Faculty members, as language policy implementers, retain significant control of the enactment of policy in local contexts. In order to better understand the relationship between de jure language policies at multiple levels of the policy hierarchy, in addition to faculty members? acceptance or rejection of these policies, this study investigated faculty perspectives on language policy, specifically at a southeastern university in the United States. This study employed multiple methods of research including a policy examination and a survey. These methods were selected in order to inspect de jure language policies at the national, state, governing board, and institutional level as well as examine de facto language policies within higher education classrooms and investigate faculty members? beliefs regarding the role of language as it related primarily to non-native English speaking students. This study found that most faculty members believe their classrooms are sites of de facto English-only language policies and are therefore unwittingly recreating de jure state language policies within their classrooms. The study also found that a vast majority of faculty members believe that language plays a large role in students? success, that non-native English speaking (NNS) students face more challenges in the classroom than native English speakers, and that institutions should provide additional support to NNS students. Additionally, faculty members held mixed beliefs regarding the equality of classrooms when comparing English native speakers and NNS students. Finally, this research found that there appears to be a direct connection between the exposure that faculty members have to both foreign languages and NNS and their feelings of preparedness to teach these students as well as their beliefs that this significant student population warrants additional support
