According to the Wall Street Journal, cultural exchange programs through the J-1 Visa Exchange Visitor Program could be severely reduced or eliminated.  Over 100,000 students travel to the United States through work-travel programs and are often stationed at tourist spots at national parks, hotels and beaches.  Au Pairs, summer camp counselors and interns/trainee students compete for positions that allow for intercultural exchanges and employment opportunities. These cross-cultural exchanges often fill the gaps in the labor market and give international youth and college students the opportunity to experience American culture and share their own with locals.  As a White House inter-agency group is focused reducing five of the mostly privately funded employment-based programs through the J-1 Visa Program, more than 600 businesses have joined the Americans for Cultural Exchange raise their concerns with the potential cuts.  The Alliance for International Exchange also is dedicated to “promoting the growth and impact of exchange programs” and have a supporting article you can read here. To learn more about J-1 Visas and their cultural exchange, click here.