In Sunday’s (3/27) Cincinnati Enquirer (Ohio), Mark Curnutte writes that this Wednesday, violinist and Bulgaria native Yuliyan Stoyanov “and his Bulgarian-born violinist wife and their two U.S.-born children will board a plane to Paris that connects with a flight to the Bulgarian capital of Sofia. There, they will start a new life after living almost 14 years in the United States on a series of student visas…. Stoyanov and his wife, Smiliana Lozanova, 36, have performed since 2006 with the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra…. Lozanova emigrated to the United States in 2002 on a student visa to work toward a master’s degree in violin performance at Louisiana State University…. Their last student visa expired in 2013 when [Stoyanov] earned his Ph.D. in musical arts from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music…. In 2014, the West Virginia Symphony filed on behalf of Stoyanov for an ‘Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker,’ claiming he is ‘an individual of extraordinary ability.’ If granted, the petition would have allowed him and his wife and sons to stay in the United States and earn naturalization status, a ‘green card.’ ” Included are comments from Cleveland-based David Leopold, past president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, and a brief explanation of U.S. immigration law.
Posted March 29, 2016
