From All Alone to Safely Home: Mitigating Risk Factors in Family Reunification of Unaccompanied Children

1. From All Alone to Safely Home: Mitigating Risk Factors in Family Reunification of Unaccompanied Children

2. Learning Objectives Participates will understand: • The general circumstances of children present in the US without legal status including reasons for and methods of migration. • Risk factors complicating safe family reunification as identified in approximately 200 cases involving children without legal status. • Benefits of family support services for mitigating risk in reunifying families of undocumented children. • Implications of the risk analysis data for undocumented children who never receive support services.

3. Objective #1 General circumstances of children present in the US without legal status including reasons for and methods of migration. Courtney McDaniel, LIRS

4. Quiz Show #1 What is the current estimate of individuals living in the U.S. without legal status? A.) 3-4 million B.) 7-8 million C.) 11- 12 million D.) 14-15 million A New Century: Immigration and the US by MPI Staff, Updated by Kevin Jernegan; Migration Information Source

5. Quiz Show #2 Of these 11-12 million, how many are under the age of 18? A.) 5% B.) 16% C.) 25% D.) 60% Estimates Based on the March 2005 Current Population Surveyby Jeffrey S. Passel, Senior Research Associate, Pew Hispanic Center

6. Quiz Show—Final Question! Each year, how many unaccompanied immigrant children are apprehended and served in federally funded facilities? A.) 500 children B.) 2000 children C.) 4000 children D.) 7000 children ACF website: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/orr/programs/uac.htm

7. The est.11 Million Undocumented: Who are they? • Many are individuals who entered with a valid visa and overstayed or violated the terms of their visa. • Others have entered the U.S. without inspection (EWI). • A few are subject to an outstanding removal order but have not left; they are called absconders.

8. Why do people break the law by entering unlawfully or overstaying their visa? • Family reunification • their wait in line is 10-20 years or more • Economic reasons • Fleeing persecution (political, religious, social) • Fleeing violence (gang, family, street)

9. Methods of Migration • Dangerous journeys • Smugglers (aka coyotes, guides, snakeheads) • Trains, planes, automobiles and boats Picture source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:BorderAtJacumba.jpg

10. Apprehended Children • Of the thousands of undocumented immigrants arrested for being in the United States without status each year, we know about 7,000 are unaccompanied children. • An unaccompanied child is a child who is alone: separated from his parents/guardians. • These children are apprehended either along the border, at airports or other ports of entry, or in the interior of the United States. • After arrest, unaccompanied children are transferred from the care of immigration authorities into the care of the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement.

11. DHS Apprehension of UAC in FY07 Map Retrieved from ACF Website, on 6/2/08. It includes children referred to ORR DUCS by DHS field offices: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/orr/programs/FY2007UAC_ApprehensionsMap.doc

12. Minors’ Country of Origin FY 2008 Native Countries of UAC in FY08: • Honduras 30% • Guatemala 28% • El Salvador 24% • Mexico 10% • Ecuador 3%    • Nicaragua 0.7% • China 0.6% • Brazil 0.5% • Other 2.6%   • Data gathered from ORR’s website http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/orr/programs/unaccompanied_alien_children.htm

13. Demographics of Minors in ORR care in FY 2008 • In FY 2008, 77% of unaccompanied minors in ORR care were male. • 23% of unaccompanied minors were female. • 10% of unaccompanied minors were under 14 years of age, therefore 90% are between the ages of 14-17 Data gathered from ORR website http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/orr/programs/unaccompanied_alien_children.htm

14. Minors in ORR care • Minors are placed in one of many contracted programs around the country, according to their level of placement needs • Minors receive case management, counseling, educational and legal services while in care • Minors are placed in immigration court proceedings to determine if they qualify to stay in the United States or if they will be removed to their home countries • Minors are eligible for family reunification while they await the outcome of their court proceedings

15. Protecting Best Interests of Children • ORR contracts with LIRS (Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service) to provide child welfare professionals, known as Field Coordinators to the children in care. Field Coordinators visit children regularly to assess their needs and make best interest recommendations to ORR and other stakeholders • Areas of assessment and advocacy include: emotional and physical well being, safety, and appropriateness of current placement as well as potential for appropriate family reunification in the US • Assessment and advocacy is done with respect for the minor’s culture and experience balanced with applicable policy

16. Objective #2 Risk factors complicating safe family reunification as identified in approximately 200 cases involving children without legal status. Nazareth Aregai, LIRS

17. Family Reunification Services • Children can be released from federal custody during their immigration hearings if they have a qualified sponsor willing to take care for them. • Specialized Family Reunification Services are required when reunification involves significant risks to the child’s health and well being. • In FY07 and 08, LIRS provided FR Services for 308 children, including pre-release Suitability Assessments and post-release Follow-up Services. (In FY07 and 08, there were 243 cases referred to USCCB - the only other provider of these services.)

18. Pre and Post Reunification Services • Suitability Assessments investigate risk factors through extensive background interviews, document collection and review, and a home visit. • Follow-up services help the sponsor and the child identify resources and supports in their community. Follow-up services include home visits to a sponsor’s household.

19. LIRS FR Clients FY07 and FY08 Child’s Destination State (Sponsor’s Home State) Number of children per state: AL – 1 AZ - 8 CA - 52 CO - 2 CT - 1 FL - 17 GA - 4 IL - 2 IN - 3 KS - 1 KY - 4 LA - 3 MA - 5 MD - 10 MI - 4 MN - 3 MS - 1 NC - 14 NJ - 14 NV - 2 NY - 49 OH - 2OK - 1 OR - 10 PA - 5 RI - 1 SC - 4 TN - 6 TX - 31 UT - 2 VA - 7 WA - 5

20. LIRS FR Clients FY07 and FY08

21. LIRS FR Clients FY07 and FY08

22. Other Risk Factors (lit. review) • Sense of loss, guilt, abandonment… • Prolonged separation from family • Vulnerable to exploitation and debt bondage • Threats by smugglers / traffickers • Being deported to “foreign” country

23. Other Risk Factors (lit. review) Separation • Nuclear and extended family • In a sample of 385 students, 85 % reported separation from one or both parents • Ambivalence and fear about reunification • Meeting a “stranger” • Parents struggle to reestablish authority/control • Attachment issues

24. Other Risk Factors (lit. review) • Poverty • Families working long work hours • Turning to alternative “family” • Parentified children

25. Other Risk Factors (lit. review) • Language barriers and culture shock. • Barriers to accessing services. • Siblings with varying access to resources. • Living “in the shadows” and fear. • Unable to travel/mobilize. • Fearful of seeking vital protection.

26. Objective #3 Benefits of family support services for mitigating risk in reunifying families of undocumented children. Lauren Crawford Taylor, LSGA

27. Federal law allows: Emergency medical treatment and immunizations Emergency Disaster relief Homeless and crisis services Public school through grade 12 Federal Law does not allow: Welfare Food stamps Public housing Unemployment Health care Social Security Meeting Children’s Needs

28. Medical/Mental Health Needs Medical • Emergency Medicaid • Immunizations • State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) • Community Health Care Centers • Faith-based Organizations • State Public Health Departments Mental Health • Community mental health centers • Not for profit organizations • Mental health and Crisis Hotlines

29. Legal Needs How can we meet their Legal Needs? • Locating legal representation • Forms of relief for kids include: • Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS), Asylum, Trafficking Victims, Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), U-Visa (victims of serious crime), Temporary Protected Status (TPS) • Children Eligible for Unaccompanied Refugee Minors (URM) Foster Care Program

30. Safety Needs How can we meet their Safety Needs ? • Orientation to local emergency service providers. • Specialized support services for victims of trafficking, domestic violence, etc. • Safety plan developed with the child, family and other community resources.

31. Educational Needs How can we meet their Educational Needs? Review of Federal Law • Right to Enrollment • English Language Learners (ELL) Services • Special Education • Tutoring • Post-Secondary Ed (varies from State to State) Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) • Prohibits schools from exposing the legal status of students or their families to any outside organization including immigration.

32. LIRS FR Clients FY07 and FY08

33. Objective #4 Implications of the risk analysis data for undocumented children who never receive support services. Nazareth Aregai, LIRS

34. Implications • Families may never access services due to fear or lack of knowledge. • Risk of family breakdown. • Involvement with child protective services. • Children turning to alternative family including gangs.

35. Resources Finding an attorney National Center for Refugee and Immigrant Children (202) 347-3507 or 1-800-688-7338 E-mail: nationalcenter@uscridc.org; www.refugees.org Executive Office for Immigration Review Pro Bono Program http://www.usdoj.gov/eoir/probono/states.htm Law Help assists low and moderate income people to find free legal aid programs in their communities. http://www.lawhelp.org/ American Bar Association http://www.abanet.org/legalservices/findlegalhelp/home.cfm Legal option - Immigrant Legal Resource Center: https://www.ilrc.org/immigration_law/remedies_for_immigrant_children_and_youth.php or www.ilrc.org Court information Automated Immigration Hotline 1-800-898-7180 (court date, time, location, and other information; the child’s alien number is needed to access information) Education School obligations to LEP students: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/qa-ell.html ESL resources by state: http://www.ed.gov/about/contacts/state/index.html?src=ln Free tutoring resources: http://www.tutorsforkids.org Special education resources by state: http://www.nichcy.org/states.htm

36. Resources continued Medical Vaccines for Children program: General information http://www.cdc.gov/nip/vfc/Default.htm State specific information http://www.immunize.org/states/index.htm SCHIP call toll-free: 1-877-543-7669 http://www.insurekidsnow.gov Community Health Care Centers Call toll-free: 1-888-275-4772 http://www.nimh.nih.gov/HealthInformation/GettingHelp.cfm State health departments http://www.cdc.gov/doc.do/id/0900f3ec80226c7a Mental Health Community mental health centers http://www.nimh.nih.gov/HealthInformation/GettingHelp.cfm Mental health services locator by state http://www.mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/databases/ Non-governmental agencies http://www.focusas.com/Directory.html

37. Resources continued Mental Health, continued Hotlines National Youth Crisis Hotline 800-448-4663 (800-HIT-HOME) National Runaway Switchboard: 800-786-2929 (800-RUNAWAY) National Child Abuse Hotline 800-422-4453 (800-4-A-CHILD) National Sexually Transmitted Disease Hotline 800-227-8922 National Rape Crisis Hotline 800-656-4673 (800-656-HOPE) National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 800-273-8255 (800-273-TALK) National Teen Pregnancy 800-467-8466 (800-4-OPTIONS) Girls and Boys Town National Hotline 1-800-448-3000 (call with any problem, anytime) Guardianship Information Guardianship Fact Sheet http://www.brycs.org/documents/ft_BRYCS0527.pdf Guardianship Information by State: http://www.brycs.org/documents/state_guardianship_info.pdf Sponsor Handbook: http://www.lirs.org/What/children/DUCS.htm

38. Resources continued Adjusting to Release / Family Reunification Bibliography: available at http://steinhardt.nyu.edu/immigration/pubs/index.htm: Immigration Studies at NYU: http://steinhardt.nyu.edu/immigration/articles.html (all articles sited below can be found at this link) Making Up For Lost Time: The Experience of Separation and Reunification Among Immigrant Families. Carola Suárez-Orozco, Irina Todorova, & Josephine Louie. The Well-Being Of Immigrant Adolescents: A longitudianl Perspective on Risk and Protective Factors. Carloa Suarez-Orzco et. al. Identities under siege: Immigration stress and social mirroring among the children of immigrants. Carola Suarez-Orozco Facilitating Positive Development in Immigrant Youth: The Role of Mentors and Community Organizations. Jennifer Roffman et al.  (2001). Carola Suárez-Orozco. “Psychocultural Factors in the Adaptation of Immigrant Youth: Gendered Responses.”InMarjorie Agosín (Ed.) Women, Gender, and Human Rights: A Global Perspective. Picataway, NJ: Rutgers University Press). [pp. 170-188] (2004). Carola Suárez-Orozco, Marcelo Suárez-Orozco, & Irina Todorova. Wandering Souls: Adolescent Immigrant Interpersonal Concerns. In George DeVos & Eric DeVos (Eds.) Narrative Analysis Cross Culturally. (Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.) Torn Apart: Years of Separation Take Their Toll on Immigrant Children and their Families. An article by a journalism student at Columbia   University featuring the stories of several reunified youth.  http://www.jrn.columbia.edu/studentwork/youthmatters/2004/immig_1_forero.asp Immigrant families frequently separated: New study shows similar pattern for legals and illegalsTyche Hendricks, Chronicle Staff Writer Wednesday, July 6, 2005 http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/07/06/BAGICDJBJ41.DTL