Type: Public event

Immigration, Public Policy, and the Skills Debate

Date & time

Nov 19, 2009, 4:00-5:30 pm EST

Location

Weill Hall

Reception to follow.

Immigration is increasingly changing the composition of the American population. From 1970 to 2003, the foreign-born share of the U.S. population increased from less than 5% to more than 12%. Though this dramatic increase has occurred disproportionately in a few regions, the effects of immigration are increasingly felt across the country. Alongside this rapid increase, debate regarding the effects of immigration has also ramped up. Key issues in this debate include the possible economic impacts of low-skill immigration on the low-skill native population, and the potential benefits of selective or high-skill immigration to fill key employment gaps.

Experts differ markedly in their beliefs regarding the effects of immigration (economically and culturally) and the appropriate goals of U.S. immigration policy. In Immigration, Public Policy and the Skills Debate two distinguished scholars will present work addressing this important topic. The Ford School engages in this conversation with the goal of furthering a balanced and thoughtful U.S. immigration policy.

Moderator:
Dean Yang
, Associate Professor of Public Policy, Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan.

Panelists:
George Borjas,
Robert W. Scrivner Professor of Economics and Social Policy, Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.

Gordon Hanson, Professor of Economics and Director, Center on Pacific Economies, School of International Relations and Pacific Studies, University of California, San Diego.

Sponsored by the Center for Public Policy in Diverse Societies at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy.

The Center for Public Policy in Diverse Societies is a new initiative at the Ford School of Public Policy. The Center is charged with promoting cutting-edge, inter-disciplinary research, educational opportunities, and dialogue to improve the design and implementation of public policies in societies that are increasingly complex and diverse locally, nationally, and globally.