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Speaker Presentations

Immigration Speaker Presentations

For the better part of a year the DU Strategic Issues Panel on Immigration examined the topic in depth, receiving over 30 presentations from individuals in academia, government, business, labor, law enforcement, education, health care and other fields. The panel heard from immigration advocates and opponents; federal, state and local officials; business executives and community organizers; immigration attorneys.

After listening to many perspectives and reviewing an extensive list of readings, the panel began its own deliberations. During the summer and into the fall, panel members weighed the research and opinions offered and engaged in discussions based on the information presented and panelists' own views and experience. They sought practical solutions rather than ideologically oriented outcomes and used a consensus process to identify underlying issues and develop recommendations.  The result is the panel's report: Architecture for Immigration Reform: Fitting the Pieces of Public Policy

Speakers

State Officials
  • John L. Barry Superintendent, Aurora Public Schools
  • Troy  Eid Former U.S. Attorney, District of Colorado
  • John Hickenlooper Mayor of Denver, Colorado
  • Richard D. Lamm Former Colorado Governor; Co-Director of the Institute for Public Policy Studies at the University of Denver; Professor
  • Donald J. Mares Executive Director, Colorado Department of Labor and Employment
  • Bill Owens Former Colorado Governor; Senior Fellow, Institute for Public Policy Studies at the University of Denver
  • Bill Ritter Governor of Colorado
  • John Stulp Commissioner of Agriculture, Colorado Department of Agriculture
  • Steven Summer President & CEO, Colorado Hospital Association
  • John Suthers Attorney General of Colorado
  • Peter A. Weir Executive Director, Colorado Department of Public Safety 
Immigration Attorneys
  • Ann Allott Attorney, Allott Immigration Law Firm
  • Phil Alterman Partner, Stern, Elkind, Curray & Alterman, LLP
  • Brad Hendrick Special Counsel, Caplan and Earnest, LLC 
Law Enforcement
Business Representatives
Advocates 
  • Roy Beck Executive Director, NumbersUSA
  • Josh Bernstein Immigration Director, SEIU (Service Employees International Union)
  • Blake Pendergrass Organizer, FRESC (Formerly the Front Range Economic Strategy Center)
  • Julien Ross Director, Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition (CIRC)
Academic and Other Speakers 
  • Erin Brouse Immigration Consul, Canadian Consulate General - Los Angeles
  • Ann Morse Director, Immigrant Policy Project, National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL)
  • Ved Nanda Professor and Director of the Ved Nanda Center for the Study of International and Comparative Law, University of Denver
  • Peter H. Schuck Author and Simeon E. Baldwin Professor of Law at Yale Law School
  • John Woodward CIA Intelligence Officer; Adjunct Professor at George Washington University; Attorney and Author
Governor Bill Ritter
Brad Hendrick
Ved Nanda