William Pérez

William Pérez is an associate professor of education at Claremont Graduate University (CGU). Born in San Salvador, El Salvador, he immigrated to the United States at the age of 10 to escape the civil war. He spent his remaining childhood in Pomona, California, attended Pomona College, and later earned a Ph.D. in child and adolescent development from Stanford University. Before joining CGU, Perez worked at various research institutes, including the RAND Corporation, the Stanford Institute for Higher Education Research, the UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute, and the Tomas Rivera Policy Institute.

Perez’s research focuses on the social and psychological development of immigrant adolescents. He also studies the academic achievement and higher education access of Latino students. His current research examines the achievement motivation and civic engagement of undocumented students. Perez’s recent works include, Undocumented Latino College Students: Their Socioemotional and Academic Experiences (2011), “Civic Engagement Patterns of Undocumented Mexican Students” (Journal of Hispanic Higher Education, 2010), “Cursed and Blessed: Examining the Socioemotional and Academic Experiences of Undocumented Latino/A College Students” (New Directions for Student Services, 2010), “Supporting College-Eligible Undocumented Students: The Role of College Counselors” (Journal of College Admission, 2010), “Extending Our Investments: Higher Education Access for Undocumented Students” (Diversity & Democracy, 2009), “Academic Resilience Among Undocumented Latino Students” (Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 2009), and We Are Americans: Undocumented Students Pursuing the American Dream (2009).