Valerie Lacarte
Valerie Lacarte is a Senior Policy Analyst with MPI’s U.S. Immigration Policy Program, where she contributes to research design and conducts mixed-methods analysis. Her areas of expertise include native-immigrant gaps in socioeconomic outcomes, health and noncitizen eligibility for public benefits, and immigrant employment.
Prior to joining MPI, Dr. Lacarte worked at the Organization of American States, the Inter-American Development Bank, and the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, where she developed expertise in international trade, Latin American and Caribbean integration policies, and women and families’ economic concerns.
Dr. Lacarte earned a PhD in economics from American University, an MSc in economics from Université de Montréal, and a BA in economics from Université du Québec à Montréal.
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Explore Content by Valerie Lacarte
Showing 11-20 of 31 total results
The Health Costs to Children of Stepped-Up U.S. Immigration Enforcement
Evidence suggests heightened U.S. immigration enforcement will have major and lasting effects on the physical and mental health of unauthorized immigrants and their children.
The Essential Role of Immigrants in the U.S. Food Supply Chain
About 2.1 million immigrants work in jobs growing, harvesting, processing, and selling food in the United States, serving an essential role in feeding America.
Immigrants and the Use of Public Benefits in the United States
Most noncitizens in the United States face significant restrictions on access to federally funded public benefits—particularly unauthorized immigrants.
Beyond the “Black Jobs” Controversy: Immigrants and U.S.-Born Black Workers Share a Growing Jobs Pie
The controversy over whether immigrants have taken "Black jobs" obscures the reality that U.S. job growth has been such that foreign-born workers' growing share of the U.S. labor market and expanded presence across industries do not appear to have occurred at the expense of U.S.-born Black workers. This commentary offers analysis of the U.S. prime-age workforce going back to 1990 by race and nativity.
Immigrants’ Eligibility for U.S. Public Benefits: A Primer
The U.S. 1996 welfare law created a complex patchwork of eligibility for federal supports. This 2024 primer maps which categories of immigrants qualify for 13 U.S. public benefit programs and how some states extend coverage.
Immigration and Integration in the Ever More Diverse Houston Area
Immigrants help power Houston’s economy. Yet 67,000 college-educated immigrants are underemployed and integration services lag the region’s rapid diversification.
Addressing the Next Displacement Crisis in the Making in the Americas
The next major displacement of people in the Americas is in the making, and it is going unnoticed. The response to the steady emigration from Haiti seen since a devastating 2010 earthquake has been largely haphazard and may not stand the test of new spikes as the country unravels further. This commentary suggests a way forward, based on a model used for the Venezuelan displacement crisis.
A Mixed Welcome: Haitian Migration within the Caribbean
Nearly 1.8 million Haitians live outside their country, but the story of where they go within the Caribbean and what awaits them there is rarely told.
Retos y oportunidades de una agenda migratoria en América Latina
En este encuentro se discutieron las perspectivas actuales de la agenda migratoria en América Latina, en cuanto a los desafíos y oportunidades que presentó. El encuentro buscó conocer buenas prácticas migratorias de varios países de la región, con base en tres subtemas: regularización, integración y alianzas intersectoriales.
El Cambio de los Patrones y Políticas Migratorios en las Américas
América Latina ha pasado de ser una región de emigración a convertirse en uno de los destinos migratorios de más rápido crecimiento del mundo, impulsada en parte por el desplazamiento masivo de Venezuela y las crisis regionales que se entrecruzan.
