Overview
- Districts from Miami to San Diego report steep declines in students from immigrant families, with officials citing deportations, fear of enforcement and fewer border arrivals.
- In Miami‑Dade, new international students fell to about 2,550 this year from nearly 14,000 last year, a drop that officials say has carved roughly $70 million out of the district budget.
- Albertville, Alabama’s newcomer academy reports no new enrollees, and Superintendent Bart Reeves estimates the district will lose at least 12 teaching positions as enrollment falls.
- The downturn hits traditional public schools that already faced enrollment pressures from private options and homeschooling, eroding per‑pupil funding that had been buoyed by newcomer students.
- Separately in higher education, overall international enrollment dipped 1% this fall but first‑time arrivals fell 17%, with universities citing visa hurdles under Trump’s policies and reporting budget strains, including a 62% drop in DePaul’s international graduate intake.