Iliana G. Perez, Ph.D.

This paper highlights learning lessons and best practices from the California Campus Catalyst Fund (CCCF), a unique 3-year, $14M grant and technical assistance initiative, which supports programs for undocumented students at 32 campuses within each of the public higher education segments in California (University of California, California State University, and California Community Colleges). The paper focuses on three essential components of substantive changes for undocumented students… Show more

This paper highlights learning lessons and best practices from the California Campus Catalyst Fund (CCCF), a unique 3-year, $14M grant and technical assistance initiative, which supports programs for undocumented students at 32 campuses within each of the public higher education segments in California (University of California, California State University, and California Community Colleges). The paper focuses on three essential components of substantive changes for undocumented students attending CCCF campuses: 1) access to financial aid, 2) knowledge about income generation through entrepreneurship, and 3) student leadership development. Recommendations stemming from best practices and implementation of the CCCF are provided for multiple audiences, including postsecondary educators, policymakers, and the philanthropic sector, focused on increasing access and success of undocumented students. Show less

In this paper, we use the method of testimonio (Delgado Bernal, Burciaga & Carmona, 2012) to introduce our collective experience as UndocuPhDs, as chronicled during our time as doctoral students from 2012-2018 through public writings, advocacy, institutional capacity-building and media. We frame the critical analysis of our journey through LatCrit (Delgado Bernal, 2002; Solórzano & Delgado Bernal, 2001) and Institutional Undocu-Competence (IUC) (Valenzuela, Perez, Perez, Montiel & Chaparro… Show more

In this paper, we use the method of testimonio (Delgado Bernal, Burciaga & Carmona, 2012) to introduce our collective experience as UndocuPhDs, as chronicled during our time as doctoral students from 2012-2018 through public writings, advocacy, institutional capacity-building and media. We frame the critical analysis of our journey through LatCrit (Delgado Bernal, 2002; Solórzano & Delgado Bernal, 2001) and Institutional Undocu-Competence (IUC) (Valenzuela, Perez, Perez, Montiel & Chaparro, 2015) to trace the intersection of our undocumented status with our working-class background, financial aid policy gaps, and the advocacy strategies that helped us to overcome institutional invisibility and structural barriers. Our testimonio also highlights the importance of allies who mobilized opportunities for access to graduate school and for engagement in defining activities of the doctoral journey. Lastly, our testimonio transforms the role of undocumented students, as a collective, from research participants to authors and producers of knowledge. The discussion in this paper contributes to the understanding of the experiences of undocumented students in the new context of graduate education and elevates the voices of undocumented scholars in academia. Show less

This chapter updates the history and footprint of Latino businesses in the U.S. with an emphasis on the post-millennial (2000 and beyond) era. It seeks to do so across recent time and space contextualizing the recent economic contribution of Latino entrepreneurs and enterprises in the contemporary American business landscape adding to the historical overview presented by Geraldo Cadava in the previous chapter. The chapter begins with a brief overview of four notable exemplars of contemporary… Show more

This chapter updates the history and footprint of Latino businesses in the U.S. with an emphasis on the post-millennial (2000 and beyond) era. It seeks to do so across recent time and space contextualizing the recent economic contribution of Latino entrepreneurs and enterprises in the contemporary American business landscape adding to the historical overview presented by Geraldo Cadava in the previous chapter. The chapter begins with a brief overview of four notable exemplars of contemporary Latino business leaders and provides details of the LOB landscape utilizing the Survey of Business Owners. This chapter offers a unique typology of LOBs segmented by client base (Hispanic versus Non-Hispanic) and product offering (Hispanic versus Non-Hispanic) to provide further insight into the strategic positioning of LOBs in the U.S. marketplace. This typology is informed by a qualitative assessment of nearly 200 LOB participants in the SLEI-Ed program. The chapter ends with a portrait of the Rochín family business that spans much of the 20th century and exemplifies the opportunities and challenges of business enterprise ownership for Latinos in America. Show less

The growth of Latino entrepreneurship represents an important dynamic force in the American economy. Continuation and acceleration of this trend will raise living standards for Latinos (who currently have about twice the poverty rate of non-Latinos) and contribute to aggregate economic growth. Despite substantial research efforts, our understanding of Latino entrepreneurship is relatively meager. We have only a rough idea of who Latino entrepreneurs are as well as their size, how they got their… Show more

The growth of Latino entrepreneurship represents an important dynamic force in the American economy. Continuation and acceleration of this trend will raise living standards for Latinos (who currently have about twice the poverty rate of non-Latinos) and contribute to aggregate economic growth. Despite substantial research efforts, our understanding of Latino entrepreneurship is relatively meager. We have only a rough idea of who Latino entrepreneurs are as well as their size, how they got their start, what contributes to their success, and what policies are needed to promote further expansion. Well known that surveys of business owners, such as the U.S. Census Bureau Survey of Business Owners (SBO) and the Kauffman Firm Study, occur infrequently and reach only small numbers of Latino entrepreneurs. To fill this gap, the Latino Business Action Network (LBAN), a 501(c)3 collaborated with Stanford University researchers under the umbrella of the Stanford Latino Entrepreneurship Initiative (SLEI) to create the SLEI-Research program. Show less

Self-employed immigrants and entrepreneurs play an important role in the U.S. economy and, yet, go virtually unrecognized since there is no direct way to differentiate entrepreneurs by immigration status. U.S. federal law purposefully allows any immigrant regardless of immigration status to generate income through entrepreneurship. Thus, creating a window of opportunity for undocumented immigrants to create, innovate and thrive in this country. While there is ample research on immigrant… Show more

Self-employed immigrants and entrepreneurs play an important role in the U.S. economy and, yet, go virtually unrecognized since there is no direct way to differentiate entrepreneurs by immigration status. U.S. federal law purposefully allows any immigrant regardless of immigration status to generate income through entrepreneurship. Thus, creating a window of opportunity for undocumented immigrants to create, innovate and thrive in this country. While there is ample research on immigrant entrepreneurs and subgroups of immigrants, none has focused on undocumented immigrant entrepreneurship.

This study used the 2015 U.S. Census American Community Survey (ACS) 1-year and 5-year estimates that consisted of 635,855 (3.9 percent of the total U.S. millennial population) weighted cases of Latino millennial entrepreneurs (self-employed in incorporated or unincorporated businesses). Of these, 200,565 (31.54 percent of the total self-employed Latino millennial population) are estimated to be Latino undocumented self-employed millennials. A method to extrapolate the number of undocumented individuals in national datasets developed by Harvard Economist, George Borjas was used to estimate the number of undocumented self-employed Latino millennials in this study. While previous studies have used the ACS to study entrepreneurs, no one has specifically focused on undocumented immigrant entrepreneurs, largely because very few people are aware of the exceptions for immigrant entrepreneurs written into federal law. In an effort to further the entrepreneurship and immigration literature, this study fills a research gap by examining the characteristics of Latino millennial entrepreneurs by nativity and the attributes that contribute most to economic success for this population. Show less

This chapter introduces Institutional Undocu-Competence (IUC), an institutional capacity framework emerging from a critical analysis of cultural competence, aimed to inform community colleges’ efforts to better support the growing undocumented student population.

While initially it may seem as though undocumented students have limited options upon
graduating from college, this guide is intended to shed light on the possibilities that
do exist. The guide has been written to be as inclusive and comprehensive as possible
by including personal narratives, student testimonials and advice from experts. It is my
desire that undocumented students and allies read through this guide and walk away
feeling encouraged and unafraid of the next… Show more

While initially it may seem as though undocumented students have limited options upon
graduating from college, this guide is intended to shed light on the possibilities that
do exist. The guide has been written to be as inclusive and comprehensive as possible
by including personal narratives, student testimonials and advice from experts. It is my
desire that undocumented students and allies read through this guide and walk away
feeling encouraged and unafraid of the next step. Show less