Here are resources for those seeking to be in active allyship with undocumented students.
Donate to Students
Managed by the WWU Scholarship Center, the Undocumented Student Support Viking Funder was established to help meet the pressing needs of undocumented students at Western- please consider donating to it today.
Support our students and the work of Multicultural Student Services by donating to the Office of Multicultural Student Services (MSS) Fund! The fund's purposes include providing emergency financial assistance to students in the event of unanticipated economic hardship, supporting MSS programming that advances identity and cultural development, and sustaining leadership and professional development among students and staff.
Terminology
Blue Resource Center’s Common Terminology
Immigrants Rising’s Defining Undocumented
UndocuAlly Guides & Red Cards
Know Your Rights with Immigration presented by Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network in various languages. Print out and post on your door and in your space. There is critical information about know your rights, WAISN's deportation defense hotline, and differences between warrant types.
Print out and assemble Red Cards / Tarjetas Rojas provided by the Immigrant Legal Resource Center at no cost and in various languages. Great for sharing in your spaces for students to take, learn, and use as a resource.
WAISN Accompaniment Tips shares information about confidently advocating for your rights if you are unable to find an accompaniment volunteer.
How to Support Immigrant Families Amid Heightened Enforcement: 12 Practical Recommendations presented by My Undocumented Life in June 2025.
Deportation Defense Actions Flyer presented by Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network. Learn about ways you can stand in solidarity and help protect immigrant and refugee community members.
Training Opportunities
WWU UndocuAlly Training, facilitated by the Western Washington University Blue Resource Center committed to developing shared understanding, knowledge, and discussion as we work toward supporting and advocating for and with immigration-impacted students including those who are undocumented, DACAmented, and/or from a mixed-status family across campus and our community.
UW UndocuAlly Training, facilitated by University of Washington’s Leadership Without Borders, which provides training and additional resources for UW faculty and staff as well as for other institutions of higher education and school districts to develop a better understanding of how they can build more supportive environments for undocumented students.
WSU UndocuAlly Training, facilitated by Washington State University’s Undocumented Initiatives, which highlights best practices to support undocumented students.
Immigrant Justice Now! Curriculum is a curriculum for non-immigrants acting in solidarity with immigrant communities.
Northwest Immigrant Rights Project Webinars are frequently updated with immigration updates, know your rights information, and immigrant family safety planning.
Policy Briefing on the Immigration-Related Executive Orders & their Impact on Campuses, presented by Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration in February 2025.
What Noncitizen Students, Faculty, and Staff Need to Know presented by Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration in May 2025.
For Staff/Faculty in Higher Ed
A Guide for Success in Secondary and Postsecondary Settings from the U.S. Department of Education describes key practices that educators, school leaders and community organizations can use to better support youth, including Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients.
The Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education & Immigration is dedicated to increasing public understanding of how immigration policies and practices impact students, campuses, and communities. Below are some recommended readings from the organization:
- Undocumented Students in Higher Education: How many students are in U.S. colleges and universities, and who are they? (updated March 2021)
- The Post-DACA Generation is Here
- Beyond DACA: An Updated Checklist for Campuses to Support Undocumented Campus Members (Updated April 2022)
Higher Ed Immigration Portal is a digital platform that integrates data, policies, and resources about DACA and undocumented, other immigrant, international, and refugee students to support immigration reform and federal policymaking, fuel change at the state and campus level, and build a diverse movement of partners and stakeholders advocating for these students. Some recommended resources to check out include:
- Increasing Inclusivity for Undocumented Asian Pacific Islander (API) Students is a resource for educators and allies to learn tangible and effective practices to uplift and connect with undocumented Asian Pacific Islanders (API) students in your college or university.
For Researchers
“As Soon as They Hear ‘Undocumented,’ They Stop Advising”: Theorizing a (Sub)conscious Evasion of Responsibility from Institutional Agents to Undocumented Students utilizes diffusion of responsibility and critical race theory to bring forward the experiences of undocumented students and institutional agents at Great Basin University (GBU). The findings presented here include, (sub)conscious evasion of responsibility and “all students” as white traditional students.
Building Effective Support for UndocuEducators to Thrive and Persist in Higher Education provides guidance about how campus stakeholders can ensure that UndocuEducators, who play crucial roles in higher education, thrive and succeed in their institution.
Helping Students Get Their UndocuHustle On: Introduction to Entrepreneurship Lesson Plan will help educators introduce entrepreneurship to students through an interactive workshop.
“I’m Here to Fight Along With You”: Undocumented Student Resource Centers Creating Possibilities investigated undocumented student support services from the perspective of 49 Undocumented Student Resource Center (USRC) practitioners. Their narratives evidence best practices in undocumented student support services and contribute to the generation of practice-related opportunities across higher education institutions. This study raises implications for higher education research and practice.
Immigrant and refugee ESL students’ challenges to accessing four-year college education: From language policy to educational policy examines the challenges that first-generation immigrant and refugee ESL students face in accessing four-year college education through a qualitative interview study at a U.S. public university.
Immigration Status and Postsecondary Opportunity: Barriers to Affordability, Access, and Success for Undocumented Students, and Policy Solutions provides an overview of issues at the intersection of immigration and postsecondary education, including examining relevant policies; identifying barriers facing undocumented students in accessing postsecondary education; state- and institutional-level solutions to address these barriers; and policy recommendations to improve affordability, access, and success for undocumented students.
NASPA Undocumented Immigrants and Allies Knowledge Community (UIAKC) aims to engage higher education and student affairs professionals in social discourse and action that centers undocumented students and professionals. We aim to share information, knowledge, practical resources, and research about, with, and for undocumented students, students from mixed-immigration status families, and undocumented professionals in higher education.
Undocumented Student Allies and Transformative Resistance: An Ethnographic Case Study examines staff and faculty allies working to help meet the needs of undocumented students at a large research university in the western region of the U.S. Drawing on scholarly work rooted in critical race theory and ethnic studies, the authors highlight forms of transformative resistance. They focus on four key findings: 1) student activism as a catalyst for staff and faculty engagement, 2) confronting contradictions and raising consciousness, 3) developing more supportive policies and programs, and 4) collaborating with organizations and communities beyond the university.
Undocumented Students in Higher Education: A Review of the Literature, 2001 to 2016 presents a critical review of the recent literature on undocumented students in higher education, placing it in the context of recent anti-immigrant sentiment and policy revisions. The 81 reviewed studies reveal that undocumented students confront significant financial barriers, shoulder unique psychological and social burdens tied to their legal status, and lack access to forms of social capital that facilitate postsecondary success.
What Facilitates and Supports Political Activism by, and for, Undocumented Students? responds to the question of what motivates undocumented students, through the lens of critical consciousness, to engage in political activism, and what is the role of adult-allies?
For Mental Health Service Providers
A Guide to Providing Mental Health Services to Immigrants Impacted by Changes to DACA and the COVID-19 Pandemic was written by a group of mental health providers and scholars who identify as immigrants, who are current DACA recipients or formerly undocumented, and who have experience working with DACA recipients through clinical work, community organizing, and academic research.
Coalition of Undocumented Psychologists is designed to bring together undocumented students, scholars, and practitioners interested in or working in all areas of psychology.
Developing Psychotherapy Strategies to Foster Resilience and Prevent Trauma Among Immigrants is a webinar presented by the American Psychological Association.
Strengthening Communities of Support to Serve Immigrant Clients