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REFUGEE PARENT INTERVIEWS
In order to gather first-hand accounts
of parenting and resettlement challenges
and successes, BRYCS staff are conducting
a series of interviews with refugee parents.
Each interview summary will be followed
by several discussion questions, so that
refugee serving agencies can use the interviews
as a staff development tool.
 Newest interview: Dina, an Iraqi Interview
Previous parenting interviews
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PROMISING PRACTICES
FOR REFUGEE-SERVING
PROGRAMS
Project CREATE, in central California, was created to bridge the gap between Southeast Asian (SEA) youth and elders and to improve communication between the generations through documentation of life stories and collaborative projects.
Milagro STARS is a comprehensive after-school and summer cultural arts program for low-income children in Palm Beach County, Florida. The Milagro Center offers an environment in which children have creative opportunities to explore their own self worth, imagine their future, and dream without limitations!
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BRYCS will continue to develop our “promising
practices” series in the coming months as we
share the innovative work being accomplished by programs
serving refugee children and their families throughout
the United States. Please be sure to visit BRYCS'
Targeted Resources for Program
Managers, where you will find a link to the complete
list of Program Descriptions in the Clearinghouse.
If you have a program to share, or are aware of
any creative efforts towards enhancing services
for refugee children, please contact BRYCS with
the details. We want to recognize and profile these
efforts, so that others can learn from them. We
are also interested in hearing from you about what
tools, resources or mechanisms that you would like
to learn more about. Email
info at brycs.org or call 202-541-3232 to speak
with our Outreach and Information Coordinator.
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| Bridging
Refugee Youth and Children’s Services (BRYCS)
is a national technical assistance project working to broaden
the scope of information and collaboration among service providers
- in order to strengthen services to refugee youth, children
and their families. Read more about our mission and services.
Who is a refugee?
 Now
you can sign up online to receive the BRYCS Bulletin Alert
via email, as well as sign up for our new BRYCS Discussion
Listserv.
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BRYCS is pleased to present our newest publication, Raising
Children in a New Country: An Illustrated Handbook.
This booklet was created as a tool for refugee and immigrant
serving agencies, as they help newcomer parents adjust to
the different laws, norms and practices around raising children
in the United States. Please see our Publications
page if you prefer to download the handbook in smaller
segments. To order print or CD copies of the Handbook, please
email info@brycs.org or
call 1-888-572-6500. If you are interested in translating
this book into other languages, please refer to the Translation
and Copyright Guidelines for Service Providers and
accompanying sample cover page in PDF
or MSWord
format.
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SUMMER
2008 SPOTLIGHT
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“Youth Voice” refers to efforts that incorporate the input and participation of youth into planning activities that affect them, as well as by sharing their perspectives and experiences through artistic expression. Adults often assume what youth need, or overlook the importance of intentionally soliciting youth input. Yet, youth themselves make clear that their observations and sentiments can be poignant and insightful. Their participation in planning can make programming relevant, accessible, and effective for youth.
In order to highlight the contribution and talent of newcomer youth, this BRYCS Spotlight article focuses on the newly created Youth Arts & Voices Web page, which showcases art by refugee and immigrant youth, along with lists of highlighted resources and information about youth arts programming.
To see any of the past Spotlights or lists of highlighted resources by topic, please visit the archive.
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WHAT'S
NEW - JULY 2008 |
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Announcing a new resource on Special Immigrant Juvenile Status! The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ newly released SIJS Caseworker’s Toolkit, for Children in Federal Custody is now available online. Designed for caseworkers and other service providers helping children in federal custody who are applying for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS) visas, this new Web page includes SIJS Flow Charts, a description of the people and professionals affecting the outcome of children’s SIJS cases, key government players, forms and fees, SIJS and Work Permit Q & As, and other resources. Please send any feedback to Adrienne Young.
EVENTS
The 2008 Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) The National Institute of Justice (NIJ) Annual Conference will take place in Arlington, Virginia, on July 21–23, 2008. The conference will bring together criminal justice scholars, policymakers, and practitioners at the local, state, and federal levels to share the latest research findings and technology. This year's conference includes a panel on youth gang research and best practices organized by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. Other panel topics that may be of particular interest to BRYCS’ audience include the commercial sexual exploitation of children, school-based prevention programs, and bullying.
The National Migration Conference will be held in Washington, DC, July 28-31, 2008. Co-sponsored by the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC) and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops/Migration and Refugee Services (USCCB/MRS), the conference aims to educate the public, particularly public policy makers, on the challenges and abuses faced by refugees, immigrants, migrants, trafficking victims, and other persons on the move in the United States and throughout the world. Stop by the BRYCS exhibit! (Description summarized from source.)
The 71st Annual Conference of the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges will be held July 27-20 in Norfolk, Virginia. This year’s event is titled "Navigating the Complex Waterways of the Judicial System" and will focus on juvenile and family law topics including custody and visitation, divorce, child abuse and neglect, domestic violence, juvenile delinquency, and substance abuse. Workshops will address cross-cultural and immigration issues.
Crossing Borders, Connecting Families: International Social Work in the 21st Century, will be held September 18-20, 2008. This three day comprehensive training on will cover a wide range of topics that directly affect the practice of social work in America, including international child welfare, repatriation, immigration, home studies and adoption and other transnational issues.
The Sixth National Conference on Quality Health Care for Culturally Diverse Populations will be held September 21-24 in Minneapolis, MN. This year’s conference will focus on the importance of collaborative relationships and the mechanics of developing such partnerships. Also of interest to BRYCS’ audiences are the workshops on organizational cultural competence, building community coalitions with ethnic communities, and integrating traditional healing practices into services.
The 2008 National Refugee and Immigrant Conference will be held in Chicago, Illinois, September 25-26, 2008. The convening will offer the opportunity to identify issues and highlight promising practices among groups and individuals assisting refugee and immigrant children and their families. The conference will include sessions on integrating services, creating partnerships, multiple-risk families, Pre-K-12 educational issues, adult education, health issues, refugee influxes, and job development. BRYCS will be presenting on “Strengthening Refugee Families: Resources for Service Providers.” We hope to see you there!
FUNDING
Access to Artistic Excellence, a grant from the U.S. National Endowment for the Arts, funds projects that provide short-term arts exposure or arts appreciation for children and youth, as well as intergenerational arts education. The deadline for applications is August 11, 2008.
The foundation Women Helping Others (WHO) awards a grant for grassroots programs that impact the health and social service needs of women and children. WHO pays particular attention to charities that address changing needs among women and children. It will also consider funding for imaginative, original projects or programs within established organizations. The deadline for applications is September 9, 2008.
The McKenzie Foundation created a grant to support non-profit programs that focus on early child development, education, the environment, or arts and culture. It specifically wants to encourage innovative programs or projects with lasting impacts that ultimately help families and strengthen communities. The deadline is rolling.
RESOURCES
Cultural Orientation
UNHCR’s Bhutanese Resettlement to the United States discusses important background information that every service provider working with the Bhutanese refugee population should know, including UNHCR’s role in the resettlement process and resettlement preparation.
Old Hopes and New Dreams: Bhutanese Refugees Ponder the Challenge of Resettlement, a recent issue from The Refugee Voice, presents readers with a summary their Bhutanese refugees hopes and fears about resettlement. The issue also offers several recommendations to those working with this community in Nepal and the United States.
Child Welfare
The Second National Forum of the Migration and Child Welfare National Network, The Intersection of Immigration and Child Welfare: Emerging Issues and Implications was held April 1-3, 2008. Professionals from the fields of child welfare, immigration, law, policy and advocacy can now view session PowerPoint’s and handouts online.
Unaccompanied Children in the United States: A Literature Review by Olga Byrne of the Vera Institute of Justice provides and in-depth look at the thousands of non citizen children who have been separated from their parents or other legal guardians. The article addresses the initial migration of unaccompanied children, Children’s Rights and the Best Interests Principle, detention, release, repatriation and reunification, forms of relief, and legal representation.
Immigrants and Refugees: The Intersection of Migration and Child Welfare, an April 2008 webcast hosted by the National Resource Center for Family-Centered Practice and Permanency Planning (NRCFCPPP), can be viewed online by completing a free registration. In this webcast, guest speakers Alan Dettlaff and BRYCS Consultant, Ilze Earner, discussed issues surrounding the intersection of migration and child welfare. Earner and Dettlaff called for more research and policy on immigrant children and families who come into contact with child welfare systems. In creating effective promising practices for culturally competent service providers, Earner and Dettlaff stressed the need for training for service providers working with immigrant populations.
The Action Alliance for Children has a Web site that provides information to children’s services providers, educators, community leaders, parents, and more. The Web site is available in English and Spanish and also has a number of articles in Chinese.
Education
Living with a Disability in the United States for Refugees, a new illustrated guide from the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, defines what a disability is in the United States and addresses what it is like to live with one here. The section on “Children and School” begins on page 7. Please note that a useful accompaniment to this illustrated book is USCRI’s Resource Guide for Serving Refugees with Disabilities.
Left in the Margins: Asian American Students and the No Child Left Behind Act addresses the importance of examining one of the United States’ largest English Language Learner (ELL) populations. Nearly one out of four (24%) Asian American students is an ELL and Asian Americans constitute 12% of all ELLs nationwide even though they are only 5% of the total population. The article offers recommendations to ensure the needs of this population are met.
Challenging Common Myths about Young English Language Learners, suggests that young ELL children are quite capable of learning subject matter in two languages. In fact, they may benefit cognitively from learning more than one language. This study also addresses the factors that may influence a child’s ability to learn a second language, including native language, socioeconomic status, age, immigration circumstances, and the particular values and customs of the family. In essence, each of these factors may require programs to adapt, because no ELL model will fit all populations and contexts.
Mental Health
In March 2008, a National Summit to Promote the Well-Being of Arab and Muslim Youth was organized by the Refugee Mental Health Program of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration in Dearborn, Michigan. Most of the presentations are online and two that may be of interest to BRYCS’ audience are “Mental Health Issues of Arab American Youth”, and “Understanding Arab Culture and Customs Related to Recovery”.
Moving Towards Culturally Competent Practice with Muslims:Modifying Cognitive Therapy with Islamic Tenets, a recent article in the Journal of Social Work, addresses the lack of culturally competent services to Muslims, despite the population's growing presence in the United States. Authors pin-point Islamic norms and teachings and offer a number of examples to illustrate how common American therapies can be reconstructed to reflect those values.
Program Development
Boards of Midsize Nonprofits: Their Needs and Challenges is an article from the Urban Institute that discusses how nonprofit boards are receiving increased attention from policymakers, media, researchers and the public. Yet most research, policy proposals, and best practice guidelines have been oriented toward large organizations. This brief helps fill a major gap in our understanding by focusing on governance among midsize nonprofits, identifying certain problem areas, and suggesting strategies that those engaged with midsize nonprofits may find helpful in strengthening their boards. (Description taken from source.)
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