Immigration and Urban Communities
Immigration and Urban Communities: Policy and Pathways
Hosted by Howard J. Samuels State and City Policy Center at the Marxe School
Wednesday March 5, 2025
9:30 am – 4:15 pm
Baruch College Library and Technology Building, 151 E 25th St, New York, NY 10010, Room H-750
In-person free public event | RSVP required | Lunch and refreshments will be served
REGISTER HERE
Urban communities in the United States, long the recipients of large waves of international migrants, have recently become the focal points in national policy discussions about immigration. New York City, for example, has provided shelter and social services to more than 225,000 immigrants since 2022, with a substantial impact on the city’s resources. The federal government, in contrast, has scaled back support for immigrants and jurisdictions working to assist them, and federal policy is undergoing major changes under the new administration. This one-day event brings together government officials, researchers, and students to discuss the contemporary issues and research focusing on immigration in urban communities.
Keynote Address
MANUEL CASTRO
Commissioner, Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs
Moderator: Robert Smith, Professor, Marxe School, Baruch College, CUNY
Other Highlights
Book Talk with Els de Graauw and Shannon Gleeson, the Authors of Advancing Immigrant Rights in Houston.
Moderator: Rahul Pathak, Director, Howard J. Samuels State and City Policy Center, Baruch College, CUNY
Program Schedule
9:30 – 10:00 am | Breakfast and Registration
10:00 – 10:15 am | Opening and Welcome Remarks
- Rahul Pathak, Director, Howard J. Samuels State and City Policy Center
- Linda Essig, Provost, Baruch College, CUNY
- Sherry Ryan, Dean, Marxe School of Public and International Affairs, Baruch College, CUNY
10:15 – 11:15 am | Keynote Address and Q&A
- Manuel Castro, Commissioner, Mayor’s Office Immigrant Affairs
[Moderator: Robert Smith, Professor, Marxe School of Public and International Affairs, Baruch College, CUNY]
11:15 – 11:30 am | Coffee Break
11:30 – 12:30 pm | Panel: “Supporting & Engaging Students on Immigration Issues at Baruch and Beyond”
- Andrea Gabor, Bloomberg Professor of Business Journalism, Baruch College, CUNY
- Lizbeth De La Cruz Santana, Assistant Professor, Black and Latino Studies, Baruch College, CUNY
- Yohaly Navarrete, Interim Director, College Now & Collaborative Programs | Immigrant Student Success Initiative
[Moderator: Felicia Arriaga, Assistant Professor, Marxe School of Public and International Affairs, Baruch College, CUNY]
12:30 – 1:00 pm | Lunch
1:00 – 2:15 pm | Panel 1: Local Immigration Policy and Public Opinion
- “Attitudes Toward Asylum Seekers in New York City”
Phil Kasinitz, Presidential Professor of Sociology at the CUNY Graduate Center
Liza Steele, Associate Professor of Sociology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and CUNY Graduate Center - “NYC Migration Policy Updates and Perspectives”
Felicia Arriaga, Assistant Professor, Marxe School of Public and International Affairs, Baruch College, CUNY
Edwin Grimsley, Assistant Professor, Marxe School of Public and International Affairs, Baruch College, CUNY - “Location, Location, Location! How Place Affected the Activation of Legal Status and Impacts of the Pandemic for Immigrant Families in New York City and Upstate NY”
Robert Smith, Professor, Marxe School of Public and International Affairs, Baruch College, CUNY
[Moderator: Achilles Kallergis, Assistant Professor at the New School of Social Research and Director of the Project on Cities and Migration at the Zolberg Institute]
2:15 – 3:00 pm | Book Talk – Advancing Immigrant Rights in Houston
- Els de Graauw, Professor, Department of Political Science, Baruch College, CUNY
- Shannon Gleeson, Professor, Cornell University
[Moderator: Rahul Pathak, Director, Howard J. Samuels State and City Policy Center]
3:00 – 3:15 pm | Coffee Break
3:15 – 4:10 pm | Panel 2: Immigration, Institutions, and Justice
- “Urban Informality and Immigrant Integration: Advancing a Research Agenda”
Andres Sebastian Besserer Rayas, PhD Candidate, The Graduate Center & Doctoral Fellow, The Samuels Center - “Intergovernmental Criminal History Information Sharing: Justice on Paper, Violence in Practice for Forced Migrants”
Sarah Bishop, Professor, Department of Communication Studies, Baruch College, CUNY
[Moderator: Robin Harper, Professor, York College and The Graduate Center, CUNY]
