Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said he plans to call for a ban on school districts employing anyone with an H-1B visa. This sweeping ban could harm students and schools, while doing little to address legitimate concerns about the visa program that allows companies to hire foreign workers for specialized jobs.
If Abbott has evidence that the program is being abused, he should present his evidence and take the necessary steps to investigate. But an outright ban calling for "exactly zero" employees on H-1B visas is misguided, and the impact this could have on school districts in Texas — particularly their bilingual programs — is worrisome.
Dallas School District has more employees hired through the H-1B visa program than any other school district in the country. Between July 31, 2025, and June 30, 2026, the district had 171 visa applications approved for employees. This includes new applications and renewals.
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A spokesperson for the district said in an email that of those visa applications, 73% are teachers in the dual-language program. In a district serving about 56,000 students learning English and enrolled in bilingual or English-as-a-second-language programs, these teachers serve a substantial portion of the student population.
Native speakers bring fluency and cultural experience that is especially valuable in foreign language and dual-language classrooms and that American-born teachers may not have. Removing these teachers simply because of their immigration status would narrow the pool of talented teachers.
At the same time, schools have abused H-1B visas in the past. Over a 10-year period in the early 2000s, a district administrator at Garland School District was illegally recruiting teachers, helping them to remain in the U.S. and profiting off their employment. ...
In a statement, Abbott's press secretary Eduardo Leal told us, "There should be exactly zero Texas public school employees on an H-1B visa. Governor Abbott's proposal will protect Texas education jobs from going to H-1B holders. Texas jobs should go to Texas workers — period."
If the governor has evidence that the program is being abused again at Texas schools, then he should explain. However, Abbott's claim that the proposal is intended to stamp out "indoctrination in the classroom" is extremely concerning. Characterizing foreign teachers as indoctrinators just because they are from another country is unfair and ugly.
Over the last few years, we have praised DISD's academic gains, results supported in part by retaining teachers year over year and paying excellent teachers for their performance. Texas should do all it can to help districts keep teachers who are doing important work, like teachers who serve students in bilingual and ESL programs. a ban on H-1B visas that forces districts to dismiss teachers would be a step backward.
