Day 2 (March 11) Conference Program

8:00 am – 9:30 am, PST

Enter the General Session

General Session Day 2: Conference Overview & Student Panel: Experiences of UndocuDiversity

We will begin this session with a brief overview of the day’s program, followed by our student panel.

Student Panel: Experiences of UndocuDiversity | 8:15 am – 9:20 am, PST

The student panel brings current and recent grads together to discuss the diversity and heterogeneity of experiences among undocumented and mixed-status family students. Drawing from their lived experiences in higher education and professional and community engagements, panelists will discuss the necessary support systems and opportunities for current and future students impacted by undocumented status and its many intersections.

Panelists:

• Clara Choi, a recent Harvard Graduate School of Education graduate, is now at Learning Designer, where she develops online learning experiences to support K-12 professional learning. She immigrated to the US from South Korea with her family at a young age and grew up in Los Angeles’ She became a DACA recipient during her first year of college, and after a series of life events, her family became a mixed-status family in recent years.
• Antonio Chicas, a pre-med freshman majoring in psychology at the University of Utah. Antonio and his family immigrated from Apopa, El Salvador. He devotes much of his time to student organizations that support diversity and advocate for undocumented students. He firmly believes that his dreams are possible and that he can use his vulnerability as a source of power.
• Ariadna Fernandez, an undergraduate computer science student at the University of Illinois at She immigrated from Mexico at the age of 11 and settled in northern Illinois. She is passionate about helping other undocumented students like her access higher education resources.

• Amrit Kaur, a graduate student at the University of California Santa Cruz who identifies as a queer, Punjabi Sikh community organizer and filmmaker. She is committed to building equitable communities through a multimedia production and consulting company called Brown Girl Joy Productions. Her recent film, Zindagi Dobara, won a Netflix grant in an LGBTQ writing category and will screen at multiple festivals this year.

Moderator: Oscar Cornejo Casares, Doctoral Candidate in the Department of Sociology, Northwestern University + Law & Social Science Doctoral Fellow at the American Bar Foundation

9:30 am – 10:20 am, PST - Breakout Session 1

Communal Vulnerability: Understanding Legal status Beyond the Individual

Time: 9:30 am – 10:20 am, PST
Focus: Diverse Contexts of Undocumented Experiences

Maria Vargas, Henry Gonzalez, Fiorella Carlos Chavez, Sahitya Maiya, and Heidy Sarabia
Sacramento State

In this panel, scholars will focus on various factors that shape the way children and youth experience and navigate legal vulnerability in the U.S., such as time, age, place, and community of arrival. Thus, scholars will show the need to look beyond individual status to understand legal status holistically and better address the challenges that legal vulnerability represents for individuals, families, and entire communities. The main contribution of this presentation is to bring attention to how undocumented, DACAmented, and mix- status students and youth deal with issues of legal vulnerability on and off campus.

Workplaces Experiences, Violations, and Support

Time: 9:30 am – 10:20 am, PST
Focus: Diverse Contexts of Undocumented Experiences

Nohely Diaz
100 Million USA

This session explores the vulnerabilities experienced by undocumented students in the work sector and what protections and supports are available to them. Due to their status, undocumented students are likely to work in low-paying jobs where they may experience various labor violations and exploitation, including wage theft and hazardous work conditions. These are also concerns for low-income students from mixed-status families, as many work alongside their families, particularly in the agricultural sector. This session will cover common forms of labor violations and identify work environments that are known to exploit immigrants with undocumented status. Further, audience members will also learn about current labor protections available to undocumented students to better understand how they can be supported. Space will also be provided for audience members to share experiences and ask questions.

Envisioning Entrepreneurship Opportunities as Productive Pathways to Success

Time: 9:30 am – 10:20 am, PST
Focus: New Resources and Best Practices

Dr. Carly Offidani-Bertrand & Daniel Hernandez Castillo
California State University San Marcos

This presentation will overview entrepreneurship and the immense variance of entrepreneurial pathways, which will help demonstrate how entrepreneurship is a viable career option for immigrant students regardless of age or immigration status. Presenters will review introductory processes for students interested in developing an entrepreneurial idea and mindset, and we will present available resources for professional growth. Following an overview of the variability and availability of opportunities for entrepreneurship, audience members will engage in a facilitated discussion where they will reflect on their potential as entrepreneurs. The presenters will conclude by considering how entrepreneurship programs can be developed with undocumented students to support their professional development.

10:30 am – 11:20 am, PST - Breakout Session 2

Bridging the Gap between Student and Undocu-Professional

Time: 10:30 am – 11:20 am, PST
Focus: Diverse Contexts of Undocumented Experiences

Lupita Zavala & Stephanie B. Francis
Sacramento State

This session focuses on the importance of developing work and professional learning opportunities in college to help undocumented students achieve success in their chosen careers. Drawing upon research and personal experiences, the presenters will discuss barriers experienced by undocumented students as they seek professional and career-specific learning experiences. Next, to address these concerns, the presenters will discuss various solutions and programs aimed at supporting undocumented students in their professional aims. Finally, the presenters will invite the audience to join a coalition of higher education professionals committed to institutionalizing professional resources and supports for undocumented students. The session will offer ample opportunity for discussion of the topics considered.

Launching a Free, Video Recorded UndocuAlly Training

Time: 10:30 am – 11:20 am, PST
Focus: New Resources and Best Practices

Dr. Basia Ellis
Sacramento State

This breakout session will introduce audience members to a freely available, research-informed, and interactive College UndocuAlly training video created to help college-level faculty, counselors, administrators, and staff learn about the experiences of undocumented and mixed-status family students, as well as ways for supporting students’ practical and psychological needs. The video features real stories from undocumented and mixed-status college students and is organized into three modules: (1) basic immigration terms and policies (2) living with undocumented status; and (2) supportive practices and resources. The video overviews federal and state policies that focus on California but are not exclusive to California— and thus, audience members from various states may find the training useful for their campuses. The session will focus on overviewing the contents of the video, how it can be freely accessed, and how it can be used to train various groups of educators, counselors, and staff to become UndocuAllies in their respective settings.

Empowering Undocumented Students in a Post-Affirmative Action World

Time: 10:30 am – 11:20 am, PST
Focus: Building Policy Solutions

Vincent Rasso & Katrina Linden
Campaign for College Opportunity

This session will involve an interactive conversation about how California’s stance on immigration has changed over the years and the ways this was brought about by students who advocated for statewide change. While in the 1990s, Propositions 187 and 209 carried immense implications for California’s undocumented, Black, Latinx, Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (NHPI) communities, more recent decades have shown what is possible when various groups come together to protect and uplift vulnerable communities. As the Supreme Court comes to a decision on the future of Affirmative Action across the nation, and the future of DACA Remains uncertain, there is a need for students and communities to come together to advocate for state and national policies that protect every person who calls the United States home. This conversation, aligned with the Campaign for College Opportunity, will take significant policy issues and opportunities and outline a call to action for empowering students in advancing racial justice in state, local, and campus policies. Audience members will explore the power of coalition-building and learn about research and policy recommendations for supporting less visible undocumented communities, including undocumented Asian American communities. This discussion will leave audience members with concrete ways to advocate for a more racially equitable higher education system that recognizes immigrant communities' immense diversity and value.

11:30 am – 12:00 pm, PST

Break

12:00 pm – 12:50 pm, PST - Breakout Session 3

Time: 12:00 – 12:50 pm, PST
Focus: New Resources and Best Practices

Miguel Pimentel
Las Positas College

This presentation aims to share how educators, administrators, and others can help motivate students to get involved in advocacy efforts to elevate undocumented student academic success. While it can take a lot of courage for undocumented students to open up about their immigration status, opportunities for students to engage in meaningful conversations about their immigration experiences are important for their development.

Educators can play crucial roles in supporting students’ self-exploration and undocumented identity development. In this session, educators and administrators will learn about helpful practices for engaging undocumented students in sharing their stories through various means, including conference panels, books, poetry, media, and others. The significance of UndocuDiversity in this work will also be highlighted.

Renewing the Dream – Collaborative Policy & Administrative Solutions to Ensure College Affordability for Today’s Undocumented Student Population

Time: 12:00 – 12:50 pm, PST
Focus: Building Policy Solutions

Daniela Rodriguez, Jake Brymner, & Yessica Mox
California Student Aid Commission

This breakout session will share key findings and recommendations of the California Student Aid Commission’s recently-released report (Renewing the Dream) from the Undocumented Student Affordability Work Group that convened in 2022. More than twenty years after AB 540 was signed into law to give undocumented students access to in-state tuition rates, today’s undocumented students face new and quickly evolving challenges (e.g., the precariousness of DACA, unequal and cumbersome implementation of well-intended programs, etc.) that call on each of us to reassess how we bring financial aid to undocumented students and establish campus practices. This presentation will provide campus practitioners and stakeholders with tangible solutions they can employ and identify policies that can improve undocumented students’ experience and access to financial aid. The session will cover structural barriers undocumented students face when accessing financial aid and will provide a walkthrough of the work group recommendations that call on CSAC, campus practitioners, and policymakers to meet the needs of today’s undocumented students by working together to create innovative solutions that expand, streamline, and improve financial aid opportunities.

UndocuMentoring: Providing Academic, Emotional, and Identity Development Support

Time: 12:00 pm – 12:50 pm, PST
Focus: New Resources and Best Practices

Areli Castro, Diana Blanco, Aleiza Ambalada, Emilio Lara Maza, & Samantha Ledesma Garcia
California State University Fullerton

This session overviews the structure and implementation of a recently developed UndocuMentoring program at California State University, Fullerton. The program was designed based on the needs of undocumented students reported in a campus-wide survey. Results from the survey showed that 18.5% of students needed guidance, including help finding job opportunities in their career field (17%) and help finding resources for legal and financial aid (10%). Students also reported a need for professional connections (16%), personal connections (8%), as well as mentors knowledgeable about the undocumented experience (11%). In this session, presenters will discuss how they developed their program to support undocumented students' academic, emotional, and identity development needs. This will include identifying and recruiting appropriate mentors; creating goals for mentors and mentees; developing payment strategies for undocumented students without DACA and/or work authorization; and developing leadership workshops. Challenges with implementation, including recruiting sufficient student numbers and maintaining the confidentiality of mentors and mentees, will be addressed.

1:00 pm – 2:00 pm, PST

Enter the General Session

General Session Day 2: Closing Keynote Speaker & Conference Closing

Join us for the official conference closing! Kimberly Gomez will introduce Dr. Carola Suarez-Orozco, who will deliver the Closing Keynote Address. Co-chairs Basia Ellis and Kimberly Gomez and Erik Ramirez, Director of Equity and Affinity Centers at Sacramento State, will conclude this year’s conference.

Closing Keynote Speaker | 1:00 pm – 1:50 pm, PST

Dr. Carola Suarez-Orozco – Director, Immigration Initiative, Harvard University

Dr. Carola Suárez-Orozco is a professor in residence at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the Director of the Immigration Initiative at Harvard University. She is also the co-founder of Re-Imagining Migration, a nonprofit organization. Her research has helped elucidate the child, adolescent, and young adult experience of immigration, including experiences of academic engagement and achievement, identity formation, family separations, civic engagement, and living with undocumented status. A focus on school settings has been an essential and enduring theme in her basic research agenda. She is a recipient of numerous awards, including an American Psychological Association (APA) Presidential Citation, for her contributions to understanding the cultural psychology of immigration. She has served as Chair of the APA Presidential Task Force on Immigration and is a member of the National Academy of Education.

2:00 pm – 3:00 pm, PST

Social Activity: Developing Future Visions!

Basia Ellis & Kimberly Gomez
CSU Sacramento

Join us for a fun and engaging social activity that will allow attendees to get to know each other and share their conference experiences! Group discussions will involve reflections, insights, and next steps for furthering our various efforts to continue supporting undocumented and mixed-status family students.