Presidents’ Alliance Hires Christian Penichet-Paul as Director of Higher Ed Immigration Portal

The Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration is proud to announce the hiring of Christian Penichet-Paul as the Director of the Higher Ed Immigration Portal, effective April 2, 2020. As Director of the Portal, Christian will lead the development, launch, and maintenance of a collaborative higher education-immigration digital resource and information hub that will provide a “one-stop shop” of data, stories, policies, best practices and other resources regarding immigration trends and issues impacting higher education in the United States. The Presidents’ Alliance serves as the coordinator and host of the Portal, working with a diverse group of higher education, scholarship provider, research, policy, and immigration advocacy partners in this endeavor. 

About Christian. Most recently, Christian was the Policy and Advocacy Manager at the National Immigration Forum. In this position, Christian oversaw multiple immigration-related policy issues, including policy and advocacy efforts related to Dreamers and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). Christian’s expertise includes providing analysis on legislative proposals and federal immigration policies, developing strategic messaging and toolkit  products, and maintaining updated content and resources. Christian also led and contributed to stakeholder meetings with coalition partners, as well as conducted legislative and administrative advocacy.  

Christian grew up in Austin, Texas. He graduated from Texas State University and earned his master’s in American Government from Georgetown University. 

About the Portal. The Portal will offer evidenced-based data, background materials, strategic messaging, and analysis about the many ways that U.S. higher education and immigration issues intersect. It will include data on undocumented, other immigrant, and international student populations; their economic and other kinds of contributions; student and alumni stories; descriptions of relevant state and national policies; and examples of promising and best practices, including institutional spotlights and resources. This resource will make actionable information easily and quickly available to higher education leaders, policymakers, the press, and other constituencies working on behalf of immigrant populations, who need data, examples, or benchmarking in order to effectively make the case for change on campus and beyond. 

About the Presidents’ Alliance. The nonpartisan Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration brings together college and university leaders dedicated to increasing public understanding of how immigration policies and practices impact our students, campuses and communities, and supporting policies that create a welcoming environment for undocumented, immigrant, and international students. The Alliance is comprised of over 450 presidents and chancellors of public and private colleges and universities, representing over five million students in 41 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.