Date of Decision: December 19, 2016
Service Center: Nebraska Service Center
Form Type: Form I-140
Case Type: EB-2 National Interest Waiver (NIW)
Field of Expertise: Education (Science Teaching)
Petitioner Information
Profession: Science Teacher
Field: General Science Education
Nationality: [Not specified]
Summary of Decision
Initial Decision: Denied
Appeal Outcome: Denied
Evidentiary Criteria Analysis
Criteria Met:
Academic Degree: The beneficiary holds a two-year bachelor of science degree, a one-year bachelor of education degree, and a two-year master of arts degree. An evaluation concluded this education is equivalent to undergraduate coursework in Education and a Bachelor of Arts in Public Administration awarded by a regionally accredited university in the U.S.
Certification: The beneficiary is certified by the New York State Education Department to teach biology and general science in grades 5-9.
Professional Memberships: The beneficiary is a member of professional associations such as the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) and the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD).
Criteria Not Met:
Salary or Remuneration: The petitioner did not demonstrate that the beneficiary’s salary is indicative of exceptional ability. The offered wage range was consistent with the prevailing wage and did not show that the position required a degree of expertise significantly above that ordinarily encountered.
Key Points from the Decision
Proposed Endeavor:
The petitioner aimed to employ the beneficiary as a general science teacher in a public school system, focusing on teaching biology and general science to middle school students.
Substantial Merit and National Importance:
The position of a science teacher in a public school system was acknowledged to have substantial merit. However, the decision focused on whether the position and the beneficiary’s qualifications demonstrated exceptional ability.
Supporting Evidence:
The petitioner provided documentation of the beneficiary’s academic degrees, state certification, and membership in professional associations.
Additional documentation included salary comparisons and job certification requirements, which were used to argue that the position required exceptional ability.
Inconsistencies in Proposed Endeavor:
The petitioner’s argument that the beneficiary’s salary demonstrated exceptional ability was not supported by sufficient comparative data. The salary range offered was consistent with the prevailing wage for the position and did not exceed what is typically encountered in the field.
Supporting Documentation
Letters of Intent:
Not applicable.
Business Plan:
Not applicable.
Advisory Letter:
Not applicable.
Any Other Supporting Documentation:
Academic degree evaluations, state certification records, and professional association memberships.
Conclusion
Final Determination: The appeal was denied.
Reasoning:
The petitioner did not provide sufficient evidence to demonstrate that the position required an individual of exceptional ability or that the beneficiary possessed such expertise. The documentation provided did not convincingly show that the beneficiary’s qualifications and the job requirements met the threshold for exceptional ability as defined by the regulations. Consequently, the petition for an EB-2 National Interest Waiver could not be approved.
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