|
El Corazón de Tejas-Central Texas Chapter of REFORMA |
Central Texas Immigrants:
Issues They Face, Resources to Assist Them
Keynote Speaker Information
Saturday, May 11, 2002
8:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Austin Community College Rio Grande Campus
Keynote Speaker:
Luis F. B. Plascencia
MAS/Public Policy
Chairman, Austin Commission on Immigrant Affairs
Government Department and Center for Mexican American Studies at the University of Texas at Austin
It is an honor to have Luis F. B. Plascencia as our Keynote Speaker. Mr. Plasencia
has extensive research experience in the topics of migration, racial/ethnic social
relations, Mexico-U.S. border studies, and agricultural labor. He is currently Chairman
of the Austin Commission on Immigrant Affairs and is involved in implementing a study
of the conceptual interpretation and practices of "citizenship" among Mexican migrants.
The study incorporates migrants who were formerly undocumented, applied for legalization,
and received permanent residency, and are now applying or have recently been granted
U.S. citizenship. Mr. Plascencia is a professor with the Government Department and
Center for Mexican American Studies at the University of Texas at Austin. This
semester he is teaching two courses entitled "The Politics of Immigration" and
"Mexican American Culture."
In the realm of public policy, he has co-directed a survey of the impact of state
and federal changes in public assistance policies on immigrant households in Dallas,
El Paso, San Diego, and Santa Ana. He also co-directed a survey of race/ethnic relations
between African Americans, Asians and Latinos in three Southern California cities
(Long Beach, Pasadena and West Covina). This was a collaborative project between the
Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, Leadership education for Asian Pacifics
and The Tomás Rivera Policy Institute.
Past projects have included a study of Latino neighborhoods in Chicago, Houston,
Los Angeles, Miami and New York; specifically issues related to poverty and the working
poor. He was a co-investigator in the implementation of the Houston Evaluation of
Community Priorities project. This was a multi-year project that identified the needs
and priorities of the African American, Asian, Latino, and White/Anglo communities, as
well as their interaction, in the Houston metropolitan area. He also has first-hand
experience of Texas health care issues and equal employment opportunity issues in
non-metropolitan areas.
Past Positions:
Page Author: Sarah Bradley-Leighton
Created: February 2, 2002
Updated: May 2, 2002