Live webinar air date: October 23, 2026, 1 p.m., Eastern time
Date
CE credits
3
Exam items
18
Series
Description
This program highlights changes occurring in terms of (1) border security and clinical services for immigrants, (2) training and student well-being in the anti-DEI climate, and (3) uncertainty in research funding and academic freedom. Brief presentations highlight the current state of affairs in each of these domains as well as actionable steps for mitigating harm to practitioners, clients, and trainees in psychology.
Learning objectives
- Identify recent changes in border security practices and immigration policy and describe their impact on access to clinical services and ethical psychological care for immigrant populations.
- Apply evidence informed strategies to address challenges to trainee well being, supervision, and professional development arising from the current anti-DEI climate in psychology training and academic settings.
- Analyze the effects of increasing uncertainty in research funding and constraints on academic freedom and implement practical steps to mitigate harm to research integrity, trainee development, and professional practice.
Presenters
Alfonso Mercado, PhD
A professor and associate director of clinical training in the Department of Psychological Science at the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley and is a licensed psychologist. His research focus is on Latino mental health, including immigration, trauma, and multicultural interventions. He is the past-president of the Texas Psychological Association and the National Latinx Psychological Association. In 2024 he co-chaired APA Presidential Taskforce on Immigration and Health. He was also the 2025 chair of APA’s Advocacy Coordinating Committee.
Oswaldo Moreno, PhD
An associate professor in the Department of Psychology at Virginia Commonwealth University. He is also the research director of La Esperanza Research Collaborative at VCU. His research focuses on clinical health psychology within community contexts, Latino and immigrant mental health, addictive behaviors, and multicultural counseling. He is the 2026 president of the National Latinx Psychological Association.
Amanda Venta, PhD
An associate professor of psychology, a licensed clinical psychologist, and director of the Youth and Family Studies Lab at the University of Houston (UH). She earned a BA at Rice University and an MA and PhD at UH. Her training included positions with Texas Children’s Hospital and Baylor’s Menninger Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. Her research focuses on psychopathology in youth and family functioning, with a recent emphasis on asylum seeking youth and families from Central America. She has published more than 150 scientific papers, chapters, and books, and recently served as co-chair of the APA’s Presidential Task Force on Immigration. As PI, she has received funding from the National Institutes of Mental Health and the National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities.
