Child Welfare and Migration

In 2005, the American Humane Association and the Loyola University Chicago Graduate School of Social Work forged a partnership to develop a resource initiative around issues of migration and child welfare with several purposes in mind:

• To create a transnational forum on the emerging impact of migration on child welfare services, that includes the United States and the countries of origin of migrant families and children;
• To facilitate discussion and relationship building at the research and policy levels among leaders in child welfare and juvenile court systems, universities and advocacy organizations;
• To open opportunities for transnational dialogues among child protection agencies; and
• To focus multi-disciplinary expertise around the country on the intersection of the major policy areas of migration and child welfare.

The two organizations viewed the intersection of migration and child welfare issues as an important emerging concern and saw a unique opportunity for developing productive discussion and working relationships among advocates (both in child welfare and immigration work), researchers, social work and legal practitioners, and leaders from government and philanthropic institutions.

Immigration has been a defining feature of the United States throughout its history. Currently, children represent one of the largest and fastest-growing immigrant populations in the United States. As a result of this growth, the child welfare field faces many new issues of practice, policy and research specific to children from immigrant families. Child welfare workers need to have the resources to actively pursue answers to a large number of confusing situations and questions that impact the lives of children from immigrant families.

Leading organizations in the fields of immigration and child welfare have come together to increase the effectiveness of the child welfare system's and other corresponding systems' response to issues of migration. These organizations constitute the founding members of the Migration and Child Welfare National Network. Membership to the Migration and Child Welfare National Network is free, and there are several advantages to joining. Our members learn from the experience and expertise of others, they share knowledge and strategies, and they participate in collaborative efforts to improve services for immigrant families in the child welfare system. The Network currently has four main areas of focus: policy/advocacy, promising practices, research and transnational relations -- each with activities planned for the next two years.

If you would like to join the Network, please download, complete and return a membership form.

For additional information, please contact CWMN@americanhumane.org.

Presentations:

"At the Crossroads of Child Welfare and Immigration: Understanding Current Challenges Facing Immigrant Families in the Child Welfare System"

A presentation by Sonia Velazquez at the 12th Statewide Family Centered Practice Conference, "Supporting Families in a Changing Arizona," in Phoenix.

How is the child welfare system addressing the needs of immigrant families and how might current federal, state and local immigration policies affect the safety, permanency and well-being of children and families? Ms. Velazquez discussed these and other issues in this keynote presentation.

Download the presentation.

"Immigrants and the Child-Only TANF Caseload"

A presentation by Richard Speiglman, Rosa Maria Castaneda and Randy Capps at the National Association for Welfare Research and Statistics conference, July 2009.

Many very poor families across the United States secure cash and other assistance from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) welfare program. Neither unauthorized immigrants in the U.S., nor most authorized immigrants who are recent arrivals, are qualified to receive this aid. However, in almost all states many of the citizen children of immigrants -- whatever their parents’ status -- are eligible. Situations such as these in which one or more children, but no parents, receive aid are termed “child-only” TANF cases. For very poor, immigrant families, the cash assistance, along with food stamps and other benefit programs, may begin to address family hardships and make the difference between an empty and full refrigerator and between severely crowded living conditions and those more supportive of the well-being of the family members. But not all eligible children receive the TANF benefits.

American Humane, with additional support provided by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, funded a project to study "Immigrants and the Child-Only TANF Caseload" in one California county. The researchers relied on key informant interviews with staff of the county welfare agency and community social services and advocacy agencies, as well as on focus groups with parents whose children are eligible for -- but may or may not access -- the cash assistance, to examine whether current policy meets the needs of the children in these families. The researchers report on family motivation to secure the assistance for their children, as well as the barriers to doing so that they experience, and conclude with policy and program recommendations for county, state and federal officials.

Download the presentation.

"Well-being and Immigrant Families: The Intersection of Migration and Child Welfare"

A presentation at the 2008 Prevent Child Abuse America National Conference, "Connecting the Dots...Turning Knowledge into Action" by Sonia Velazquez, American Humane; Alan Dettlaff, Jane Addams College of Social Work, University of Illinois at Chicago; Robert Mindell, Latino Child Welfare Training Initiative; and Lara Bruce, American Humane.

This presentation addressed practice, program and policy issues in an effort to support child welfare professionals in their work with immigrant children and families. It also identified emerging issues that impact child and family well-being and how that affects established systems of protection and care.

Download the presentation.

Migration and Child Welfare Roundtable

In July 2006 American Humane and Loyola University Chicago Graduate School of Social Work hosted a roundtable to discuss migration in the Americas and its impact on child well-being and child welfare policy, systems, and services. As a resource initiative, the roundtable will stimulate new research and program innovation, inform and shape policy development, and focus greater attention toward improving child welfare systems, practice, and professional training.

Over 70 leaders in the areas of migration and family studies, demography, immigration and family law, and child welfare services convened in Chicago on the Loyola University North Shore campus to discuss migration flows in the Americas, migration and the family, immigration policy and legal practice, migration and child well-being, and service challenges and innovative responses.