Washington — The federal government needs more professionals who can speak multiple languages and are familiar with more than one culture. But limited funds and government priorities for such work often dictate who gets hired and what on-the-job language training employees receive, a panelist at an international-education conference here said today.

Robert Slater, director of the National Security Education Program, said that some languages, such as Chinese or Farsi, take priority over others.

Mr. Slater spoke as part of a panel discussion on the need for international expertise in government security. Some audience members also lamented the lack of financial support for foreign-language programs on college campuses.

Government and industry have called on universities to produce more graduates fluent in “critical languages.”

The panel was part of a two-day forum, sponsored by the International Education Programs Service, an arm of the U.S. Department of Education. The event brought together educators and leaders of state education departments and college language institutes to share programs, ideas, and solutions to the challenges posed in international education. —Hurley Goodall