Dr. Shoba Wadhia

Biography

Shoba Sivaprasad Wadhia is a nationally respected immigration scholar, law professor, author, and attorney who has been a Clinical Professor of Law at Penn State Dickinson Law since 2008. Named the Samuel Weiss Faculty Scholar in 2013, she has led significant initiatives in civil rights and immigration policy. In 2023, she was appointed by President Biden as an Officer of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, overseeing a team focusing on civil rights, diversity, and inclusion within the Department. Wadhia's scholarship emphasizes prosecutorial discretion in immigration law, intersectionality with race and national security, receiving over 550 citations in legal publications and federal court decisions. She has published extensively in reputable law journals and has authored award-winning books. Wadhia contributed as an expert witness testifying before Congress and served as the editor-in-chief of the American Immigration Lawyers Association Law Journal. A recipient of several prestigious awards, including the DHS Outstanding Service Medal, her leadership in legal academia is underpinned by her commitment to diversity and inclusion, having co-chaired the university-wide Student Code of Conduct Task Force and chaired the law school’s diversity committee. With extensive experience as an immigration attorney, she began her career in private practice and spent years in a non-profit setting focused on legislative advocacy and immigration policy reform.

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