Attorney, Legal Resources and Initiatives

The Presidents’ Alliance is seeking a mission-driven Attorney with deep experience in immigration and employment-based immigration law to serve as a core legal resource for the organization. This role has three primary areas of responsibility: (1) providing organization-wide legal expertise, including legal resource development and litigation-related support; (2) supporting the organization’s strategic engagement in litigation and other legal interventions; and (3) leading the Legal Pathways That Work (LPTW) initiative.

The attorney will guide legal direction, develop and maintain legal resources, manage key partnerships, and ensure that institutions, advisors, and noncitizen students have access to accurate, practical guidance on employment-based and related immigration pathways. This position is ideal for a legally trained professional who excels at translating complex immigration frameworks into accessible guidance, coordinating multi-organization initiatives, and supporting strategic legal engagement.

The role does not involve serving as litigation counsel or directly litigating cases; when the Presidents’ Alliance engages in litigation, all legal representation is provided by external counsel. The attorney provides general legal information via resources and strategic guidance, but does not offer institution-specific or individual legal advice or representation.

The Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration launched the Legal Pathways That Work (LPTW) initiative in 2024 to expand access to employment-based immigration pathways for college and university students and graduates in temporary or precarious immigration statuses. Each year, talented noncitizen graduates seek to apply their skills in high-need sectors such as education, healthcare, and STEM, yet many institutions lack the capacity to effectively support these pathways.

LPTW addresses this gap through a multi-pronged approach serving students, campuses, and employers.

Specific Position Responsibilities

Serve as a central legal resource for the Presidents’ Alliance across all issue areas, including:

Resource Development

Draft legal explainers, FAQs, fact sheets, policy analyses, and guidance documents on a broad range of immigration topics impacting higher education.

Support the development of organizational legal priorities and provide legal vetting of resources produced by other teams.

Track legal and regulatory developments affecting students, campuses, and immigration pathways, and integrate updates into external and internal materials.

Technical Assistance

Provide guidance to institutions seeking to expand access for undocumented, DACA, refugee, international, and other immigrant-origin students; such guidance is general in nature and does not constitute legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship.

Offer subject-matter expertise for cross-team initiatives involving state policy, federal policy, campus engagement, or communications related to legal issues.

Engage with partner organizations, partners, and networks to represent the Presidents’ Alliance’s legal expertise.

When the Presidents’ Alliance participates in litigation—whether through amicus briefs or as a plaintiff—the attorney will support the Vice President of Legal Strategy and State Policy and contribute to coordinated legal engagement by:

Supporting the Vice President of Legal Strategy with internal coordination and communication with external counsel and partner organizations.

Gathering, organizing, and synthesizing declarations, institutional statements, student narratives, and other factual materials needed for legal filings.

Conducting legal and factual research to support the development of amicus briefs or plaintiff filings, including working closely with the Manager of Research to identify, gather, and synthesize data, evidence, and research findings that strengthen legal arguments and inform related resources.

Helping ensure accuracy, clarity, and consistency in factual development and legal narratives.

Participating in internal…