Title VI — International Education and Foreign Language Programs

(International/Foreign Language Ed)

Department of Education

Proposed Cut

$81M

% Reduction

100.0%

Action Type

elimination

Who Is Served

Area studies centers; foreign language programs at 400+ institutions

Summary

Title VI of the Higher Education Act is the main federal program that pays for foreign language classes, area studies centers, and international research at U.S. colleges and universities. The FY2027 budget eliminates all $81 million in funding for this program, a 100% cut, ending decades of federal support for training Americans in world languages and regional expertise.

Who Is Affected

The cut affects area studies centers and foreign language programs at more than 400 colleges and universities nationwide, including major National Resource Centers and Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) fellowships that fund graduate students' tuition and living stipends. Specific examples already hit by related funding freezes include UC Berkeley (about $3.5 million lost), UCLA (about $8 million across six National Resource Centers), Stanford (over $2 million supporting 56 students in 13 languages), and the University of Michigan (about $3.4 million, forcing cancellation of all six of its National Resource Centers).

What this cut would actually mean

Without this money, universities will shut down or shrink centers that teach less-commonly-taught languages like Arabic, Korean, Swahili, and Central Asian languages, and many graduate students will lose the fellowships that cover their tuition and living costs, some abandoning their studies altogether. The Department of Education has already begun terminating these grants ahead of the FY2027 cut, and experts warn the loss will shrink the pipeline of Americans with the language skills and regional expertise needed for jobs in national intelligence, defense, diplomacy, and international business.

Sources

House FY27 Proposal Would Decimate Federal Investment in Language Education and Global Competitiveness — Confirms the FY2027 House appropriations bill would eliminate the $81 million HEA Title VI-Fulbright Hays international education and language studies program.
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION HIGHER EDUCATION FISCAL YEAR 2027 BUDGET REQUEST (ED.gov) — The Department of Education's own FY2027 budget justification proposing elimination of the International Education and Foreign Language Studies programs as part of returning education to the states.
Foreign language, international studies funding cut for Title VI grants | EdSource — Reports specific dollar losses at UC Berkeley, UCLA, and Stanford from Title VI funding cuts affecting National Resource Centers and FLAS fellowships.
Title VI cuts threaten UMich foreign language and area studies | The Michigan Daily — Details how the University of Michigan lost $3.4 million and had all six National Resource Centers cancelled after the Department of Education terminated Title VI grants.
Statement on Discontinuation of International and Foreign Language Education Grant Programs | Association for Asian Studies — Describes the Department of Education's September 2025 termination of Title VI grants and the programs' role in training experts for intelligence, defense, and foreign policy careers.