Stepping Up in Times of Change and Crisis
When Training and Technical Assistance director Jen Riddle puts herself back in the mindset of January 2025, she recalls a sense of foreboding, anxiety, and yet determination.
“We did so much to try and prepare ourselves and our network for what was coming with the change in administration,” recalls Riddle. “But it really was an impossible task. The level of change and system disruption has been far beyond what we expected.”
And yet, Riddle said, the team at CLINIC did their best to “rise to the moment.”
“At every juncture this year, it has been about doing everything we can” to respond to the needs of the network though “scenario planning, careful deliberation, and creative strategizing.”
“It was a really challenging year, but we did our best to support the advocates navigating the evolving system and representing immigrant communities in need, ” she reflected.
Responding to Emerging Crises Through Training and Technical Support
In the first half of the year, before CLINIC’s Emerging Issues team came onboard, the TTA team felt like they were playing whack-a-mole at top speed – trying to keep up with Trump administration policy changes while maintaining their regular load of online and in-person trainings, responding to Ask the Experts inbox queries (or substantive questions on immigration law from Affiliate legal service providers), and creating written legal education resources.
The team members rotated responsibility for sifting through the massive rule changes and executive orders coming out of the Trump administration, doing their best to summarize the immediate practical implications for legal practitioners across the network. But it was exhausting trying to keep up.
And according to Jen Riddle, the Ask the Experts portal wasn’t necessarily seeing numerically more requests for help in the inbox, but “the questions were far more complex, and the stakes for what used to be routine benefit applications were much higher.”
“Advocates were sending us messages asking for guidance on clients’ legal cases in an environment where the policies were constantly shifting and in which enforcement was extremely heightened, so the consequences of an application being denied were dire,” recalls Riddle.
“We went through every new change with a fine-toothed comb and consulted with our coalition partners as well. But nobody really knew how new policies would be implemented so we were doing the best we could in the face of great uncertainty.”
When asked what some of the bright spots in the year were, Riddle first named the in-person trainings the team was able to conduct.
“Our five in-person trainings in 2025 were great spaces for community and solidarity…the chance to gather together, learn from each other, and support each other was really invaluable during such a hard time” she said.
She also said she was proud of the team for pivoting and offering so many new trainings and written materials to try and respond to the evolving needs of Affiliates.
“We created new training curricula on funding challenges, and removal defense training, and on strategies for release from detention. It felt good to address these much-needed topics.”
One other major highlight for the team wers the pro bono cases they were able to take on to represent vulnerable individuals seeking immigration relief. Riddle said she is fully supportive of her team taking on the work as they’re able.
“The Trump administration is creating new issues out of thin air by implementing policies that stretch its authority to the absolute brink,” said Allyson DiPofi, senior attorney at CLINIC. “If I didn’t take on pro bono work, how could I possibly give someone good advice on [these new issues]? Reading others’ accounts is one thing; having your own client’s life at stake is the best way to learn what needs to be done as well as to understand the emotional tax it takes on our Affiliates.”
Kerry McGuire, a senior attorney based in Minneapolis, took on four pro bono cases in the midst of Operation Metro Surge in late 2025, including some for detained clients. She recalled that on a recent CLINIC webinar about how to work with clients in detention, one attendee commented that they “felt like the presenters were meeting us where we were at and understanding what we were dealing with.”
“We don’t get feedback like this unless we are engaging in the work ourselves and stepping up in the middle of this crisis,” said McGuire.
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