigger than the day-to-day.  It trains members to look outside themselves and work for a change.  A change for the people they serve.

NAFSA's Advocacy Day brings together members across the United States in Washington, D.C. to meet with Congressmen and women about making change for International Education.  I'm proud to say that I've been able to attend this event for the past 3 years now.  What a change it has made for my career!  The faces I see everyday are of the people I remember when speaking to my members of Congress.

This year, one of the main issues we presented was asking Members to Create a Commonsense Immigration process.  Process is an interesting word. It depicts movement......not a standstill.  It depicts a solution.......not  a broken system.  It depicts a road map.....not confusion.

Ways to create this process vary in each Members mind, but let me suggest a few:

GREEN CARD REFORMS

• Develop a viable package for green card relief including some or all of the following provisions:
• • Increase the overall number of green cards available annually, recognizing that a zero-sum approach neither reflects the nation’s needs nor our values. 
  • Recapture unused employment-based green cards from prior fiscal years to help eliminate the backlog.
  • Stop counting spouses and minor children against the employment-based green card cap. More than half of all employment-based green cards go to the spouses and children of workers.  
  • Exempt international student graduates with a direct path to green card status, outstanding researchers, and professors from the limit on the number of employment-based green card that may be issued annually.    
  • Eliminate annual per country limits with a possible phase-in period.
  • Increase green cards for specific priority levels 
• Provide relief through the DREAM Act to children raised in the United States who lack immigration status.
• Provide relief through the United American Families Act to allow American citizens and legal permanent residents to sponsor same-sex partners for legal permanent residency.
• Create a direct path to green card status for foreign students. Including protection from long adjudication timeframes by extending immigration status  from when a green card petition is filed until it is adjudicated (as is done for H-1B green card petitioners).
• Allow green card applicants to retain their places in line while waiting for green cards to become available. Vest this place in line, known as a priority date, with the immigrant petitioner not with the employer. This will make it easier for foreign workers to change employers because doing so will not make them move to the back of the green card line.
• Provide age-out protection for children. Immigrants petitioning for a green card may include their spouse and children in the petition. Unfortunately, if there are backlogs or long delayed decisions, children who turn 21 while waiting become ineligible for a green card based on their parent's petitions. This is called "aging out."  
• Protect higher education and related or affiliated non-profit organizations from increased filing fees. These institutions provide the STEM education necessary for American students to compete in the global workforce. It is counterproductive to increase the burden on institutions that are intended to provide the benefit created by the provision.

NONIMMIGRANT REFORMS

• Eliminate nonimmigrant intent for foreign students (F) by extending dual intent to include them.
• Expand employment options for foreign students (F-1) and exchange visitors (J-1) both during the school year and during breaks.
• Allow short term study on tourist (B) visas.
• Expand opportunities to study for the spouses and children (F-2) of foreign students.
• Provide work authorization for spouses of H-1Bs and foreign students.
• Restore to the Secretary of State the authority to waive personal appearances by visa applicants.
• Restore visa renewal in the United States for the following nonimmigrants: E, H, I, L, O, and P.
• Launch a Frequent Traveler Program for international students, researchers, scholars, and business people. 

PROTECT CURRENT LAW

• Maintain the H-1B cap exemption for higher education and research facilities.
• Maintain special handling that allows colleges and universities to petition for green cards for the most qualified applicants for positions that include classroom instruction.
• Maintain the exemption from the H-1B training fee for higher education and related or affiliated non-profit organizations. 

IMPROVING THE MANAGEMENT OF THE STUDENT AND EXCHANGE VISITOR PROGRAM

• Move the Student and Exchange Visitor Program within Department of Homeland Security from the enforcement division of Immigration and Customs Enforcement to the services division of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.