Barriers to Integration of Immigrants in Virginia
April 29, 2024
Migration Studies Lab
Start time: 12:00 p.m.
End time: 1:00 p.m
Location: Scherer Hall, Room 401 (923 W Franklin St, Richmond, VA)
Dr. Saltanat Liebert and Dr. Grant Rissler will discuss barriers to integration of immigrants in Virginia, exploring the challenges and opportunities presented by the following needs assessment, commissioned by The Office of New Americans at the Virginia Department of Social Services. The VCU research team interviewed 46 immigrants and 51 immigrant-serving organizations and other community stakeholders, as well as used Geographic Information System (GIS) to identify Virginia’s foreign-born population by census tract, and plot locations of immigrant service providers. In this talk, Dr. Liebert and Dr. Rissler will present their findings and propose solutions to the multifaceted challenges immigrants in Virginia face today.
About the Speakers
Dr. Saltanat Liebert is an Associate Professor in the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University. Saltanat is an expert on migration and comparative governance issues in the former Soviet states. She has worked for the World Bank, the United Nations agencies, and the International Organization for Migration in Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Austria and the United States.
Dr. Grant Rissler is Assistant Director of the Office of Public Policy Outreach (OPPO) in the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University. Previously he served as Assistant Director of Programs for the Commonwealth Educational Policy Institute (CEPI). He began coordinating communications and special projects for CEPI in the fall of 2012 while working on his Ph.D. and became assistant director in 2015. Rissler received his Ph.D. from the Wilder School’s public policy and administration program in August 2017. His research focuses on local immigration policy and its intersection with education.