Ur Mendoza Jaddou is a Senior Fellow at Niskanen Center where she focuses on federal state capacity with a focus on immigration processes. She is an attorney, public servant, and expert in immigration law and policy with more than two decades of experience in government, nonprofit, and academic settings. She recently served as the Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) from 2021 to 2025, where she led an agency of more than 20,000 employees, oversaw the nation’s legal immigration system, and implemented reforms to improve efficiency, access, and fairness.
Earlier in her career, Ur was Chief Counsel for USCIS, providing legal guidance on complex immigration and administrative law issues. She also served as Chief Counsel to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security in the U.S. House of Representatives, where she advised Members of Congress on legislative and oversight matters.
Beyond government service, Ur has led nonprofit initiatives focused on immigration policy and has been a frequent commentator and writer on immigration law and administrative governance. She has also taught immigration law as an adjunct professor at American University’s Washington College of Law, mentoring the next generation of attorneys in this evolving field. Ur is currently the founder and principal of Jaddou Strategies, LLC.
Ur earned her J.D. from UCLA School of Law and her B.A. and M.A. in Philosophy from Stanford University.