This offering adopts a hybrid structure. Several weeks before the in-person session, participants will receive a link to a video presentation covering elements of the evolution of immigration and US policy towards immigrants through history. After watching the video on their own time, participants will use a simple google form to share questions they have about recent shifts in immigration policy and the impacts of those shifts. The instructor will use these questions to organize the 90-minute in-person session which will be a mixture of presentation, discussion and joint exploration. Grant Rissler is assistant professor of organizational studies at SPCS and coauthor with Dr. Salta Liebert of the 2022 report Barriers to Integration of Virginia's Immigrants. His social equity-focused research explores the role of state and local governments, as well as nonprofit partners, in the integration of recent immigrants into their new communities. In addition to holding degrees in history (BA), international relations (MA) and public policy and administration (Ph.D.), he also counts a graduate certificate in conflict transformation, a professional certificate in Geographic Information Systems (from SPCS) and participation in Virginia Commonwealth University's 2018 Minority Political Leadership Institute as formative educational experiences. His studies included time spent in Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Italy, and Switzerland.